Research Studies & Reports
DMV’s Research & Development Branch has been conducting research and producing studies and reports since the 1950s. Research & Development reports help DMV to measure the impact of new laws on making drivers safer. We also identify areas where we can improve our processes, explore new approaches to solving existing problems, and branch out into new opportunities to serve you better.
Studies & Reports Sections
Studies and reports are assigned to a Section that best describes the type of report. Click on a section title below to see a short description.
I. Driver Education & Training Studies
II. Driver Licensing Screening Studies
III. Studies on Improvement and Control of Deviant Drivers
IV. Basic Research & Methodological Studies: Driver Performance, Accident Etiology, Prediction Models, and Actuarial Applications
V. Driver Licensing / Control Systems & Safety Management Studies
VI. Studies on Special Driver Populations
VII. Miscellaneous Studies & Reports
Request printed copies of studies and reports by mail at:
Department of Motor Vehicles
Research and Development Branch
2415 1st Ave. Mail Station: F-126
Sacramento, CA 95818
(916) 914-8125
Please include the report number, the number of copies requested, and your name, address, and phone number.
| Report ID | Date Published | Title | Section | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 236 | 2012/ 01 |
2012 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CALIFORNIA DUI MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMIn this twenty-first annual legislatively-mandated report, 2009 and 2010 DUI data from diverse sources were compiled and cross-referenced for the purpose of developing a single comprehensive DUI data reference and monitoring system. This report presents crosstabulated information on DUI arrests, convictions, court sanctions, administrative actions and alcohol-involved crashes. In addition, this report provides 1-year proportions of DUI recidivism and crash rates for first and second DUI offenders arrested in each year over a time period of 20 years. Also, the long term recidivism curves of the cumulative proportions of DUI reoffenses are shown for all DUI offenders arrested in 1994. Two analyses were conducted to evaluate if referrals to DUI programs were associated with reductions in 1-year subsequent violations and crashes among those convicted of the reduced charge of alcohol-related reckless driving, and if referrals to the 9-month DUI program were associated with reductions in 1-year subsequent violations and crashes when compared to referrals to the 3-month DUI program among first DUI offenders. The proportions of convicted first and second DUI offenders arrested in 2009, who were referred, enrolled, and completed DUI programs are also presented. |
V | |
| 234 | 2011/ 12 |
California’s Three-Tier Driving-Centered Assessment System – Outcome AnalysisThis Outcome Analysis constitutes the second of two reports on the 3-Tier Assessment System, as piloted by California DMV in 2006-2007. It contains (a) a projection of the costs associated with the Area Driving Performance Evaluation, (b) a determination of the willingness of a participant to pay a fee for the Area Driving Performance Evaluation, (c) a determination of the percentage of drivers who were assessed to have a limitation, but who, upon completion of the assessment, were able to retain their driving privileges, (d) the utilization of certified driving rehabilitation specialists, and (e) the results regarding crash rates and retention of driving privileges. Together, these analyses examine the effectiveness of the 3-Tier Assessment System in identifying functional impairments, reducing crashes, and extending safe driving years for California drivers of all ages. These analyses are based upon 2 years of elapsed driving history for the 12,279 customers who participated in the Pilot, along with two control groups: 14,907 customers in the Baseline II cohort, and 10,551 customers in the Nearby cohort. Based on limited data, an estimation is provided of the costs of the anticipated increase in the use of the ADPE, as associated with the 3-Tier Assessment System. Very few customers were willing to pay a fee for the ADPE. The overwhelming majority of customers, even those with functional limitations, were able to retain their driving privilege. No customers reported using certified driving rehabilitation specialists. The analyses found no evidence for a reduction in crash risk subsequent to participation in the Pilot; however, the analyses found some evidence that the Pilot is associated with an increased amount of time to complete the renewal process, with an increase in the odds of failing to renew the driving privilege, and with an increase in the odds of receiving a restricted license. Recommendations regarding implementation and future research are included. |
II | |
| 233 | 2011/ 01 |
2011 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CALIFORNIA DUI MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMIn this twentieth annual legislatively-mandated report, 2008 and 2009 DUI data from diverse sources were compiled and cross-referenced for the purpose of developing a single comprehensive DUI data reference and monitoring system. This report presents crosstabulated information on DUI arrests, convictions, court sanctions, administrative actions and alcohol-involved crashes. In addition, this report provides 1-year proportions of DUI recidivism and crash rates for first and second DUI offenders arrested in each year over a time period of 19 years. Also, the long-term recidivism curves of the cumulative proportions of DUI reoffenses are shown for all DUI offenders arrested in 1994. Two analyses were conducted to evaluate if referrals to DUI programs were associated with reductions in 1-year subsequent violations and crashes among those convicted of the reduced charge of alcohol-related reckless driving, and if referrals to the 9-month DUI program were associated with reductions in 1-year subsequent violations and crashes when compared to referrals to the 3-month DUI program among first DUI offenders. The proportions of 2008 convicted first and second offenders who were referred, enrolled, and completed DUI programs are also presented. |
V | |
| 229 | 2010/ 04 |
California’s 3‐Tier Pilot Process Analysis AppendixThis report presents the descriptive and predictive analyses of: (i) the results of a survey (n = 130) conducted of California Department of Motor Vehicles (CA DMV) Field Office and Driver Safety Branch staff and managers participating in the 3‐Tier Pilot project; (ii) interviews (n = 49) conducted of CA DMV Field Office and Driver Safety Branch staff and managers participating in the 3‐Tier Pilot; (iii) the results of a survey (n = 5,777) conducted of customers participating in the 3‐Tier Pilot; and (iv) the robustness of the Pelli‐Robson contrast sensitivity chart by location and technician (n = 9,934). These analyses form the primary evidentiary basis for some of the findings and conclusions presented in the 3‐Tier Pilot Process Analysis Report. |
II | |
| 232 | 2010/ 04 |
California’s Three-Tier Driving-Centered Assessment System – Process AnalysisOn September 14, 2006, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Assembly Bill 2542 (Daucher) into law, adding Section 1659.9 to the California Vehicle Code, and calling for a pilot study by the California Department of Motor Vehicles (CA DMV) of the 3-Tier Assessment System. This manuscript (the “process report”) constitutes the first of two reports on the 3-Tier Assessment System. It details the planning and implementation of the pilot, the process outcomes for the 12,346 CA DMV customers who participated in the pilot as well as the 4,853 customers who constituted a baseline comparison group, and the results of the subsequent multi-component process evaluation. The process evaluation includes a description of the costs to implement the pilot, discussion of various threats to the methodological validity of the process and outcome analyses, and an estimation of the potential costs of statewide implementation. An appendix to this report (published separately) contains more detailed analyses associated with four components of the process evaluation: the results of a survey of participating staff, the results of qualitative interviews conducted with participating staff, the results of a survey of pilot customers, and the results of an analysis of customer outcomes on the Pelli-Robson contrast sensitivity assessment. |
II | |
| 231 | 2010/ 01 |
2010 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CALIFORNIA DUI MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMIn this nineteenth annual legislatively-mandated report, 2007 and 2008 DUI data from diverse sources were compiled and cross-referenced for the purpose of developing a single comprehensive DUI data reference and monitoring system. This report presents crosstabulated information on DUI arrests, convictions, court sanctions, administrative actions and alcohol-involved crashes. In addition, this report provides 1-year proportions of DUI recidivism and crash rates for first and second DUI offenders arrested in each year over a time period of 18 years. Also, the long-term recidivism curves of the cumulative proportions of DUI reoffenses are shown for all DUI offenders arrested in 1994. Analyses were conducted on the effectiveness of DUI programs in reducing 1-year subsequent violations and crashes of those convicted of the reduced charge of alcohol-related reckless driving, and on the effectiveness of the 3-month versus 9-month DUI programs for first offenders. Two additional subanalyses were conducted to determine if differences in the outcome measures were related to BAC level (below 0.20% and 0.20% and above). The proportions of 2007 convicted first and second offenders who were referred, enrolled, and completed DUI programs are also presented. |
V | |
| 216 | 2009/ 10 |
Clearing A Road to Being Driving Fit by Better Assessing Driving Wellness – Development of California’s Prospective Three-Tier Driving-Centered Assessment System (Technical Report)This report has two main purposes: (1) describe the development of California’s prospective 3-Tier driving-centered assessment system, and (2) present an “ecological perspective” on driver licensing. Driving-centered is an ecological concept—it means taking into consideration when, where, why, and how individual drivers customarily drive. Rather than an endpoint in delicensing drivers assessed as unsafe, 3-Tier fundamentally alters the purpose of assessment to be a starting point, if feasible, for extending the safe driving years of functionally-limited licensed drivers. The 3-Tier system integrates new assessment tools into those currently used by the Department of Motor Vehicles. All renewal applicants required to pass the department’s knowledge test are assessed on Tier 1, and those who are found to have a driving-relevant visual, mental, or physical limitation(s) are further screened on Tier 2. Based on these assessments, drivers are classified as driving well, somewhat functionally limited or extremely functionally limited; the extremely functionally-limited drivers are required to pass a Tier 3 road test to be licensed. The results of a small scale pilot study upon which the 3-Tier system was developed showed that somewhat-limited drivers, perhaps because they were less aware of their limitations, were more likely to be crash involved than extremely-limited drivers, who were probably more aware of their limitation(s) and compensated accordingly. In contrast, extremely-limited drivers were more likely to fail an office-based road test. The report concludes with 22 recommendations for statewide implementation of 3-Tier, including recommendations that the department’s R&D branch evaluate the reliability and validity of the current area drive test, and if needed, develop a better one, that this test be available to extremely limited drivers as an option for their Tier 3 road test requirement, and that the department educate somewhat-limited drivers about compensating for their limitation(s). |
II | |
| 230 | 2009/ 06 |
Enhanced Negligent Operator Treatment Evaluation System Program Effectiveness Report #1 (Summary Of Findings)The Enhanced Negligent Operator Treatment Evaluation System (ENOTES) provides periodic cost-effectiveness analyses of the California Negligent Operator Treatment System (NOTS). The evaluation system is based on a comparison of the driving records of negligent operators (drivers with multiple traffic conviction and/or crash points) who are randomly assigned to an intervention or to a no-contact delayed treatment comparison group. Three levels of progressively more severe negligent operator interventions were evaluated in this manner; the fourth-level intervention (the most severe) was evaluated indirectly by using data from the Level 3 intervention. Drivers at Levels 1 and 2 were eligible to receive the standard, non-alcohol letter or a letter based on the Transtheoretical Model (TTM) of behavior change. The results found NOTS to be effective in reducing subsequent total crashes and citations of treated drivers. Consistent with prior evaluations of NOTS, the largest effects were found for the probation and probation violator sanctions, and the smallest effects were associated with the Level 1 and 2 letters. Within Levels 1 and 2, the TTM letters were found to be more effective than the standard letters in reducing subsequent traffic crashes and convictions. A cost effectiveness analysis of NOTS provided positive estimates at all four levels. |
III | |
| 228 | 2009/ 01 |
2009 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CALIFORNIA DUI MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMIn this eighteenth annual legislatively-mandated report, 2006 and 2007 DUI data from diverse sources were compiled and cross-referenced for the purpose of developing a single comprehensive DUI data reference and monitoring system. This report presents crosstabulated information on DUI arrests, convictions, court sanctions, administrative actions and alcohol-involved crashes. In addition, this report provides 1-year proportions of DUI recidivism and crash rates for first and second DUI offenders arrested in each year over a time period of seventeen years. Also, the longterm recidivism curves of the cumulative proportions of DUI reoffenses are shown for all DUI offenders arrested in 1994. Analyses were conducted on the effectiveness of DUI programs on the 1-year postconviction records of those convicted of the reduced charge of alcohol-related reckless driving, and on the effectiveness of the 3-month versus 9-month DUI programs on the 1-year postconviction records of first offenders. Two additional subanalyses were conducted to determine if differences in the outcome measures were related to BAC level (below 0.20% and 0.20% and above). The proportions of 2006 convicted first and second offenders who were referred, enrolled, and completed DUI programs are also presented. |
V | |
| 227 | 2008/ 10 |
Vehicle Ownership Among Drivers Convicted of Driving While Suspended/Revoked in CaliforniaSuspended and revoked (S/R) drivers who continue to drive are at increased risk of being involved in crashes, driving under the influence, and other driving violations. |
III |