New Research on Teens
and Distracted Driving
CFTF Unintentional Death Committee November 18, 2013
Arthur Goodwin
UNC Highway Safety Research Center
Distracted Driving
What is it…?
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Distracted Driving
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Visual Cognitive
Adjusting CD
Grooming
Physical
Eating/drinking
Glancing at a
billboard
Texting
Handheld
phone
Hands free
phone
Staring at a
crash
Distractions and Crashes
Hard to establish
• Drivers reluctant to admit (or may not know)
• No objective test for distractions
NHTSA estimates:
• 10% of fatal crashes are related to distraction
• 3,331 people killed in 2011
• 387,000 injured in 2011
• Rate highest among drivers 15-19 years old
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Teens and Distracted Driving
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Distracted Behaviors
% of clips
Adjusting controls 6.2%
Grooming 3.8%
Eating or drinking 2.8%
Reaching for object in vehicle 2.5%
Communicates with someone outside vehicle 1.5%
Driver turns around 0.9%
Reading 0.1%
Any distracted behavior 15.1%
N = 7,858 driving clips
Foss, R.D. & Goodwin, A.H. Distracted Driver Behaviors and Distracting Conditions Among
Adolescent Drivers: Findings from a Naturalistic Driving Study. Journal of Adolescent Health,
in press.
Electronic Device Use
% of clips
Holding cell phone to ear 2.3%
Talking on hands-free phone 0.1%
Operating an electronic device (e.g., texting) 1.2%
Suspected of operating an electronic device 3.1%
Any electronic device use* 6.7%
N = 7,858 driving clips
*Significantly differed for males (4.0%) and females (7.9%)
Foss, R.D. & Goodwin, A.H. Distracted Driver Behaviors and Distracting Conditions Among
Adolescent Drivers: Findings from a Naturalistic Driving Study. Journal of Adolescent Health,
in press.
Passengers
% of clips
Loud conversation* 12.6%
Horseplay* 6.3%
Passenger dancing 1.5%
Driver communicates with someone outside vehicle 1.1%
Physical contact with driver – affectionate 0.6%
Physical contact with driver – non-affectionate 0.2%
N = 2,716 driving clips
*Loud conversation and horseplay were observed in 27% and 16% of clips, respectively, with 2 or more teen passengers
Foss, R.D. & Goodwin, A.H. Distracted Driver Behaviors and Distracting Conditions Among
Adolescent Drivers: Findings from a Naturalistic Driving Study. Journal of Adolescent Health,
in press.
Distracted Driving
How do we address the problem?
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Teen Passenger Restrictions
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Cell Phone Restrictions
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0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
2006 2007 2008
Observed phone use
South Carolina
North Carolina
Goodwin, A.H., O’Brien, N.P., & Foss, R.D., Effect of North Carolina's restriction on
teenage driver cell phone use two years after implementation. Accident Analysis and
Prevention, 48, 363-367.
Enforcement
• NHTSA: HVE demonstration program
• Mississippi: Pay Attention or Pay a Fine
• Connecticut: Points and fines
• Minnesota: Officers on school buses,
trucks and SUVs
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Education
• Fear-based strategies
• Stories from victims
• Peer-to-peer programs (e.g., Teens in
the Driver Seat)
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Public Awareness Campaigns
• AT&T “It Can Wait” ad campaign
• NCDOT “Don’t Be a Zombie”
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New Technologies
• Disabling the phone
– Smartphone apps
– ORIGOSafe
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Thank you!
Questions?