Report

Mobile Phone Use while Driving. Conclusions from four investigations

Reseach area: Traffic safety
Year: 2004
VTI-code: R490 A
Price: 0 kr

 
VTI publication, 36 pages, 230 KB

In this research, requested by the Swedish National Road Administration, the purpose was to give a picture of drivers’ use of mobile phones while driving and more specifically their attitudes to the use of mobile phones while driving and the types of routines and behaviour practised when using the mobile phones. In addition, the purpose was to get some idea of the number of traffic accidents, along with injuries and deaths, which were caused by drivers using their mobile phones. The report summarises results from the national questionnaire-based Traffic Safety Survey TSU92-, a short literary review, two focus group discussions and a questionnaire survey.
The research shows that the number of mobile phone users while driving has increased and that
three quarters of all drivers have access to a mobile phone. Of the mobile phones, 75 % were handheld without any extra add-on equipment. The average number of drivers’ incoming or out-going calls while driving was 1.1 per day. Drivers sometimes also sent and received text messages while driving.
Generally, this was often a driver from the younger age group. As a rule, the driver generally took some kind of safety precaution in conjunction with a mobile phone call. Women stated that they used safety measures more often than men and older drivers more often than younger.
The use of mobile phones affected driving in different ways. Drivers missed exits, failed to
observe traffic signals, and forgot to adjust the speed according to the limit. It was not unusual with incidents or near collisions with other vehicles or objects, or driving off the road, when mobile phones were used while driving. The dominant reason for the driver to have a mobile phone in the car was the security of always being able to contact or be contacted by someone else.

Author(s)

Gustafsson, Susanne
Thulin, Hans

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