Distracted Driving U.S. Federal Initiatives

Amy Schick, MS, CHES Office of Impaired Driving and Occupant Protection

Distracted Driving Defined

NHTSA broadly defines driver distraction as anything that can take visual, manual or cognitive resources away from the driving task.

Distraction occurs when drivers divert their attention from the driving task.

Three Types of Distraction:

Visual - Eyes off the road

Manual - Hands off the wheel

Cognitive - Mind off the driving task

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Distracted Driving Problem

In 2010, an estimated 3,092 motor vehicle fatalities were distraction affected.

The percentage of drivers holding cell phones to their ears while driving stands at 5%. This rate translates in 660,000 vehicles driven by someone using a hand-held cell phone at a typical daylight moment in 2010.

Distracted Driving Equal Opportunity Problem

Driver Distraction impacts: •Men and women

•People of all ages

•All Vehicle types

People of all ages are using a variety of hand-held devices, such as cell phones, mp3 players, personal digital assistants, and navigation devices, when they are behind the wheel.

Data Unknowns and Limitations

While the numbers are significant, they may not state the true size of the problem

Documentation of distraction can be complex

Distraction incidence is not consistently recorded across the U.S., as there is variation in both the data collected on Police Accident Reports (PARs) and the quality of police reporting

Inconsistencies between self reported behaviors vs. behaviors reported to authorities

Improved Reporting and Data Collection

NHTSA is taking steps toward to align driver distraction reporting in PARs in a pending revision of the Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria (MMUCC). These revised guidelines are being developed in cooperation with State officials and are expected to be published in the spring of 2012.

In addition to using PARs, NHTSA uses a variety of other methods to collect information on driver distraction, including intensive on-scene crash investigations as used in the NHTSA’s National Motor Vehicle Crash Causation Study, simulator studies, and naturalistic driving studies (Strategic Highway Research Program-2).

Growing Popularity of Cell Phones About 302 million Americans owned cell phones in 2010,

compared to only 1 million in 1987.

The National Health Interview Survey found that nearly one in four households were wireless only (no land line), up nearly 2 percentage points from the year before.

The popularity of text messaging has increased to 2 trillion in 2010, a 31% rise.

Multiple media service (MMS) increased 64% since 2009 to 56.6 billion annually. MMS allows users to send videos, pictures and text pages. At the same time, minutes of use increased to 2.2 trillion.

National Phone Survey on Distracted Driving Attitudes and Behaviors

The survey found that 18% of drivers said they have sent text messages or e-mails while driving; about half (49%) of those 21 to 24 years old reported doing so.

More than half believe that using a cell phone and or sending a text message/e-mail makes no difference on their driving performance, yet as passengers, 90% said they would feel very unsafe if their driver was talking on a handheld cell phone or texting/e-mailing while traveling with them.

One-third of drivers 18 to 24 years old feel they can take their eyes off the road for 3 to 10 seconds or more before driving becomes significantly more dangerous.

Relative Risk

Most crashes involve a relatively unique set of circumstances that make precise calculations of risk for engaging in different behaviors very difficult. Available research does not allow us to precisely determine what is the riskiest behavior. Different studies and analyses have arrived at different relative risk estimates for different tasks. However, they all show elevated risk when the driver is distracted.

Greater Exposure = Greater Risk

NHTSA Driver Distraction Program Plan

NHTSA has implemented a multi-year Distraction Plan and Research Agenda that will further examine driver communications and entertainment devices, including cell phones, and will also continue to monitor the research of others on this subject.

NHTSA’s Driver Distraction Program Plan

NHTSA Goal: Eliminate Crashes Due to Distraction

Distracted Driving Initiative 1

Improve the understanding of the problem: Improve police reporting, analyze additional crash data, continue observational, awareness, hazard anticipation, and naturalistic studies, etc.

Distracted Driving Initiative 2

Reduce workload from interfaces: Develop test procedures to evaluate in-vehicle and nomadic devices. NHTSA will release voluntary Driver Distraction Guidelines that apply to

in-vehicle device tasks performed by the driver through visual-manual means.

Proposed Distraction Guidelines for Automakers On Feb. 16th the US DOT proposed the 1st of 3 phases of guidelines

to encourage automobile manufacturers to limit distraction risk for in-vehicle electronic devices

The guidelines recommend criteria manufacturers can use to

ensure system or devices provided in their vehicles are less likely to distract the driver with tasks not directly relevant to safely operating the vehicle

The guidelines are geared towards light vehicle rated less than

10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight The proposed guidelines will apply to communications,

entertainment, information gathering and navigation devices

Distraction Guidelines for Automakers

The proposed phase 1 of the distraction guidelines include recommendations to:

◦ Reduce complexity and task length required by the device ◦ Limit device operation to one hand only (leaving the other hand to

remain on the steering wheel) ◦ Limit individual off-road glances required for device operation to no

more than 2 seconds in duration ◦ Limit unnecessary visual information in the drivers field of view ◦ Limit the amount of manual inputs required for device operation

Distraction Guidelines for Automakers – Public Comment Period

The Phase 1 guidelines are available in the U.S. Federal Register.

There will be a 60 day comment period and NHTSA will also hold public hearings on the proposed guidelines to solicit public input. These hearings will take place in March and will be held in Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington, D.C.

Distracted Driving Initiative 3

Keep distracted drivers safe: Improve crash warning systems.

Distracted Driving Initiative 4

Recognize risks and consequences: Assess the effect of high-visibility law enforcement and targeted media campaigns.

State Text Messaging Bans

OH

RI

MD

AK

Primary Enforcement (all drivers)

Secondary Enforcement (all drivers)

Novice Drivers Only

PR

AR

DE

NJ

VA UT

WY

TN

WA

OR

NC

NY MN

DC

LA

IL

CT

CO CA

ME

VT NH

MA

PA

WV

SC GA

FL

AL MS

TX

OK NM

HI

AZ

NV

ID

MT ND

SD

NE

KS

IA

MO

WI MI

IN

KY

Distracted Driving Laws

All Driver Hand-held Cell Phone Bans in the U.S.

Except for Maryland, all these laws are primary enforcement— An officer may cite a driver for using a handheld cell phone without any other traffic offense taking place. *30 States and D.C. ban all cell phone use by novice drivers.

California

Connecticut

Delaware

Hawaii

Maryland

Nevada

New Jersey

New York

Oregon

Washington

District of Columbia

Virgin Islands

Distracted Driving High Visibility Enforcement Demonstration

In 2009, NHTSA initiated distracted driving demonstration programs in two communities to test whether a high visibility enforcement (HVE) model could reduce two specific instances of distracted driving -- talking or texting using a hand-held cell phone.

Syracuse, New York, and Hartford, Connecticut, conducted the demonstrations.

The demonstrations spanned over four waves: (March 2010, July 2010, October 2010 & March/April 2011)

Click It or Ticket Model

The approach used in distracted driving demonstration project was based on the proven Click It or Ticket (CIOT) model. This model involves aggressive enforcement activities that are

readily apparent to motorists.

The enforcement activity is coupled with paid and earned media developed to alert the public of the enforcement with the end goal being deterrence.

These techniques have been highly successful in increasing

safety belt use and reducing impaired driving nationwide in the past decade.

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Evaluation

Before and after each wave, NHTSA conducted observations of driver cell phone use and collected public awareness surveys at driver licensing offices in each test and comparison site.

Albany, New York, served as the comparison area for Syracuse. Bridgeport and Stamford, Connecticut, were selected as control areas to match the demographics of the three Hartford area cities.

No media was purchased in the control sites and law enforcement officers continued their usual enforcement activities without special emphasis on cell phone laws.

Observational Surveys

Cell phone use observations were taken at 15 sites in each intervention area, plus 15 sites in Albany, NY 15 in Stamford, CT and 7 sites in Bridgeport, CT.

Sites were selected from road segments based on traffic volume estimates. The main goal of site selection was to capture the bulk of the traffic streams in the given area.

Distracted Driving Demo Final Results (Hartford, CT)

Observed Hand-held Phone Use

The percentage of drivers observed holding their phones to their ears decreased from baseline to the end of the fourth wave.

The reduction was significantly greater in Hartford (from 6.8% to 2.9%) than the control site (from 6.6% to 5.6%).

These changes represent a 57% drop in observed cell phone use for the Hartford site compared to a 15% drop at the control site.

Distracted Driving Demo Final Results (Hartford, CT)

At the end of each individual

wave, observers counted significantly fewer Hartford drivers manipulating their phones compared to the beginning of each wave.

Overall there was a significant decrease in observed phone manipulation, from 3.9% to 1.1% in Hartford. This represents a 72% decline.

There was no significant difference in observed cell phone manipulation in the control sites, from 2.8% to 2.4%.

Observed Phone Manipulation (texting/dialing)

Distracted Driving Demo Final Results (Syracuse, NY)

Fewer drivers in Syracuse were

observed holding cell phones to their ears at the end of the fourth wave (from 3.7% to 2.5%). This 32% decrease was statistically significant.

In the control site, there was also a significant 40% reduction in observed hand-held cell phone use from 5.0% to 3.0%.

Observed Hand-held Phone Use

Distracted Driving Demo Final Results (Syracuse, NY)

Syracuse showed an overall

decrease of 32% in observed phone manipulation from the baseline to the end of the fourth wave (2.8% to 1.9%).

Albany’s observed rate of manipulating a phone while driving was much higher than Syracuse at the baseline period.

Observed Phone Manipulation (texting/dialing)

What We Learned…

Awareness about cell phone use and texting was remarkably high.

The messaging campaigns were successful in disseminating enforcement message.

Enforcement was strong; police in both sites issued a large

number of tickets in both sites, many times above previous benchmark levels.

Officers are developing best-practices for enforcement (e.g.,

observing texting violations is difficult for an officer who is standing on the side of the road but successful from higher observation points or SUVs, developing easy to use reporting forms).

What We Learned…

“…Good laws coupled with tough enforcement can reduce deadly distracted driving behavior” – Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood

Behavioral Approach

Public Awareness Campaign Federal Employee Texting Ban Federal Ban on Texting for Commercial Truck Drivers Sample Law to Prohibit Texting While Driving FRA Distracted Operator Final Rule PHMSA Texting Rule

“Every time we climb

into the driver’s seat, we all have a responsibility for keeping our roads

safe by putting away cell phones and other

distractions.”

- Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood

NHTSA will build upon the success of the community-based pilot

demonstration projects and will evaluate its widespread application by initiating two high visibility enforcement distracted driving campaigns on a larger “statewide” level.

NHTSA is collaborating with FMCSA to incorporate commercial motor vehicle components into the statewide demos.

NHTSA is conducting a 2nd National Distracted Driving telephone survey of a randomly selected sample of drivers ages 16 and older. The survey will assess and monitor attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors related to distracted and unsafe driving practices. The results will be compared to the baseline survey conducted in Fall 2010.

Next Steps

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Thank you

For more information visit:

www.distraction.gov

Amy Schick Email: amy.schick@dot.gov

Phone: 202-366-2764