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Preventing Distracted Driving: A Vital Safety Training

Learn the impact and dangers of distracted driving, including cell phone use, eating, and other distractions. Discover statistics, causes, and prevention techniques to promote road safety.

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Preventing Distracted Driving: A Vital Safety Training

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  1. DISTRACTED DRIVING Bureau of Workers’ Comp PA Training for Health & Safety (PATHS) PPT-062-01 1

  2. What We Do… • We drink coffee • We read the paper PPT-062-01 2

  3. What We Do… • We put on makeup • We talk or text on the cell phone PPT-062-01 3

  4. What We Should Not Do… • All these things! While driving!! PPT-062-01 4

  5. Definition • Distracted Driving – Anything that causes the vehicle operator to either take their attention away from driving, take their eyes off the road, or take their hands off the wheel • Three types of distraction: • - Visual (eyes off the road) • - Manual (hands off the wheel) • - Cognitive (mind not on driving) PPT-062-01 5

  6. Types of Distracted Driving • Drinking/eating • Reading the paper/directions • Checking emails/internet on laptop • Sleepy/tired (Drowsy Driving) • Talking/texting on cell phone PPT-062-01 6

  7. Other Distractions • Searching for or moving an object in vehicle • Reading, writing, texting • Personal grooming • Rubbernecking at accident scenes • Looking at people, events or objects off roadway PPT-062-01 7

  8. Fatalities • In 2012, traffic fatalities higher than in 2005 • 2011 fatality count was 2% less than 2010 which had been 2% less than 2009 • Crash injuries requiring medical attention rose by 5% since 2011 • Is it possibly due to • - an improving economy • - a mild 2012 winter • - high speed impacts due to distracteddriving PPT-062-01 8

  9. Traffic Accident Causal Factors Driver distraction and inattention to road and trafficconditions are responsible for 25% to 30% of police reported traffic crashes, or about 1.2 million crashes each year PPT-062-01 9

  10. 5 Main Causes of Car Accidents • In PA: • Rubbernecking • Driver Fatigue • Drunk Driving • Speeding • Aggressive Driving PPT-062-01 10

  11. 2010 Fatality Statistics 51% of the 1,886 work zone crashes resulted in injuries or fatalities, plus the deaths of four workers PPT-062-01 11

  12. Distracted Driving Crashes In 2009: - 20% of injury crashes involved distracted driving - Of those killed, 995 involved reports of a cell phone as a distraction (18% of fatalities in distraction-related crashes per NHTSA) - 5,474 were killed on US roadways, an additional 448,000 injured due to distracted driving PPT-062-01 12

  13. Distracted Driving Crashes • Lawyers are finding more high speed collisions due to distracted driving • The distracted driver fails to notice an important road event, such as another driver making a mistake, 3% of the time • An adult dialing a cell phone misses the same event 13% of the time • A teenager dialing a cell phone misses it 53% of the time PPT-062-01 13

  14. Why the Attention on Cell Phones? • So many engaged in behavior (high risk) • Greater lengths of time (high exposure) • Called “cognitive distraction” • Looking at driving environment, but not seeing it • Mind processing the conversation, not the road PPT-062-01 14

  15. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says… • 33,000 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2010 • 3.5 million people suffered serious injuries in 2010 PPT-062-01 15

  16. National Safety Council says… • 25% of all motor vehicle crashes involve cell phone use (1 out of 4 crashes) • Cell phone use in motor vehicle crashes caused $100B in damages (2011) • 75% of drivers using cell phones commit traffic violations PPT-062-01 16

  17. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says… • 12% of total drivers at any point during the day are on their cell phone • 81% of drivers admit to talking on the cell phone while driving • 18% of drivers admit to text messaging while driving PPT-062-01 17

  18. Why the High Risk? • Slower reaction time • Cell phone users had slower reaction time than drivers impaired by alcohol (.08 BAC) • Reaction to vehicles braking in front of them is slower • No difference between hands-free and handheld phones PPT-062-01 18

  19. Why the High Risk? • Drivers “look” but they do not “see” • Drivers fail to see what is around them even though they are looking • Drivers miss traffic signals, stop signs, exit ramps • Also called “attention blindness” • We process 90% of input visually PPT-062-01 19

  20. Inattention Blindness • Drivers do not “see” 50% of the information in their driving environment • Drivers have difficulty: • Monitoring their surroundings • Seeking and identifying potential hazards • Responding to unexpected situations PPT-062-01 20

  21. Teen Drivers More likely to have a crash than if driving alone or with adult passengers PPT-062-01 21

  22. Teens vs. Mature Drivers • Research finds that a normal teen: • Lacks experience • Is prone to overzealous driving (aggressive driving) • They do have: • Better vision • Better reflexes • Better reaction times • However, do these positives give a false sense of confidence to be able to react? PPT-062-01 22

  23. Teen Statistics • 2008 UK study: • 17-24 year old drivers reaction time reduced 35% when typing a text message, compared with 12% when driving after consuming alcohol to legal limit • Teens think the chances of getting into an accident are still higher when drinking versus texting while driving • Aspiring and current teen drivers think their chances of narrowly avoiding an accident are better texting while driving than drinking while driving PPT-062-01 23

  24. Adults Texting While Driving • Adults may do it more than teens; nearly ½ • admitted to texting while driving • 31% of all drivers in US text while driving; • 69% of all drivers admit to using cell phone while driving • Consider: • There are 180 million adult and 10 million teen drivers!! • Sending/receiving text breaks concentration for 4.6 seconds - at 55 MPH, that equals enough • distance to cover length of a football field! PPT-062-01 24

  25. Texting National Safety Council estimates 200,000 crashes each year are caused by drivers who are texting PPT-062-01 25

  26. Cell Phones • Per NHTSA: • At any time, 11% of all drivers are using cell phones • 2006 study: • Participants 22-34 years old found impairments associated with talking on cell phone can be as profound as those associated with driving while intoxicated when involved directly in cell phone use PPT-062-01 26

  27. When People Know the Risks… • Voluntary compliance is very difficult • Most people believe they are better than average drivers – “the other driver is the problem” • Driving without a crash reinforces risky behavior • Feel compelled to answer the phone, texts PPT-062-01 27

  28. Cell Phone Use • Whether hands-free or handheld, requires the brain to multitask which it cannot safely do while driving • Cell phone use while driving: • Impairs driving performance • Also weakens brain’s ability to capture driving clues PPT-062-01 28

  29. Multitasking • University of Utah study (Drs. Sanbonmatsu and Strayer) • Multitaskers may do so because they have difficulty focusing closely on even a single task • “One of the main reasons people multitask is because they think they’re good at it ….The more likely they are to do it, the more likely they are to be bad at it.” PPT-062-01 29

  30. How Do We Make the Roads Safer? • Education • Legislation • Technology • Corporate policy • Culture Corporate Safety Manual PPT-062-01 30

  31. Education • National Safety Council Defensive Driver Course – includes topics such as distracted driving, aggressive driving, and seat belt use • Hands-free devices do not reduce the risk compared to handheld devices – cognitive distraction remains the same (NSC) • www.JustDrivePA.com website PPT-062-01 31

  32. Legislation • Executive Order 13513 – (President Obama): Prohibits all federal and government employees from texting while driving government vehicles or while on government business; took effect January 2010 • Senate Bill 314 – (Governor Corbett): Prohibits all texting while driving to anyone driving on Pennsylvania roads; took effect on March 8, 2012 • 29 states have bans on texting while driving (Pennsylvania - yes) • In addition, 15 states have total cell phone bans for young drivers, 16 to 24 years old (Pennsylvania – no) • 10 states ban handheld devices (Pennsylvania – no) PPT-062-01 32

  33. Technology • Companies (Sprint, AT&T, Aegis) are developing products to safely manage electronic communications for drivers • Subscribing to a distracted driving service (sends message to caller that person is driving and will receive message when done) • Service will block all cell phone calls except 911 calls, while on public transportation, option to disable “hands-free” feature PPT-062-01 33

  34. Corporate Policy • NSC has called for a total ban on cell phone • use while driving on a nationwide basis since 2009 • 25% of NSC members have a policy on total bans of cell phones while driving • 20% of Fortune 500 companies have a policy on total bans of cell phones while driving PPT-062-01 34

  35. Culture • $21M verdict against Coca-Cola in cell phone distracted driving case (AP, May 2012) • Distracted driving is becoming the new DUI (NTSB, Dec 2011) • Nationwide hand-held cell phone ban for all commercial drivers (U.S. DOT, Nov 2011) • 94% of Americans consider it unacceptable to text while driving (AAA, Oct 2009) • 80% of Americans support a ban on text/email while driving (Nationwide Insurance, Aug 2009) PPT-062-01 35

  36. Employer Liability • Judge and Jury awards, out-of-court settlements: • $21.6 million, Ohio technology company • $18 million, Alabama trucking company • $16.1 million, Arkansas lumber distributor • $5.2 million, Georgia paper company • $5 million, Georgia construction company • $2 million, Virginia law firm • $1.75 million, Florida car dealership • $1.5 million, State of Hawaii • $500,000 Pennsylvania brokerage firm PPT-062-01 36

  37. Employer Liability • During work hours and outside work hours • Driving to/from work appointments • Using business and personal vehicles • Having business and personal conversations • Employer-provided and employee-owned phones PPT-062-01 37

  38. What can employers do? • Implement a cell phone ban policy in your company and enforce it • Educate employees about this issue • Show personal leadership – stop using cell phone while driving and change your voice mail greeting • Monitor compliance and effectiveness • Support legislation and enforcement PPT-062-01 38

  39. What can YOU do? • Refrain from using your cell phone while driving • Place your cell phone on vibrate, or in the glove box to avoid temptation • Change your voicemail message to say you are unavailable when driving • Safely pull over and put the vehicle in “Park” position before you take or make a call • Educate your family and friends on the issue PPT-062-01 39

  40. References • National Safety Council – www.nsc.org • Penn DOT – www.JustDrivePA.com • National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) – www.ntsb.gov • National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) – www.distraction.gov • Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) – www.osha.gov/distracted-driving • Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) – www.iihs.org PPT-062-01 40

  41. Any questions? PPT-062-01 41

  42. Contact Information • Health & Safety Training Specialists: PA Dept of Labor and Industry Bureau of Workers’ Comp (717) 772-1917 Email: RI-LI-BWC-Safety@pa.gov Website: www.dli.state.pa.us/PATHS PPT-062-01 42

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