Citation

Higgins L, Avelar R, Chrysler S. Accid. Reconstr. J. 2021; 31(6): 14-17.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, Accident Reconstruction Journal)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Distracted drivers are at increased risk of crashes. Numerous studies over the past two decades have examined, including drivers' use of cell phones. A meta analysis of 33 studies that analyzed the effects of using a cell phone while driving found an average increase of 0.25 in driver reaction times, whether using a hand-held or hands free phone. This study analyzes naturalistic driving data from the Strategic Highway Driving Study Research Program's Naturalistic Driving Study (SHRP2 NDS) to study the relative effects of engaging in secondary tasks on driver performance. The authors used pre-reduced data from SHRP2 NDS to evaluate drivers' reaction times during traffic incidents including crashes. The authors used NDS data to asses reaction time and crash probability variables including age, distraction type, and urban environment. The authors conclude that the naturalistic driving data found results that suppor many earlier studies conducted using simulators and test tracks. median reaction times where 40.5% higher among drivers who were texting or performing other visual-manual tasks. The crash risk was 4.66 higher for these drivers than for undestracted drivers.

Language: en

Keywords

Cellular telephones; Driving; Crash causes; Automatic data collection systems; Crash data; Distraction; Text messaging