Study on Traffic Safety
The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety (AAA) has recently published a study on traffic safety culture for 2016. The key findings from this study are alarming and they continue to live on as a problem in California regardless of statewide efforts.
Study Key Findings
The study conducted by AAA has released surprising key findings for young drivers that are 19 years to 24 years. The findings found that these drivers in this age range were:
- Less likely to support legislative efforts directed at preventing distracted driving.
- More likely to believe that texting while driving is acceptable.
- More likely to report typing or reading text messages while driving.
The study also found that one in nine motorists has suffered serious injuries in an automobile accident and almost one in five has been involved in a serious accident. Nearly one in three motorists have a family member or friend that has been injured or killed in an accident. Approximately 87.8% of drivers find it unacceptable to travel in a motor vehicle without wearing a seatbelt. The most shocking key finding of this report was that more than 4 in 5 people say they never wear a seatbelt.
Aggressive Driving
Aggressive driving, which is a form of reckless driving, is where a motorist operates a vehicle aggressively or recklessly which opposes a threat against the public safety of others on the roadway. Approximately 92.8% of motorists stated that it is unacceptable to travel through a traffic light that just turned red when the driver could have stopped safely at the intersection. More than 1 in 3 drivers, which accounts for 35.6%, admit to running red lights in the past month.
Speeding is also a form of aggressive driving. Approximately 46.0% of drivers have admitted to driving 10 mph over the posted speed limit along a residential street in the past month. About 67.7% of survey respondents oppose speed cameras along highways while 56.2% oppose speed cameras placed along residential streets.
Distracted Driving
Distracted driving is a common cause of automobile accidents in California today. According to AAA, 81.1% of drivers stated that texting or emailing while operating a motor vehicle apposes a serious threat to public safety and 78.2% believe that it is completely unacceptable. However, 40.2% of motorists reported that they have read an email or text while driving in the past month and 31.4% have been guilty of typing a message while driving. The support for a ban against texting for drivers was 88.4%. The support for a ban on hand-held mobile devices was accounted at 71.5% while the support for a total ban was at 42.0%.
Assembly Bill 1785 was signed by Governor Jerry Brown on September 2016 and was put into effect on January 1, 2017. The goal of the new law was to further reduce the use of cell phones while behind the wheel of a motor vehicle. However, California drivers on the roadway today still disobey the law.
Watch YouTube Video – By AAA – AAA Distracted Teens Crash Causation. The following video by AAA demonstrates video footage of teen drivers that are texting while driving.
Impaired Driving and Drowsy Driving
Impaired driving and drowsy driving are both forms of negligent driving that can pose a risk to others on the road. About 60% of drivers believe that driving after using illegal drugs plays as a very serious threat while 33.9% stated that they feel the same about motorists driving after using prescription drugs. Most motorists disapprove of drinking and driving and 81.0% support alcohol-ignition interlocks for drivers convicted of driving under the influence, also including first-time offenders. Approximately 71.8% of drivers support the idea of requiring automakers to create built-in interlocks for all new vehicles. 63.5% of drivers also believe that the legal limit for blood alcohol concentration (BAC) should be lowered from 0.08 to 0.05 grams per deciliter (g/dL) and 84.2% support a marijuana per se law.
Nearly half of the drivers, which accounts at 47.9%, stated that drowsy driving is a very serious threat to public safety and about 80% believe that it is unacceptable. However, 28.9% of drivers have admitted to being unable to keep their eyes open while driving in the past month.
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Information Credit for AAA Traffic Culture Study 2016: https://www.aaafoundation.org/
Photograph Credit: Wikimedia Commons – American-Automobile-Association-Logo.svg_.png
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