Guidance to Promote Workplace Policies and Family Rules to Reduce Cell Phone Use While Driving and Promote Engaged Driving

Distraction while driving is a significant cause of crashes resulting in fatalities and serious injuries. Distracted driving may be more prevalent among young drivers who are already at greater risk for crashes due to novice driving skills. One source of distraction is using a cell phone. Communication (both spoken and typed) is a primary function of cell phones, and such communication is distracting because it takes the driver’s eyes off the road and pulls their attention from the driving task. Safe driving requires the driver to be engaged in the driving task. The family and workplace contexts offer two important opportunities to address cell phone use while driving and promote engaged driving. Families can establish rules about never using a cell phone while driving and never communicating using a phone with a family member who is driving. Workplaces can establish similar policies. Guidance to reach families and workplaces is needed for traffic safety practitioners to promote engaged driving – driving free of distractions like cell phones. The objectives of this project are to identify strategies for families and workplaces that foster engaged driving (i.e., practices that promote engagement by the driver in the driving task). Specifically, the project will seek to answer the following questions: • How do expectations within families and workplaces influence cell phone use while driving? • What beliefs and attitudes need to shift to change these expectations and increase engaged driving? • What are potentially effective strategies (and associated messages) to promote engaged driving within families and workplaces to reduce cell phone use?

• Record URL:
  https://www.mdt.mt.gov/research/projects/trafficsafety-engaged.shtml
• Record URL:
  https://www.pooledfund.org/Details/Study/558
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This project is being conducted under the Traffic Safety Culture Pooled Fund, Phase 1 (TPF-5(309), 8882-309).

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Completed
• Funding: $151968
• Contract Numbers:

  8882-309-16

  TPF-5(309)

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Montana Department of Transportation

  2701 Prospect Avenue
  P.O. Box 201001
  Helena, MT  United States  59620-1001

  California Department of Transportation

  1227 O Street
  Sacramento, CA  United States  95843

  Connecticut Department of Transportation

  2800 Berlin Turnpike
  Newington, CT  United States  06131

  Idaho Transportation Department

  P.O. Box 7129, 3311 West State Street
  Boise, ID  United States  83707-1129

  Iowa Department of Transportation

  800 Lincoln Way
  Ames, IA  United States  50010

  Illinois Department of Transportation

  300 W. Adams Street, 2nd Floor
  Chicago, IL  United States  60606

  Indiana Department of Transportation

  1101 State Office Building
  Indianapolis, IN  United States  46204

  Louisiana Department of Transportation

  P.O. Box 94245
  1201 Capitol Access Road
  Baton Rouge, LA  United States  70804-9245

  New Hampshire Department of Transportation

  John O. Morton Building
  P.O. Box 483
  Concord, NH  United States  03302-0483

  Nevada Department of Transportation

  1263 South Stewart Street
  Carson City, NV  United States  89712

  Texas Department of Transportation

  11th and Brazos Streets
  Austin, TX  United States  78701

  Utah Department of Transportation

  4501 South 2700 West
  Project Development
  Salt Lake City, UT  United States  84114-8380

  Vermont Agency of Transportation

  219 North Main Street
  Barre, VT  United States  05641

  Washington State Department of Transportation

  Transportation Building
  Olympia, WA  United States  98504
• Managing Organizations:

  Montana Department of Transportation

  2701 Prospect Avenue
  P.O. Box 201001
  Helena, MT  United States  59620-1001
• Project Managers:

  Sillick, Susan

• Performing Organizations:

  Montana State University, Western Transportation Institute

  P.O. Box 174250
  Bozeman, MT  United States  59717
• Principal Investigators:

  Otto, Jay

• Start Date: 20190621
• Expected Completion Date: 20210930
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Safety; Safety campaigns; Safety culture; Safety education
• Subject Areas: Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01713731
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Montana Department of Transportation
• Contract Numbers: 8882-309-16, TPF-5(309)
• Files: RIP, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Aug 13 2019 11:10AM