Distraction is a major danger in traffic

Distraction is a major danger in traffic

In 2019, 139 people died in accidents because they or the other party were involved in oncoming traffic. A current driving study by the mobility club, which was carried out together with the ADAC at the ÖAMTC driving technology center in Teesdorf with 45 test subjects, examined the possible effects of various secondary activities on driving behavior and traffic safety when driving cars, bicycles and e-scooters. As part of the study, all secondary activities examined, including: Handling objects, drinking from a water bottle, using smartphones and using the navigation system while driving can be proven to have serious impairments in the driving task - regardless of the vehicle type. "During test drives, we gave our test subjects tasks that are often carried out in reality. We were able to show that distracting activities lead to massive driving errors, even if you are fit and experienced behind the wheel. Nine out of ten drivers would have collided with a suddenly appearing obstacle and more than a third of the test subjects would have crossed the center line at least once, which in a real situation would lead to them ending up in oncoming traffic for between 3.5 and 4 seconds," explains ÖAMTC traffic psychologist Marion Seidenberger. The expert's conclusion: "Every distracting activity that we examined, no matter how banal it may seem, had measurable effects on driving behavior. Our test subjects often estimated themselves to be better than they actually were. Misinterpreting one's own performance can lead to dangerous accidents."