Majority of Canadians feel other motorists, not themselves, drive distracted: State Farm survey

A national survey of Canadians who drive in urban and rural communities has found that most respondents (93%) feel that other motorists drive while they are distracted, but only 56% believe that they themselves are a distracted driver.

“This is a striking difference from how drivers view their own abilities behind the wheel compared to those with whom they share the road,” said the study from State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, released on Thursday.

The online survey, which polled 1,300 respondents of driving age across Canada, also found that 30% of respondents indicated that the most dangerous thing a person can do on the road is to drive distracted, followed by running a red light/stop sign (25%), aggressive driving (16%) and speeding (11%). About one-third (33%) also acknowledged that they check their cellphone or handheld device once or more while driving and 35% admit to driving while distracted. [click image below to enlarge]

“We know that distracted driving is a serious problem in Canada,” said John Bordignon, media relations, State Farm, in a press release. “A 2011 Alberta Transportation study reveals that distracted drivers are three times more likely to be in a crash than attentive drivers. And, distracted driving is more than talking on the cellphone, texting or eating; it includes allowing your attention to wonder to things away from the road. These distractions can have devastating results and are completely avoidable.”

Overall, survey respondents said that they are most guilty of being distracted by things outside of their car, like houses and people, and those over the age of 65 (54%) are the biggest offenders. Other findings included: respondents aged 35-44 were the biggest offenders of texting while driving (16%) followed by those aged 18-34 (15%); respondents aged 35-44 cite that they often eat and drink while driving (21%); and respondents aged 35-44 are also most guilty of being distracted by passengers/children in their car (21%). [click image below to enlarge]

So far, personal experiences like traffic fines and collisions have proven to be the most successful deterrent for reducing distracted driving, the survey found, with 58% of those surveyed indicating they are most likely to stop distracted driving behavior if fines are increased or they are involved in a collision.

“It obviously makes more sense for Canadians to drop their bad habits now than to wait for a collision or a ticket to curb their behaviour,” Bordignon said in the release. “Turning off your mobile device, staying focused on the road and the area you are travelling in, eating ahead of a journey, or pulling off the road to eat or make a call, are simple practices we can adopt immediately to significantly reduce the distractions we face while driving.”