What’s the biggest safety problem on California’s road?
Speeding and aggressive driving, according to a survey of drivers by the state Office of Traffic Safety.
What’s the most serious distraction for drivers?
Cell phone conversation, whether handheld or hands free, by far was No. 1 at 59.5 percent.
Despite that distraction, 42.6 percent of the 1,671 drivers age 18 and over who were surveyed said they talked on a hands-free cell phone regularly or sometimes in the previous 30 days. And about 27 percent said they had ignored state law and had talked on a handheld phone in the previous 30 days.
Here are other highlights of the survey, conducted in July in 15 counties, but not Sonoma, Lake or Mendocino counties:
–19.8 percent said they had regularly or sometimes texted or emailed while driving in the previous 30 days.
–45.8 percent had at some point made a driving mistake while talking on their cell phone.
–54.6 percent had been hit or nearly hit by a driver who was talking or texting on a cell phone.
–86.5 percent support DUI checkpoints.
–5.9 percent had driven in the previous 30 days even though they thought they had had too much to drink to drive safely.
The Office of Traffic Safety said the survey, its first ever statewide survey of driver opinions on safety issues, “will help the state and those involved in the Strategic Highway Safety plan better identify and track driver attitudes, self-reported driving behavior, awareness of high visibility enforcement efforts and safety communications.”
Here are other details of the OTS survey:
Drivers were questioned in 15 counties: San Francisco, Alameda, Santa Clara, Contra Costa, Sacramento, Placer, San Mateo, Fresno, Kern, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, Orange, San Diego and Ventura. Drivers were approached randomly by surveyors, who selected every other person that appeared to be a driver of a car and appeared to be over 18 years of age.
1. In your opinion, what are the biggest safety problems on California roadways?
Speeding/Aggressive Driving 21.5 percent
Distracted Driving because of talking on cell phone 15.9
Bad Road Surfaces 11.4
Drunken Driving 10.1
Distracted Driving because of texting on cell phone 2.4
Internal Car Distractions 1.2
Other/Don’t Know 37.5
2. In your opinion, what is the most serious distraction for drivers?
Cell Phone Conversations (handheld or hands-free) 59.5 percent
Texting While Driving 12.2
Passengers in Car 2.9
Roadside Billboards 1.9
Eating While Driving 1.8
Adjusting Radio/Stereos 1.1
Personal Grooming 0.5
GPS/Navigation Systems 0.2
Other/Don’t Know 19.9
3. How often in the past 30 days have you talked on a hand-held cell phone while driving?
Regularly 14 percent
Sometimes 13.6
Rarely 19.4
Never 52.8
Other/Don’t Know 0.2
4. How often in the past 30 days have you talked on a hands-free cell phone while driving?
Regularly 29.4 percent
Sometimes 13.2
Rarely 8.1
Never 49.1
Other/Don’t Know 0.2
5. How often in the past 30 days have you texted or emailed while driving?
Regularly 9.4 percent
Sometimes 10.4
Rarely 10.6
Never 69.5
Other/Don’t Know 0.1
6. Do you believe using a hands-free cell phone is safer than a hand-held phone while driving?
Yes 68.5 percent
No 28.8
Other/Don’t Know 2.7
7. Do you talk less, more or the same amount on your cell phone because of the hands-free law?
More 7.8 percent
The same 51.9
Less 31.5
Other/Don’t Know 8.8
8. Have you ever made a driving mistake while talking on a cell phone?
Yes 45.8 percent
No 52.8
Other/Don’t Know 1.4
9. Have you ever been hit or nearly hit by a driver who was talking or texting on a cell phone?
Yes 54.6 percent
No 40.3
Other/Don’t Know 5.1
10. Do you recall hearing or seeing “Report Drunk Drivers – Call 911” in the past 6 months?
Yes 60.2
No 39.1
Other/Don’t Know 0.7
11. Do you think the “Report Drunk Drivers – Call 911” program has helped police make more DUI arrests?
Yes 56 percent
No 20.2
Other/Don’t Know 23.8
12. In your opinion, is the “Report Drunk Drivers – Call 911” program resulting in fewer drunken drivers on the roadways?
Yes 42.1 percent
No 41.2
Other/Don’t Know 16.7
13. Since seeing or hearing “Report Drunk Drivers – Call 911,” are you less likely to drive after drinking too much?
Yes 36.7 percent
No 37.5
I do not drink at all 21.8
Other/Don’t Know 4
14. In the past 6 months, have you seen or heard anything about police setting up sobriety/DUI checkpoints to catch drunken drivers?
Yes 68.5 percent
No 29.9
Other/Don’t Know 1.6
15. Do you support the use of sobriety/DUI checkpoints?
Yes 86.5 percent
No 11.3
Other/Don’t Know 2.2
16. In the past 30 days, did you drive when you thought you had too much alcohol to drive safely?
Yes 5.9 percent
No 72.7
I do not drink at all 20.2
Other/Don’t Know 1.2
17. How serious of a problem is driving under the influence of drugs, both legal and illegal?
Very Big Problem 69.4 percent
Somewhat of a problem 19.7
A Small Problem 4.4
Not a problem at all 1.3
Other/Don’t Know 5.2
18. Do you believe the penalty for driving under the influence of drugs is as serious as the penalty for driving under the influence of alcohol?
Yes 52.2 percent
No 20.7
Other/Don’t Know 27.1
19. In your opinion, should the penalty for driving under the influence of drugs be more serious, less serious or the same?
More serious penalty 17.4 percent
Less serious penalty 6.8
The same penalty 70.4
Other/Don’t Know 5.4
20. How often do you wear a seatbelt?
Always wear a seatbelt 95.8 percent
Sometimes wear a seatbelt 2.7
Never wear a seatbelt 1
Other/Don’t Know 0.5
21. Do you recall hearing or seeing “Click It or Ticket” in the past 6 months?
Yes 83.3 percent
No 15.8
Other/Don’t Know 0.9
22. Do you think the chances of being stopped for not wearing a seatbelt have changed because of the “Click It or Ticket” campaign?
Yes 57.1 percent
No 31.5
Other/Don’t Know 11.4
