Young Drivers Research Articles

Implementing the OT-FIRST Method & Clinical Observations Measure With Young Novice Drivers: A Feasibility Study

Abstract Date Presented 04/22/2023 This study assessed the feasibility of using clinical observations of driver readiness with young novice students using modified aspects of the OT-FIRST method. The study provides scientific evidence supporting the implementation of this young driver readiness assessment process and approach by OT practitioners. This innovative tool and approach supports a necessary step in addressing service and safety gaps identified in OT practice for teens and young adults. Primary Author and Speaker: Missy Bell

자율주행 환경에서 비운전과제 유형과 도로 혼잡도에 따른 청년 및 고령운전자의 제어권 인수와 운전수행 차이

The take-over time (TOT) and driving performances of young and old drivers according to the types of non-driving related tasks (NDRTs) and road complexity were compared by using 3-level automated driving simulation. NDRTs were divided into four types according to the stimulus modality and response modality: visual stimulus-verbal response(V-V), visual stimulus-manual response(V-M), visual/auditory stimulus-manual response(AV-M), and auditory stimulus-verbal response(A-V). Control condition where NDRT was not performed was also included. The participant group was divided into a young driver group and an elderly driver group, and the road condition was divided into a no-traffic condition and a heavy traffic condition based on the surrounding traffic volume. The main results of this study are as follows. First, TOT was the slowest in the visual stimulus-manual response condition, but the fastest in the auditory stimulus-verbal response condition. In particular, this tendency was more prominent in the elderly driver group than in the younger driver group and in the heavy traffic condition than in the no-traffic condition. Second, the main effect of the NDRT type was not significant in the driving performance measurements including steering wheel manipualtion variability and brake input after taking over control, but greater steering wheel manipulation variability and brake input were observed in the elderly driver group compared to the young driver group and in the heavy traffic condition compared to the no-traffic condition. These results suggest that the driver's age, NDRT type, and road conditions can have an integrated effect on TOT and driving performance after taking over control in autonomous driving situations.

Factors Influencing Motorists' Injury Severities: An Empirical Assessment of Crashes in District Peshawar, Pakistan

Travelling in a motor car is a popular mode of conveyance across Pakistan. Similarly, motorists constitute about 66% of total registered cars in Peshawar District which observed a 200% increase from 2006 to 2016. The current research estimates a Random Parameter Logit (RPL) Model by heterogeneousness means & variations in order to identify various parameters that contribute to the motorists' brutality of injury. The effects of motorist traits, temporal characteristics, motor vehicle features, roadway attributes, weather characteristics and effects of speed limits were predominantly considered for this analysis. Generally, typical approximation results show that the chance and severity of injuries increase for accidents including young drivers, winter indicators, and crashes that occurred between 10 AM-02 PM. Likewise, minor wound smashes are more likely to involve senior drivers, occurring during sunny weather, in the autumn season and in the month of August. Safety measures are suggested based on the findings of this research study to improve professional's motorist safety e.g. educating drivers about traffic rules and safety, zero tolerance for driving without a valid license, and enforcing speed limits on the roads. The results of this study will help in formulating strategies to improve motorists' safety.

Responding to customers while driving: Predictors of intention to text among motorcycle-based ride-hailing drivers

Although motorcycle-based ride-hailing (MBRH) has become more popular and in high demand in the last decades, especially in developing countries, their safety remains questionable due to drivers’ behavior in using smartphones to communicate with customers while driving. This study, therefore, aimed to investigate the influence of socio-demographics, working history, theory of planned behavior (TPB) variables, and risk perceptions on MBRH drivers’ intentions to use smartphones to read and text while driving in three varying traffic conditions. A number of 497 MBRH drivers in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, were sampled using both a convenience and a random sampling method. The findings revealed that younger MBRH drivers had more positive attitudes and had higher subjective norms and total control over this behavior, resulting in higher texting while driving intention. The empirical results also showed significant associations between TPB variables and intention, in which attitudes was found to be the strongest predictor of intention to text while driving. In addition to the TPB variables, the perceived risk of accidents was a significant predictor of intentions to text while driving in smooth and congested traffic, while risk perception of being apprehended by the police becomes a determinant of intention to text while stopping at signalized intersections. In order to minimize texting while driving intention, the study underscores the necessity for strategies that target attitude change and risk perception improvement.

Bivariate joint analysis of injury severity of drivers in truck-car crashes accommodating multilayer unobserved heterogeneity

Truck-involved crashes, especially truck-car crashes, are associated with serious and even fatal injuries, thus necessitating an in-depth analysis. Prior research focused solely on examining the injury severity of truck drivers or developed separate performance models for truck and car drivers. However, the severity of injuries to both drivers in the same truck-car crash may be interrelated, and influencing factors of injury severities sustained by the two parties may differ. To address these concerns, a random parameter bivariate probit model with heterogeneity in means (RPBPHM) is applied to examine factors affecting the injury severity of both drivers in the same truck-car crash and how these factors change over the years. Using truck-car crash data from 2017 to 2019 in the UK, the dependent variable is defined as slight injury and serious injury or fatality. Factors such as driver, vehicle, road, and environmental characteristics are statistically analyzed in this study. According to the findings, the RPBPHM model demonstrated a remarkable statistical fit, and a positive correlation was observed between the two drivers' injury severity in truck-car crashes. More importantly, the effects of the explanatory factors showing relatively temporal stability vary across different types of vehicle crashes. For example, car driver improper actions and lane changing by trucks, have a significant interactive effect on the severity of injuries sustained by drivers involved collisions between trucks and cars. Male truck drivers, young truck drivers, older truck drivers, and truck drivers' improper actions, elevate the estimated odds of only truck drivers; while older car and unsignalized crossing increase the possibility of injury severity of only car drivers. Finally, due to shared unobserved crash-specific factors, the 30-mph speed limit, dark no lights, and head-on collision, significantly affect the severity of injuries sustained by drivers involved in collisions between trucks and cars. The modeling approach provides a novel framework for jointly analyzing truck-involved crash injury severities. The findings will help policymakers take the necessary actions to reduce truck-car crashes by implementing appropriate and accurate safety countermeasures.

Subjective awareness of sleepiness while driving in younger and older adults.

Understanding whether drivers can accurately assess sleepiness is essential for educational campaigns advising drivers to stop driving when feeling sleepy. However, few studies have examined this in real-world driving environments, particularly among older drivers who comprise a large proportion of all road users. To examine the accuracy of subjective sleepiness ratings in predicting subsequent driving impairment and physiological drowsiness, 16 younger (21-33 years) and 17 older (50-65 years) adults drove an instrumented vehicle for 2 h on closed loop under two conditions: well-rested and 29 h sleep deprivation. Sleepiness ratings (Karolinska Sleepiness Scale, Likelihood of Falling Asleep scale, Sleepiness Symptoms Questionnaire) were obtained every 15min, alongside lane deviations, near crash events, and ocular indices of drowsiness. All subjective sleepiness measures increased with sleep deprivation for both age groups (p < 0.013). While most subjective sleepiness ratings significantly predicted driving impairment and drowsiness in younger adults (OR: 1.7-15.6, p < 0.02), this was only apparent for KSS, likelihood of falling asleep, and "difficulty staying in the lane for the older adults" (OR: 2.76-2.86, p = 0.02). This may be due to an altered perception of sleepiness in older adults, or due to lowered objective signs of impairment in the older group. Our data suggest that (i) younger and older drivers are aware of sleepiness; (ii) the best subjective scale may differ across age groups; and (iii) future research should expand on the best subjective measures to inform of crash risk in older adults to inform tailored educational road safety campaigns on signs of sleepiness.

Drive in the Moment: An evaluation of a web-based tool designed to reduce smartphone use among young drivers

Objective Young drivers are overrepresented in road traffic crashes and fatalities. Distracted driving, including use of a smartphone while driving (SWD), is a major risk factor for crashes for this age group. We evaluated a web-based tool (Drive in the Moment or DITM) designed to reduce SWD among young drivers. Methods A pretest-posttest experimental design with a follow-up was used to assess the efficacy of the DITM intervention on SWD intentions and behaviors, and perceived risk (of having a crash and of being apprehended by the police) associated with SWD. One hundred and eighty young drivers (aged 17-25 years old) were randomly assigned to either the DITM intervention or a control group where participants completed an unrelated activity. Self-reported measures of SWD and perceptions of risk were obtained pre-intervention, immediately post-intervention and at a follow-up 25 days after the intervention. Results Participants who engaged with the DITM showed a significant reduction in the number of times they used their SWD at follow-up compared to their pre-intervention scores. Future intentions to SWD were also reduced from pre-intervention to post-intervention and follow-up. There was also an increase in the perceived risk of SWD following the intervention. Conclusions Our evaluation of DITM suggests that the intervention had an impact on reducing SWD among young drivers. Further research is needed to establish which particular elements of the DITM are associated with reductions in SWD and whether similar findings would be identified in other age groups.

Understanding the potential policy transfer of gamification schemes for behaviour change in public transport and road safety

There is a long history in transport of implementing travel demand management (TDM) to manage users' behaviour. Recently, gamified interventions have been proposed as a better way to incentivise users to participate in TDM interventions. The concept of gamified design uses game design elements in non-game contexts. However, transport is complex and diverse and it is not clear whether gamified design is transferable between different transport applications such as increasing public transport use and improving road safety. The research question of this study is to investigate policy transfer effects of different gamified design applications. In order to explore this research question, this study designed two stated preference surveys with the same gamified design concepts but applied in two fields, including public transport with the aim to relieve congestion and for young drivers with the aim to improve road safety. Both surveys are held in Queensland, Australia. A multinomial logit modelling approach was used for both case studies. The marginal effect results were cross compared to draw out policy implications and potential policy transfer effects. The paper concludes that some users' attitudes and perceptions are transferrable, and gamified schemes are not particularly favoured. In particular, it is clear that irrespective of transport field, the design of a scheme for vehicle users must understand participants’ intentions and that this is more important than capturing their beliefs.

Personalized driving safety: Using telematics to reduce risky driving behavior among young drivers

Introduction: The role of real-time data capture (via telematics technology) is gathering prominence as a strategy to provide feedback to young drivers about important road safety issues. Method: A naturalistic driving study was undertaken to determine whether providing personalized feedback (via a smartphone app) to young provisional drivers aged 17–20 years living in metropolitan and regional Western Australia (WA) reduced their risky driving behavior compared to a control group who did not receive feedback. Speeding over the posted speed limit, harsh decelerations (braking), harsh accelerations and overall driving performance, were recorded continuously using the smartphone app during the 11-week study. Four separate Generalised Estimating Equations (GEE) linear regression models were undertaken after accounting for relevant confounders including driving exposure to determine the difference between the intervention and control group for the 4 driving outcomes obtained from the smartphone app. Results: The study found that there was no significant change in overall driving scores between the intervention and control groups (p = 0.35). However, the overall driving score significantly improved by 0.19 points for young provisional drivers who lived in regional areas compared to those in the metropolitan area (p = 0.05) after adjusting for potential confounders. There was also no significant change in harsh braking scores (p = 0.46) and harsh acceleration scores between the intervention and control groups (p = 0.26) However, harsh acceleration scores improved by 0.37 points for females compared to males (p = 0.04). Lastly, there was no significant change in speed scores between the control and intervention groups (p = 0.72). However, the speed scores of participants who lived in regional WA improved by 0.22 points compared to those in the metropolitan area (p = 0.02). Furthermore, for every 1,000 km travelled, speed scores worsened by −0.08 points (p < 0.01) regardless of group. Conclusions: The study did not find any statistical difference in the driving outcomes examined; however the treatment effects for feedback were consistently in the expected positive direction. Young drivers in regional WA also improved their speeding scores and overall driving performance scores compared to young drivers in the metropolitan area. Females, also significantly improved their harsh deceleration scores compared to males, regardless of group allocation. These results highlight the use of smartphone telematics as an opportunity to not only enhance the safety of provisional young drivers but also provide data-informed decision making and policy development.

The drink and drug driving behaviours of young Queensland drivers and attitudes toward apprehension

Objective This study aimed to explore the self-reported drink and drug driving behaviors of a sample of young drivers from Queensland (Australia) holding a learner license (N = 162, 27%), provisional 1 (P1) license (N = 251, 41.8%), or provisional 2 (P2) license (N = 188, 31.3%), as well as motorists’ corresponding perceptions about the likelihood of apprehension and their future intentions to offend. Methods The study involved 601 drivers aged between 16 and 24 years (302 males, 50.2% and 296 females, 49.3%) who all completed an online survey. Results Almost half the sample acknowledged engaging in drink and/or drug driving behaviors in the previous 12 months (N = 264, 44%), with a total of 773 drink driving and 8842 drug driving events reported. Offending was more common among P2 drivers (62% reported at least once), and least common among learner drivers (25% reported at least once). When predicting future drink driving and drug driving intentions, lower certainty of apprehension and greater past offending both emerged as significant predictors. Conclusions Young drivers may benefit from reminders throughout the GDL process regarding the laws and risks associated with impaired driving. Greater policing resources for drug and alcohol testing may be needed for young drivers, to establish a high certainty of apprehension, as early as possible in their driving experience.

Effect of Road Darkness on Young Driver Behaviour when Approaching Parked or Slow-moving Vehicles in Malaysia

Traffic accidents at night are higher than in other periods, especially on a dark road. This study explores the impact of the dark road on driver behaviours when approaching a parked or slowed-moving vehicle at the front. An experiment was conducted on a racing track at night, with and without road lighting. Different sizes of obstacles were used to represent other vehicles as a lorry, a car, and a motorcycle. The results show that the obstacles can be detected by drivers much earlier with the help of road lighting, and they tend to increase their speed, probably preparing to overtake the obstacles.

Upskilling Professional Driving Instructors of Young Learner Drivers: What Are We Waiting For?

Decades of research and development to address young drivers’ over-involvement in road crashes has led to critical improvements in understanding and interventions, yet has mostly focused on young drivers or their parents. Driving instructors have a key role in the young driver safety system, yet substantially less attention has been paid to their accreditation and professional development specific to teaching young drivers. Neurobiological development during mid-to-late adolescence influences how young people drive and the inflated risks they face relative to adult learners. In this paper, we discuss several of our research studies and supporting literature to argue that: (a) adept higher-order professional instruction can improve young driver safety behaviour in ways that can reduce crashes; (b) instructors are willing to be upskilled in young driver specific training needs; and (c) young drivers currently lack adequate training in new motor vehicle features that can enhance their safety, as do many adults, creating further demand on the driver-training industry. Given this body of work, we argue that the field has sufficiently progressed to know both why and how we should innovate and transform the driver training industry in ways that will improve young driver safety. However, we also note current developments appear to be working against rather than towards improvements. Therefore, there is a need to prioritise and implement change, and to harness advantages of emerging technologies. Professional development opportunities for driving instructors not only have potential to benefit the industry and young drivers, but also parents; therefore, boosting traffic safety culture across the community.

Wayfinding Whilst Driving, Age and Cognitive Functioning

Older drivers are more likely to have difficulty wayfinding in unfamiliar areas than younger people. The present study investigated the role of cognitive functioning and age on wayfinding difficulties and driving performance whilst driving in unfamiliar areas. Forty-seven participants aged between 21 and 82 years completed a wayfinding task in a driving simulator and a battery of neuropsychological tests. Older age was related to reduced driving speed and increased time stopped during the drive. Cognitive variables associated with wayfinding difficulties and driving performance decrements included processing speed, visuospatial ability, and aspects of memory, including verbal and visual immediate and delayed recall. This research suggests that older drivers, particularly those with poorer cognitive functioning, had more difficulty with wayfinding in unfamiliar areas than younger drivers. The findings are discussed with reference to potential safety and mobility benefits of alternative wayfinding strategies.

Temporal frames, temporal focus, and behavioral expectations: The persuasive impact of near and distant threats

BackgroundUltraviolet (UV) photography and photoaging visuals make hidden sun damage visible to the naked eye, granting the potential to create messages that vary in temporal dimensionality. As UV photos depict immediate skin damage, the photo communicated that exposure in sun causes invisible damage to the young truck driver (near temporal frame) and visible damage (e.g., wrinkles) to the old truck driver (distant temporal frame). ObjectiveThe current study examines the moderating effects of loss/gain frames and temporality variables on the relationship between temporal framing and sun safe behavioral expectations. MethodU.S. adults (N = 897) were assigned to a 2 (near/distant temporal frame) × 2 (gain/loss frame) between-participants experiment. ResultsThe loss frame triggered greater fear compared to the gain frame, this fear forms an indirect path where loss frames increase fear and fear increases changes in sun safe behavioral expectations. Participants exposed to the distant frame had increased behavior expectations if either of the two temporality variables (CFC - future or current focus) were low. Participants with low temporality indicators (i.e., CFC - future, current focus, or future focus) exposed to the gain frame had increased behavior expectations. ConclusionsThe findings demonstrate the potential utility of temporal frames as a tool for designing strategic health messages.

Investigating pedestrian crash patterns at high-speed intersection and road segments: Findings from the unsupervised learning algorithm

Pedestrian crashes at high-speed locations are a persistent road safety concern. Driving at high speeds means that the driver has less time to react and make evasive maneuvers to avoid a pedestrian crash. On top of this, other crash-contributing factors such as humans (pedestrians or drivers), vehicles, roadways, and surrounding environmental factors actively interact together to cause a crash at high-speed locations. The pattern of pedestrian crashes also differs significantly according to the high-speed intersection and segment locations which require further investigation. This study applied association rules mining (ARM), an unsupervised learning algorithm, to reveal the hidden association of pedestrian crash risk factors according to the high-speed intersection and segments separately. The study used Louisiana pedestrian fatal and injury crash data (2010 to 2019). Any crash location with a posted speed limit of 45 mph or above is classified as a high-speed location. Based on the generated association rules, the results show that pedestrian crashes at a high-speed intersection are associated with the intersection geometry (3-leg) and control (1 stop, no traffic control device), driver characteristics (careless operation, failure to yield, inattentive-distracted, older, and younger driver), pedestrian-related factors (violations, alcohol/drug involvement), settings (open country, residential, business, industrial), dark lighting conditions and so on. Most pedestrian crashes at high-speed segments are associated with roadways with no physical separation, dark-no-streetlight conditions, open country locations, interstates and so on. The findings of the study may help to select appropriate countermeasures to reduce pedestrian crashes at high-speed locations.

Improving young drivers’ speed compliance through a single dose of feedback

Feedback is an important component in learning, including the development of safe driving for novice drivers. Research shows that feedback can reduce the number of speeding occurrences, and the likelihood of speeding-related incidents and accidents, but it is not clear how often feedback should be provided. The present study builds on a series of laboratory and field studies that showed providing feedback to novice drivers about their speeding performance, financial and safety implications on one occasion after a baseline drive, improved their speed compliance on a subsequent test drive. The benefit was evident six months post intervention. The aim of the current study was to investigate on-road whether this effect could be enhanced by more frequent feedback of the same type. Seventy young drivers (54% male) were randomly allocated to one of five groups in which frequency of feedback was varied: Feedback provided on one, two, three or four occasions each spaced one week apart or no feedback. The effect of frequency of feedback was tested at weekly intervals for 4 weeks (i.e., immediately, then at subsequent sessions that occurred one, two, and three weeks after the first), then six months post-intervention. The results revealed that feedback provided on only one or two occasions was the most effective in reducing young drivers’ average speed and percentage of time speeding for lower (50 km/h) and higher (80 km/h) speed zones. The benefits were not enhanced by multiple feedback occasions. The Control (no feedback) group showed the worst speed compliance, with mean speed and percentage of time speeding increasing from the baseline. These results have important implications for the development of new training approaches to improve young drivers’ speeding behaviour.

Short term memory and peripheral vision at junctions

Motorcyclists are at extremely high risk of death in crashes where another vehicle pulls out into their path at a junction. Such crashes have often been described as the result of “look but fail to see” errors. However, recent research has shown that such errors occur even after a driver has looked directly at an oncoming motorcyclist. An alternative explanation for some of these crashes is the “saw but forgot” error. The idea that drivers might forget vehicles they have looked at only moments earlier is surprising, but it matches recent cognitive research that highlights limitations in visual short term memory. We present a cognitive model that highlights the limitations of drivers’ vision and memory at junctions. In two laboratory experiments we explore 68 young drivers’ abilities to make safe decisions at junctions and their memory for oncoming vehicles. In each experiment the driver is required to make head movements to view static images to the right, the left, and straight ahead. Views are projected over 180 degrees and the driver’s basic task it to respond when they feel the junction is safe for them to cross. On occasional trials drivers are given a surprise memory test. Drivers find this task remarkably hard, frequently missing safe crossing opportunities and choosing to cross when it is not safe. Notably, drivers are much more likely to choose to a cross in front of an oncoming vehicle once they have looked away from it, suggesting that in this task failing to remember an oncoming vehicle is a more frequent cause of errors than failing to perceive it. This conclusion is supported by the memory tests which revealed that in even moderately busy traffic conditions the junction crossing task can exceed the capacity of visual short term memory. In the first experiment we separately explore the influence of peripheral vision, finding that drivers’ decision making and memory in this task is poor with or without peripheral information being present. In the second experiment we explore an initial intervention designed to enhance phonological memory but do not find that it improves memory for oncoming motorcyclists. In the second experiment we additionally separate out the influence of load (number of vehicles present) and delay (how long ago the vehicles were seen). This separation shows clear effects of load, but not delay on memory. We interpret these as evidence for both proactive and retroactive interference in visual short term memory. The current research shows that even a simple junction crossing task can exceed the capacity of visual short term memory. We suggest that this may be an important cause of junction crashes.

Applying Data Mining Methods to Explore Animal-Vehicle Crashes

Animal-vehicle crashes (AVCs) are a significant issue in Louisiana that requires attention. Data on AVCs that occurred from 2015 to 2020 were obtained from the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD), including 14,349 crashes with major injury (KA), minor injury (BC), and no injury (O) severity groups. Aiming to find the collective association of attributes from AVC data, which are categorical in nature, this study utilized two data mining methods: multiple correspondence analysis (MCA) and association rule mining (ARM). Five hierarchical clusters that were generated from the BC and O AVC datasets were particularly significant. Among several other findings, MCA revealed that BC and O AVCs are more concentrated on parish roads during the spring season, while O AVCs in the fall and winter tend to occur on highways with speed limits of 50 mph or higher. ARM revealed that moderate-speed parish roads are frequently associated with KA and BC AVCs, particularly in residential areas and during the spring season, and they often involve young drivers. The findings of this study can be particularly beneficial by considering the spatiotemporal factors associated with animal concentration and movement to develop targeted interventions and mitigation strategies.

A hierarchical cluster analysis of young drivers based on their perceived risk and frequency of texting while driving

Introduction: The present study attempted to provide a proof-of-concept of usefulness of cluster analysis for identifying distinct and practically meaningful subgroups of drivers who differed in their perceived risk and frequency of texting while driving (TWD). Method: Using a hierarchical cluster analysis, which involves sequential steps in which individual cases are merged together one at a time based on their similarities, the study first attempted to identify distinct subgroups of drivers who differed in their perceived risk and frequency of TWD. To further evaluate the meaningfulness of the subgroups identified, the subgroups were compared in terms of levels of trait impulsivity and impulsive decision making for each gender. Results: The study identified the following three distinct subgroups: (a) drivers who perceive TWD as risky but frequently engage in TWD; (b) drivers who perceive TWD as risky and infrequently engage in TWD; and (c) drivers who perceive TWD as not so risky and frequently engage in TWD. The subgroup of male, but not female, drivers who perceive TWD as risky but frequently engage in TWD showed significantly higher levels of trait impulsivity, but not impulsive decision making, than the other two subgroups. Discussion: This is the first demonstration that drivers who frequently engage in TWD can be categorized into two distinct subgroups that differ in terms of the perceived risk of TWD. Practical applications: For drivers who perceived TWD as risky yet frequently engage in TWD, the present study suggests that different intervention strategies may be needed for each gender.

Modelling the response times of mobile phone distracted young drivers: A hybrid approach of decision tree and random parameters duration model

Research has shown the detrimental effects of using mobile phones whilst driving, which are more prominent and concerning for young drivers, who are often less experienced and riskier. As such, this study investigates young drivers’ response times when they encounter a safety–critical event on a suburban road whilst using a mobile phone. To collect high-quality trajectory data, the CARRS-Q advanced driving simulator was used. Thirty-two licenced young drivers were exposed to the sudden braking of the lead vehicle in their lane in three driving conditions: baseline (no phone conversation), handheld, and hands-free. Unlike extant studies, this paper proposes a hybrid modelling framework for the response times of distracted drivers. This framework combines a decision tree model and a correlated grouped random parameters duration model with heterogeneity-in-means. While the decision tree model identifies a priori relationship among main effects, the random parameter model captures unobserved heterogeneity and correlation between random parameters. The modelling results reveal that mobile phone distraction impairs response time behaviour for the majority of drivers. However, some drivers tend to respond earlier whilst being distracted, suggesting that the perceived risk of mobile use might have led to an early response, indicating their risk compensation behaviour. Female drivers tend to respond earlier compared to male drivers, indicating their safer and risk-averse behaviour. Overall, mobile phone distraction appears to deteriorate response time behaviour and poses a significant safety concern to drivers and the overall traffic stream unless mitigated.