SOUTH JERSEY (KYW Newsradio) — About one in five drivers is distracted on the road at any given time, according to a new study from Rowan University. Phones are the biggest distraction for drivers. Eating, drinking and grooming are close behind.
The results will not come as a shock to anyone who is used to seeing people texting or eating a hoagie while driving.
Rowan sent researchers out in a car over a few months with high-definition cameras and software to collect data in real time.
“That’s scary, that one in five cars around you has a driver that’s not paying attention,” said Eric Heitmann, director of New Jersey’s Division of Highway Traffic Safety. He says the study looked at some heavily traveled roads with high incidents of crashes, including Routes 130 and 55, Interstate
295, the Garden State Parkway and others throughout the state.
“And the overall rate of distraction was greater during rush hours, from 9 a.m. to noon and 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.,” Heitman added.
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The study’s main objective was to paint an accurate picture of what’s happening on the road, because most studies in the past have only collected data on distracted driving from crashes. The cameras fixed to the car are able to identify people texting, talking with passengers, eating or drinking, grooming themselves, and even getting drowsy behind the wheel.
“Using the artificial intelligence algorithm we developed as part of this project, we could automatically extract all these distractions with very high accuracy,” principal investigator Dr. Mohammed Jalayer said.
He says conducting the study undercover was key to producing accurate results.
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“Sometimes, when people know they are getting tracked or monitored, they are cautious and they don't get distracted,” said Ahmed Sajid Hasan, a Rowan civil engineering doctoral student, who co-authored the study. “In this data collection approach, you are getting exactly what is happening on the road.”
Heitmann says the state wants to drive home the message that drivers' eyes need to be on the road, and their hands need to be on the wheel. Advertising in the state all month long will encourage better choices with the message that drivers control their own destiny — as well as the destiny of those around them on the road.
He says police will also be increasing enforcement patrols to crack down on violations.
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“Everybody needs to ask themselves, ‘Is that text worth a life?’ because that’s really what it boils down to in a lot of situations and a lot of the fatalities that we see,” Heitmann said.
2021 had more than 700 traffic fatalities, which was the highest number the state has seen in a while, Heitmann says, and distracted driving is the leading cause of accidents.