Distraction and road user behavior: An observational pilot study across intersections in Washington, D.C.

In 2015, traffic crashes involving driver distraction contributed to 3447 deaths and approximately 391,000 injuries in the United States (NCSA, 2017). Cell phones were involved in 14% of these fatal crashes and 8% of these injury crashes. The purpose of this study was to observe road user, specifically pedestrian and driver, distraction prevalence and patterns (Phase I) and then to examine the potential conflict between these road users (Phase II). Observational data was collected at four intersections in Washington, D.C. Road user data included but was not limited to: distraction type (e.g., cell phone), sex, age, location, and conflict indicators. In Phase I, 4871 road users were observed; 60% were pedestrians and 40% were drivers. Of the total, 49% were distracted by single or multiple distractors. There were 46% of individuals distracted by engaging with other people, and 27% were distracted by cell phones. The main distractor for both pedestrians (44%) and drivers (49%) was engaging with other people. Pedestrians had approximately 1.5 greater odds of being distracted than drivers. Females had 14% greater odds of being distracted than males. The odds of being distracted were almost two times higher for road users ages 16-25 compared to road users 26-35. The high prevalence of distraction, specifically engaging with other people, shows that electronic device use may not be the only important source of distraction. In Phase II, 20 out of 21 interactions between distracted pedestrians and distracted drivers resulted in evasive maneuvers by either road user. In these interactions, drivers altered course more frequently than pedestrians. These results suggest that distraction while driving or walking is related to potential conflicts. Future research could explore different methods of quantifying distraction and should continue to focus on the effect of distraction on road user behavior.