Naturalistic Driving Study in Brazil: An Analysis of Mobile Phone Use Behavior while Driving

Jorge Tiago Bastos, Pedro Augusto B. dos Santos, Eduardo Cesar Amancio, Tatiana Maria C. Gadda, José Aurélio Ramalho, Mark J. King and Oscar Oviedo-Trespalacios
Additional contact information
Jorge Tiago Bastos: Department of Transportation, Federal University of Parana, 81530-000 Curitiba, Brazil
Pedro Augusto B. dos Santos: Department of Transportation, Federal University of Parana, 81530-000 Curitiba, Brazil
Eduardo Cesar Amancio: Academic Department of Civil Construction, Federal University of Technology-Parana, 81280-340 Curitiba, Brazil
Tatiana Maria C. Gadda: Academic Department of Civil Construction, Federal University of Technology-Parana, 81280-340 Curitiba, Brazil
José Aurélio Ramalho: National Observatory for Road Safety, 13333-070 Indaiatuba, Brazil
Mark J. King: Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety, Queensland (CARRS-Q), Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane 5049, Australia
Oscar Oviedo-Trespalacios: Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety, Queensland (CARRS-Q), Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane 5049, Australia

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 17, 1-14

Abstract: Mobile phone use (MPU) while driving is an important road safety challenge worldwide. Naturalistic driving studies (NDS) emerged as one of the most sophisticated methodologies to investigate driver behavior; however, NDS have not been implemented in low- or middle-income countries. The aim of this research is to investigate MPU while driving and compare the results to those reported in international studies. An analysis of 61.32 h and 1350 km driven in Curitiba (Brazil) showed that MPU lasted for an average of 28.51 s ( n = 627) and occurred in 58.71% of trips ( n = 201) with an average frequency of 8.37 interactions per hour ( n = 201). The proportion of the trip time using a mobile phone was 7.03% ( n = 201), and the average instantaneous speed was 12.77 km/h ( n = 627) while using the phone. Generally, drivers spent less time on more complex interactions and selected a lower speed when using the phone. MPU was observed more during short duration than longer trips. Drivers in this study engaged in a larger number of MPU compared to drivers from Netherlands and the United States; and the percentage of trip time with MPU was between North American and European values.

Keywords: cell phone; driver behavior; human factors; behavioral coding; developing countries; safety (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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