Distracted Biking

Abstract

Commuting via bicycle is a very popular mode of transportation in the Northeastern United States (US). Boston, MA has seen a rapid increase in bicycle ridership over the past decade which has raised concerns and awareness about bicycle safety. An emerging topic in this field is distracted bicycle riding. This study was conducted to provide descriptive data on the prevalence and type of distracted bicycling in Boston at different times of day. This was a cross-sectional study in which observers tallied bicyclists at four high traffic intersections in Boston during various peak commuting hours for two types of distractions: auditory (ear buds/phones in or on ears), and visual/tactile (electronic device or other object in hand). Nineteen hundred seventy-four bicyclists were observed and 615 (31.2%, 95% CI: 29%-33%) were distracted. Of those observed, auditory distractions were the most common (N= 349 [17.7%, 95% CI: 16%-19%], p=0.0003) followed by visual/tactile distractions (N= 266 [13.5%, 95% CI: 12%-15%]). The highest proportion (40.7%, 95% CI: 35%-46%) of distracted bicyclists was observed during the midday commute (between 13:30-15:00). Distracted bicycling is a prevalent safety concern in the city of Boston, as almost one-third of all bicyclists exhibited distracted behavior. Education and public awareness campaigns should be designed to decrease distracted bicycling behaviors and promote bicycle safety in Boston. An awareness of the prevalence of distracted biking can be utilized to promote bicycle safety campaigns dedicated to decreasing distracted bicycling and to provide a baseline against which improvements can be measured.

Distraction of cyclists: how does it influence their risky behaviors and traffic crashes?

“…For instance, Montoro et al (2014) found that most of the road crashes involving cyclists and causing, in many cases, considerable injuries and even death, were preceded by cycling distractions. Also, Wolfe et al (2016) determined that distractions may differentially affect cyclists depending on the hour of the day, which is related to factors such as their motives to ride and the cycling intensity. Finally, Mwakalonge, White & Siuhi (2014) found that specific distractors, such as the use of electronic devices while cycling, constitute an unsafe behavior that could possibly be regulated by traffic rules, in order to avoid its potential incidence in risky road behaviors and crashes, whose odds are significantly increased by road distractions ( Goldenbeld et al, 2012 ).…”

“…Considering statistics, cyclists represent around 7.8%–10% of all registered deaths on the road ( Montoro et al, 2014 ; Puchades et al, 2017 ). In a study on North American cyclists, Wolfe et al (2016) found that cycling distractions are more prevalent during certain hours of the day, especially around midday (40% of cyclists reporting distractions) and during morning hours (07:30 AM and 10:30 AM, with frequencies of 32.2% and 29.3%, respectively). Around 75% of fatal or serious crashes involving cyclists take place in urban areas, and approximately 10% of dead or injured cyclists are children ( RoSPA, 2017 ).…”

“…However, most of them have been related to the same result: traffic crashes potentially cause preventable injuries among the involved road users ( Kahn et al, 2015 ; Llerena et al, 2015 ). In the first place, cycling while being distracted by technology, especially for what concerns the use of cellphones, headphones and navigators, constitutes a relevant factor whose impact on the road safety of cyclists has been demonstrated by empirical studies such as the one performed by Ethan et al (2016) , and Wolfe et al (2016) , showing that headphones and visual/tactile devices could be the most prevalent distractors related to bicycle using. Nevertheless, there are many potential distracting sources other than technological devices, which may potentially influence the adverse outcomes of road safety ( Stimpson, Wilson & Muelleman, 2013 ).…”

Sunday Drivers, or Too Fast and Too Furious?

“…Sixteen percent of riders were observed wearing headphones (possibly linked to music or a cell phone). Wolfe et. al.…”

Bicyclists’ adaptation strategies when interacting with text messages in urban environments

“…In Sweden, the prevalence was 19% in 2012, with 17.1% listening to music, 1.9% calling and .6% interacting with the phone (Adell et al 2014). In Boston, MA, USA, 31.2% of the observed bicyclists used their phones, where 17.7% used earbuds or talked on the phone and 13.5% interacted with their phones (Wolfe et al 2016). How phone use corresponds to crash risk is less known.…”