Cells, drunken driving top issues

As the holiday season gears up, the California Office of Traffic Safety has released the results of the state's first traffic safety opinion survey.

Speeding and aggressive driving, plus distracted driving via phones were cited as the biggest safety problems on the road, according to the survey released in conjunction with a statewide law enforcement crackdown on impaired driving.

"This survey provides (the Office of Traffic Safety) ... with a unique opportunity to hear directly from California motorists on traffic safety issues of concern and priority ..." said OTS Director Christopher J. Murphy.

The survey, which was fielded in late July, included interviews with 1,671 drivers between the ages of 18 and 60 at gas stations in 15 counties.

Glenn, Colusa and Tehama counties were not included in the survey.

The results are expected help authorities better identify and track driver attitudes, self-reported driving behavior, awareness of high visibility enforcement efforts, and safety communications.

Participants were asked questions about what they perceive to be the biggest safety problems on California roadways.

In addition to fast and aggressive driving, those polled said talking on cell phones and texting as the most distracting, with talking on cells accounting for a surprising and "overwhelming" 60 percent of responses.

Cell phone conversations — hand-held or hands-free were cited as the most serious distraction for drivers.

More than 27 percent said that they still talked on a hand-held cell phone while driving in the past 30 days.

More than 42 percent of survey participants indicated that they talked on a hands-free cell phone while driving during the past 30 days, despite the evidence that it is no safer than hand-held.

Twenty percent continue to text or e-mail while driving despite the known dangers and laws.

A total of 31.5 percent of respondents indicated they talk less on cell phones since the hands-free law went into effect.

Roughly 45 percent of participants indicated that they had made a mistake while talking on a cell phone while driving.

Nearly 55 percent reported having been hit or nearly hit by a driver who was talking or texting on a cell phone.

The survey also included questions pertaining to seat belt use, impaired driving and sobriety checkpoints.

Sixty percent remember seeing signs and campaigns saying "Report Drunk Drivers — Call 911," more than half (56 percent) think it helps increase arrests, and more than half who had an opinion believe it results in fewer drunks on roadways.

Eighty-nine percent think that driving under the influence of drugs, legal and illegal, is a problem.

"The more information we have to work with, the better job we can all do of making sure our efforts are strategic and based on solid data," said Murphy. "This will be particularly important as we forge ahead with distracted driving programs in the near future."

The vast majority of respondents supported sobriety checkpoints (86.5 percent).

More than a third of respondents said that they were less likely to drive after drinking too much as a result of the "Report Drunk Drivers. Call 911" campaign.

Although nearly 70 percent of participants reported that driving under the influence of both legal and illegal drugs was a very big problem and should carry the same penalties as driving under the influence of alcohol, only about half (52 percent) believed the current penalty for drugged driving was as serious as the penalty for drunk driving.

The vast majority, 70 percent, believed that the penalty for driving under the influence of drugs should carry the same penalty as driving under the influence of alcohol.

Consistent with the record 96.2 percent reported in the annual 2010 statewide seat belt use observational survey, this driver survey showed 95.8 percent say they always wear a seat belt.