A Distracted Drivers Report, the outcome of a survey of motorists, has ranked Mumbai third in drivers using mobile phones behind the wheel — after Bengaluru and Kolkata — with two in five respondents saying they had a near miss or crashed.
The survey has taken into account opinion of 1,749 respondents from eight cities covering four categories of drivers (depending on the vehicle) to understand patterns, effects, and perception of mobile phones’ use.
The report released by Savelife Foundation, an NGO focused on improving road safety and emergency medicare, along with Vodafone, has revealed that 65% of the respondents from the city confirmed using phones while driving and 93% knew this is an offence.
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It concluded that while 94% believed that using mobile phones is dangerous, 96% felt unsafe as passengers if drivers do so. Roughly, 47% received calls while driving. One in five reported having had a near miss or crashed due to mobile phones - a number that rises to two in five for Mumbaikars.
Only 42% knew about the fine on using phones while driving. Most Mumbai-based respondents tended to answer their phones if it is a work-related call.
Furthermore, two in three respondents did not feel unsafe when reading text messages. Besides, 11% or one in 10 Mumbaikars used their phones while driving, despite having a child on board. The report attributes this to the lack of awareness.
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The survey found while a majority of respondents stopped at a safe location to make calls, a significantly smaller percentage did the same while receiving calls (auto-rickshaw drivers being the exception). However, drivers tended to drive slower, changed lanes less frequently, and checked their rear/side view mirror more frequently (except auto-rickshaw drivers) while talking.
According to the WHO, India is the number one contributor to global road crash mortality and morbidity figures. In the last decade, India lost 1.3 million people to road crashes and another 5.3 million were disabled for life. Around 60% of the respondents from Mumbai have seen or known of accidents caused by mobile phones’ use. Perhaps that’s why 61% supported hidden cameras to apprehend such errant drivers.
While the report has called for an effective legislation and awareness campaigns, it has announced the launch of RoadSafe. The Android-only app disables calls/text/push notifications when the user is driving at over 10 km per hour. It uses the phone’s accelerometer to detect sudden drop in speed and provides automatic voice-enabled emergency response assistance. Other features include safety tips for different categories of road users, a guide on how to help those injured, and details of traffic offences and fines for different states/union territories.