Research: 73.7 percent of drivers use their telephone in traffic – Tablets and telephones – News

73.7 percent of all adult drivers in the Netherlands use their phone in traffic. That’s an increase of more than three percentage points compared to two years ago, when the survey was last conducted.

Nearly three-quarters of adult road users say they ‘sometimes’ use the telephone while participating in traffic, as can be deduced from the SWOV report. In addition to the 73.7 percent of drivers, this also applies to 64.3 percent of cyclists and 86.6 percent of pedestrians. This means that the number of telephone users in traffic has increased in all subgroups. Two years ago, 70.0 percent of motorists, 59.3 percent of cyclists and 85.0 percent of pedestrians said they did so.

Nearly 20 percent of drivers say they use their smartphone during every trip or almost every trip. For cyclists this is 16.4 percent. Pedestrians pick up the phone even more often; about a quarter of pedestrians do this on every or almost every walk. About 45 percent of respondents said they never or almost never use the phone in the car. For cyclists this is 57 percent.

When looking at specific actions, it appears that most drivers use their telephone to make hands-free calls. About 59 percent of respondents who sometimes use their phone while driving say they do so. Just over half set their navigation while driving, while just under half read messages. Using the phone in the car is considered unsafe, but only holding the phone is really prohibited.

Furthermore, a number of specific categories have risen sharply. For example, more and more people operate music in the car. The research also shows that 13 percent of adult road users sometimes play games, an increase of 3.5 percentage points compared to 2021. 11.4 percent of motorists and 13 percent of cyclists indicated this.

This year, SWOV also investigated for the first time how often people hold meetings in traffic. About 14 percent of people who use their phone behind the wheel do so for online meetings. These usually involve one-on-one meetings. Pedestrians most often take photos or read messages; about 72 percent do both. On the bike it is mainly about setting navigation or reading and sending messages.

The figures come from research by the Scientific Institute for Road Safety Research, which surveys Dutch people every two years about their phone use in traffic. For the study, SWOV interviewed 3,742 adults and 320 young people between the ages of 12 and 17 about their telephone use in 2023. All participants are panel members of research agency Motivaction.