One in Three (32%) Ontarians Admit to Driving Distracted by a Mobile Device
Toronto, ON - A little over a year ago the Ontario government implemented higher fines and demerit points for those found guilty of distracted driving. Despite these tougher penalties, one in three (32%) Ontarians admit to being distracted by a mobile device while driving, according to a new Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of CAA South Central Ontario (CAA SCO).
The top reason for distracted driving among Ontarians who admit to this behaviour is receiving a call: two in five (44%) say they use their mobile device because someone called them while driving. One in three (33%) try to justify distracted driving by saying they use their mobile device for emergency purposes (i.e. calling 911). Nearly three in ten (27%) say they use their mobile device because they have to get in touch with the person they are meeting, whether for work or personal matters. One in four (26%) say someone texted them while driving, while two in ten say they had to talk to their spouse/partner (21%) or their parents (17%).
Nearly two in ten (15%) of Ontarians say they use their mobile device while driving because they see themselves as skilled drivers who are able to multitask. A further one in ten (11%) say they use their phone for work and another 11% are simply bored while at a red-light or stuck in traffic so they pull out their phone for entertainment. One in ten (9%) Ontarians say they are distracted by their mobile device while driving because they have to talk to their children.
| Top 10 Reasons for Distracted Driving | Total |
|
Someone has called me
|
44% |
|
For emergency purposes
|
33% |
|
I have to get in touch with the people that I'm meeting (either work or personal)
|
27% |
|
Someone has texted me
|
26% |
|
I have to talk to my spouse/partner
|
21% |
|
I have to talk with my parents
|
17% |
|
I am a skilled driver who is able to multitask
|
15% |
|
I use it for work
|
11% |
|
I get bored waiting at a red-light or being stuck in traffic
|
11% |
|
I have to talk with my children
|
9% |
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between June 8 and June 15, 2016, on behalf of CAA South Central Ontario (CAA SCO). For this survey, a sample of 801 Canadians from Ipsos' online panel was interviewed online. Weighting160was then160employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval.160 In this case, the poll is accurate to within +/ - 3.9 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadian adults been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.
For more information on this news release, please contact:
Sean Simpson
Vice President, Canada, Public Affairs
+1 416 324 2002
[email protected]
Mitra Thompson
Senior Account Manager, Ipsos Public Affairs
+1 514 904 4329
[email protected]
About Ipsos
Ipsos ranks third in the global research industry. With a strong presence in 87 countries, Ipsos employs more than 16,000 people and has the ability to conduct research programs in more than 100 countries. Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos is controlled and managed by research professionals. They have built a solid Group around a multi-specialist positioning-- Media and advertising research; Marketing research; Client and employee relationship management; Opinion & social research; Mobile, Online, Offline data collection and delivery. Ipsos has been listed on the Paris Stock Exchange since 1999. www.ipsos.com
