Driver electronic device use in 2013.

Pickrell, T.M. · 2015 · ROSA P / United States. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

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Summary

This report presents statistical findings from the 2013 National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS), the only nationwide probability-based observational study of driver electronic device use in the United States. Conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the study aims to track the prevalence of distracted driving behaviors, specifically focusing on hand-held cell phone use, visible headset use, and the manipulation of hand-held devices. The data provides a critical baseline for understanding trends in driver distraction and informs policy discussions regarding state laws banning such activities. The methodology involved trained data collectors observing drivers at probabilistically sampled intersections controlled by stop signs or stoplights. Observations were conducted from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 1,382 sites, resulting in data from 37,428 passenger vehicles with no commercial or government markings. To capture untainted behavior, observers did not interview occupants but instead relied on subjective visual assessments to categorize driver age, race, and device usage. The study defines three primary behaviors: holding phones to ears, speaking with visible headsets, and visibly manipulating hand-held devices (e.g., texting, browsing). Statistical analysis included complex variance estimation and comparisons between 2012 and 2013 data, as well as demographic breakdowns by gender, age, race, region, and vehicle type. The results indicate that the percentage of drivers holding cell phones to their ears decreased significantly from 5.2% in 2012 to 4.6% in 2013. This rate translates to an estimated 620,000 vehicles driven by individuals using hand-held phones at a typical daylight moment in 2013. Conversely, the percentage of drivers visibly manipulating hand-held devices increased from 1.5% to 1.7%, though this change was not statistically significant. Visible headset use decreased slightly from 0.6% to 0.5%. Demographic analysis revealed that hand-held cell phone use remained higher among female drivers and those aged 16–24, while lowest among drivers aged 70 and older. Additionally, visible manipulation of devices was significantly higher among drivers aged 16–24 compared to other age groups since 2007. Using 2009 National Household Travel Survey data adjusted for 2013 vehicle miles traveled, NHTSA estimated that 8.36% of drivers were using either hand-held or hands-free cell phones at a typical daylight moment. The significance of these findings lies in their role as the primary source of observed data on driver distraction in the U.S. The report highlights that while hand-held phone use declined, the manipulation of devices persisted, particularly among younger drivers. The document also contextualizes these statistics within the legal landscape, noting that as of August 2014, 14 states and several territories had primary enforcement laws banning hand-held cell phone use, while 44 states banned text messaging. These data support ongoing efforts to evaluate the effectiveness of distracted driving legislation and inform future safety interventions.

Key finding

Hand-held cell phone use among drivers decreased significantly from 5.2 percent in 2012 to 4.6 percent in 2013, while visible manipulation of hand-held devices increased from 1.5 percent to 1.7 percent, although the latter increase was not statistically significant.

Methodology

field_study

Sample size: 37428

Provenance

The full processing record for this entry. Every stage of this paper's journey through the pipeline is logged — what ran, with which tool and model, how many attempts it took, and when it last completed. Discovered via bulk_ingest_rosap on 2026-05-23 (6 acquisition events logged).

Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-10; verification: verified_with_issues.

Topics

Ranked by relevance to this paper. Hover a topic for its definition.

• mobile phones
• distraction laws
• temporal
• exposure measurement
• distraction detection algorithms

Information type

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• Empirical Findings: observational prevalence, behavioral performance data
• Methodological Resource: dataset resource