ROME – 75% of European drivers acknowledge that they do not always respect the rules of the Highway Code (70% of Italian drivers) and 21% of these do it often or occasionally (compared to 54% who claim to do so rarely). Only 25% of European drivers declare that they never violate the Highway Code (30% in Italy). This was revealed by the 11th edition of the “Responsible Driving Barometer”, a survey carried out by Ipsos for the Vinci Autoroutes Foundation, on the behavior of 12,400 drivers from eleven EU countries. And how do Italians behave when driving? 66% tends not to respect the traffic code and 75% does not respect health rules. 57% of Italian motorists seem to have understood that they should never “take their hands off” the steering wheel to answer the phone and declare that they use the Bluetooth system with an increase of 4 points in one year and +14 points in 5 years. Among the dangerous behaviors that Italians have confessed to adopting when driving are: not respecting the speed limits (86%), passing with a red or orange traffic light (50%), not using arrows to indicate the direction of carried out (48%).
Similarly, Europeans recognize that they take certain liberties also with regard to health rules – but to a lesser extent than the Highway Code: 70% (i.e. 5 points less; and 66% of Italians, i.e. only 1 point less) admits non-compliance with the rules (gestures of prevention, lockdown, curfew …). Furthermore, 30% of Europeans say they never violate health rules (34%) against 25% when it comes to the Highway Code (30%, 4 points less for Italians).
The first reason given to explain the non-compliance with the rules by those who indulge themselves in them, whether it is the health instructions or the Highway Code is that the rules would not always be suitable for the situation or consistent (52 % says it about the Highway Code against 45% of those who support it about health rules; 40% vs. 32% of Italians). The feeling that some rules would be intended exclusively to issue sanctions is much more widespread as regards the Highway Code (29%; 38%) than health regulations (15%; 14%). On the contrary, the argument of those who believe they can override the rules because they believe it is enough to behave in a careful way, is much more invoked with regard to health care (42% of Europeans; 52%) than prudence on the road (the 22%; 27%).
Those who claim to respect the rules seem first of all motivated by the purpose of the rules themselves, that is to say, to prevent the risks – accident or contagion -, given that the fear of a fine is, in all cases, the least strong motivation. Furthermore, attention to others is clearly more significant in the health sector (45%; 35% invoke it) than on the street (33%; 30%), even more so when it comes to one’s own circle. restricted (23% vs 11% in Europe; 19% vs 10% in Italy). On the road, the concern for one’s own safety prevails (26% vs. 27%; 40% vs. 19%).
Confidence in the relevance of the rules only scarcely motivates their compliance (30% for the Highway Code, 20% for Italians, vs. 17% for health rules, 17% for Italian drivers).
Fear of a fine also has little impact on compliance with the rules (29% for the Highway Code, 38% for Italians vs. 15% for health rules and 14% for Italians). while the French, more lucid with respect to their own behavior, are clearly more numerous than the average of Europeans to admit as probable a part of responsibility if they had an accident (52% of the French vs. 34% of the European average) or if they were infected (49% against 40% of Italians, on the other hand, are close to the European average: 30% admit that they would have a share of responsibility in the event of an accident vs. 39% in the event of contagion.
The rules not respected
88% of European drivers exceed the speed limit by a few kilometers / hour (86% of Italians)
62% pass when the traffic light is orange or has just turned red (50%)
51% forget to put the arrow to overtake or change direction (48%)
43% do not stop at the stop (40%)
28% of European drivers stop in double lines (31%);
8% admit to driving even when they have exceeded the permitted alcohol limit without feeling the effects (l’8%);
7% say they get behind the wheel having taken drugs that could alternate their vigilance (5% of Italians);
3% of European drivers travel having smoked cannabis or taken drugs (2%).
Drivers less and less concentrated on the road
76% of European drivers admit to taking their eyes off the road for more than 2 seconds
53% report making calls with a Bluetooth conversation system with built-in speaker while driving
43% set GPS while driving
22% send and / or read SMS or e-mails while driving
21% report events to other drivers via an app while driving
32% call while driving using earphones or headphones
23% call while driving without a speakerphone
7% even watch movies or videos on their smartphone or tablet while driving (5%).
Somnolence: risk behaviors that are always too widespread
12% have already had, or risked having, an accident because they were dozing
24% have already had the impression that they have fallen asleep for a few seconds behind the wheel
15% have already crossed over to the hard shoulder or shoulder of the road due to a moment of inattention or dozing
However, there is still 24% (-4) of European drivers who consider that they can drive tired (21% of Italian drivers; -5) and 35% (-9) actually do so, too. if he feels very tired, because he is forced (33%; -7).
For long journeys, some practices, which can cause drowsiness at the wheel, regress slightly but still remain too common:
- 78% (-4 in a year) of European drivers go to sleep later or get up earlier than usual before a long journey (76% of Italian drivers; -5);
- 74% (-3) finished their preparations in the late evening on the eve of departure (74%, -3);
- 62% (-5) leave at night (62%, -2).
In parallel, some good habits, although very effective in preventing sleepiness, are decreasing:
- 83% (-2) of Italian drivers program departure times according to the hours in which they know they are less tired (86% of Italians; -2);
- 74% (-3) shift the moment of departure when tired (75%, -3);
- 68% (-3) change drivers during the journey (64%; -5);
- 52% (-7) stop on the way to take a nap (66%; -3) – the most effective way to prevent the risk of falling asleep at the wheel.
And even if the number of hours of driving before taking a break decreases slightly: 3 hours and 2 minutes (-4 min) for Europeans and 3 hours and 5 minutes for Italians (-6 min), the recommendation of a break every 2 hours is not always respected by 40% of Europeans (-5) (38% of Italians) while it is relatively known by 73% of Europeans (67%). Of those who do not follow this advice, 47% indicate that they only stop when they feel really tired (47%) and 18% consider this recommendation to be exaggerated and not suitable for them (16%). 8% believe they are in too much of a hurry to take a break every 2 hours (3%).
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