Axa Prévention is interested in the behavior of motorists on the road, as every year for eighteen years. Its focus of study in 2022: the use of the telephone while driving. A study was thus carried out by the Kantar Institute from January 10 to 25 with 2,253 people. That is a representative sample of the resident population in metropolitan France aged 18 to 75. And the observation remains clear: the figures for telephone use are exploding. And for all road users. Whether motorists or cyclists… even if the health crisis had led these users to behave better on the road over the past two years (53% were “good drivers” in 2021 compared to 50% at the start of 2022). And Éric Lemaire, president of the AXA Prévention association, warns of this risky behavior: “The use of the telephone while driving is responsible for more and more serious and fatal accidents on French roads. Making a call with or without a hands-free kit multiplies the risk of an accident by three. »
Cyclists, the most affected road users
14 points more than in 2021. It is among cyclists that the increase is the greatest in terms of telephone use. In 2022, they are 72% to use their phone on the handlebars. However, there are differences between the profiles. Bike owners are indeed much more careful than renters. Who are 69% to watch videos or series while driving, against barely 8% for owners. A trend that is also true for all uses, whether calls, SMS, e-mails or notifications.
For their part, bikers and scooter riders are the users who use their phone the least while driving (46%). Even if the study points out that they are 8% more to do so than in 2021. Despite a slight drop (- 3 points), 84% of scooter riders use their smartphone while riding. Finally, 90% of pedestrians use it while walking, an increase of 5 points. 28% of them make a call or listen to music while crossing. And among other road users, motorists are not left out.
Motorists, record of phone use while driving
The 18th Axa Prevention barometer thus points out that 80% of motorists use their smartphone while driving, i.e. 11 points more than in 2021. A record never reached, since they were 66% five years ago. In detail, 52% make calls (+8 points in one year). 45% configure their GPS while driving (+12 points) and 34% read or write text messages (+10 points). 24% check their notifications (+11 points) and 8% publish stories on social networks.
This finding remains the same when it comes to using your phone for professional reasons. 15% of motorists send e-mails while driving their vehicle and 6% take part in a work meeting (twice as many as a year ago). An observation which is accompanied by fact by the non-respect of speed limits in town. 32% of motorists drive at 65 km/h in town (+5 points in one year). And do not include the limitation of 30 zones (72% do not respect it, + 9 points compared to 2021). And overall, 79% of them say they are speeding regardless of the type of road (+ 5 points).
The use of less polluting mobility
In addition to these findings, nearly 70% of motorists say they are ready to change their travel habits. And are already turning to less polluting mobility. In detail, 64% of them intend to limit their trips, 61% wish to favor active modes of transport (walking, cycling, scooter) when 32% have already done so. A recourse to less polluting mobility which is confirmed since 44% of French people use the bicycle as much or more often than before the health crisis (+ 8 points). They are similarly 15% to travel by scooter (+ 6 points). In addition, eight out of ten French people want to see the current cycle paths continue. More and more motorists find them useful (30%, an increase of 7 points), as do users of motorized two-wheelers (29%, +9 points).
For the time being, AXA Prévention is continuing to deploy its campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of using the telephone on the road. And will broadcast his awareness film You have life ahead of you on TV and in film in the fall of 2022.
