Enhance your Distracted Driving Policy with Education & Seminars
If a distracted driving policy has not yet been created for your workplace, DIAD can engage staff at all levels to recognize potential risks, facilitate discussion, and create a solid foundation to guide policy development.
If a policy is in place, but more work is needed to implement and reinforce it through day-to-day operational practices, the DIAD team can work with managers and staff to identify achievable improvements and share tools and strategies to build on existing practices.
Stakeholder Tools
NEW!
TIRF’s new fact sheet, released in December 2023, describes the prevalence and recent trends in distracted driving on Canadian roads and examines changes in distracted driving penalties. It also explores the potential impact of escalating penalties on society and human behaviour using the proportionality principle. The potential of alternative strategies such as well-designed awareness and education programs to help shift attitudes and behaviours is explored along with the potential of harnessing social norms.
Employers and targeted programs for violators represent an opportunity to achieve the next big gain in making roads safe. The delivery of effective workplace safety programs that include a road safety component, as well as evidence-based remedial programs for violators are worthy of more exploration to encourage and strengthen positive social norms which make distracted driving unacceptable.
Download & share: Distracted Driving Policy: A Criminal Justice Perspective on Penalties
The Distracted Driving & Workplace Safety Form and Distracted Driving & Workplace Safety Checklist are workplace safety tools produced by the Canadian Coalition on Distracted Driving (CCDD).
- Distracted Driving & Workplace Safety Form: This free resource for employers engages employees through education, best practices, and prevention strategies to reduce distraction.
- Distracted Driving & Workplace Safety Checklist: This free resource for employers is an agreement between employer and employee to make road safety a priority at, or after work.
- Formulaire de distraction au volant et de sécurité au travail: Cette ressource gratuite pour les employeurs engage les employés à travers l’éducation, les meilleures pratiques et des stratégies de prévention pour réduire la distraction.
- Distraction au volant et sécurité au travail – Liste de contrôle: Cette ressource gratuite pour les employeurs est un accord entre l’employeur et l’employé pour faire de la sécurité routière une priorité pendant ou après le travail.
First Responders
Anatomy of a Road Crash and The Impact of Road Crashes on First Responders & Communities: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder & Critical Incident Stress are fact sheets intended to raise awareness about the toll preventable collisions have on first responders, as well as victims and communities, and to share insider knowledge of crash scene management with the public to help keep first responders safe while on the job. Driving is both a responsibility and a privilege and with that, individuals hold the power to reduce their risk. Everyone has the right to get home safe every day; not just physically, but also emotionally.
- Anatomy of a Road Crash: This fact sheet describes the workplace of first responders and explains what happens during a crash as well as reasons for delays, detours and road closures. It also includes tips for motorists to help keep first responders safe at collision scenes and reduce the risk of secondary collisions. Public awareness of crash scene management can instill a sense of personal responsibility in all of us to reduce risks, avoid preventable crashes, and keep the professionals who protect us safe on the road.
- The Impact of Road Crashes on First Responders & Communities: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder & Critical Incident Stress: To increase awareness about the consequences of PTSD and CIS for first responders, this fact sheet shares knowledge about these prominent mental health issues, ways they are being acknowledged and addressed by professional organizations, and strategies for communities to help support and protect first responders.
- Anatomie d’une collision routière : Cette fiche informative décrit le milieu de travail des premiers répondants, les interventions qui font suite à une collision ainsi que les raisons expliquant les bouchons de circulation, les déviations routières et les fermetures de routes. Elle contient également des conseils à l’intention des automobilistes afin d’assurer la sécurité des premiers répondants sur place et de réduire le risque de collisions secondaires. Avec la sensibilisation au rôle des premiers répondants, on peut inculquer au public un sens des responsabilités et permettre de diminuer les risques, d’empêcher les collisions évitables et d’assurer la sécurité des professionnels présents.
- Impacts des collisions routières sur les premiers répondants et les collectivités : Trouble de stress post-traumatique et stress causé par un incident critique : Pour accroître la sensibilisation aux conséquences du TSPT et du SIC pour les premiers répondants, les auteurs de cette fiche font le point sur ces problèmes de santé mentale importants, les façons dont ils sont reconnus et traités par les organisations professionnelles et les stratégies que les collectivités peuvent mettre en oeuvre afin de mieux soutenir et protéger les premiers intervenants.
The Distracted Driving & Workplace Safety Policies: A Business Case for Employers was developed by TIRF in consultation with Drop It And Drive®, the trucking industry, and workplace health and safety representatives with funding provided by Co-operators. This report underscores the importance of distracted driving policies in the workplace to protect employees. Preventing distraction-related crashes on the road and in the workplace remains a priority for Canadian employers.
- Distracted Driving & Workplace Safety Policies: A Business Case for Employers: This business case describes the costs of prevention programs and compares them to collision costs. It illustrates the value of integrating distracted driving policies into workplace safety programs and reinforcing them in day-to-day safety practices. Tools are included to help employers estimate the costs to their business and quantify the value of distracted driving safety policies which can protect staff and improve safety in the communities where they live and work.
- Distracted Driving & Workplace Safety Policies: A Business Case for Employers – Executive Summary
- Distraction au volant politiques en matière de sécurité au travail : Dossier d’analyse à l’intention des employeurs : Cette analyse de rentabilité décrit les coûts des programmes de prévention et les compare aux coûts des collisions. Elle démontre l’intérêt d’intégrer les politiques de lutte contre les distractions au volant dans les programmes de sécurité au travail et de les faire valoir dans les pratiques de sécurité quotidiennes. Des outils sont inclus pour aider les employeurs à estimer les coûts pour leur entreprise et à quantifier la valeur des politiques de sécurité en matière de distraction au volant, qui peuvent protéger le personnel et améliorer la sécurité dans les communautés où ils vivent et travaillent.
- Distraction au volant politiques en matière de sécurité au travail : Dossier d’analyse à l’intention des employeurs – Résumé
- Distracted Driving Policies & the Transportation Industry. Employers in the trucking industry recognize their critical role in prioritizing strategies to prevent distracted driving among their employees and protect them from other distracted drivers on the road. The business case for employers compares the costs of prevention activities to the costs of crashes immediately following their occurrence, as well as in the short-term and longer term. This fact sheet describes the potential impact of distracted driving collisions on employers; the full business case was published in early 2020.
- Let’s Talk About Crashes. Language shapes policy as well as action or inaction. This fact sheet explores important differences in language used to describe accidents and crashes. It aims to raise awareness about the preventable nature of crashes and contains a call to action to encourage the use of appropriate terminology.
- Distracted Driving & Behaviour Change. This fact sheet defines distracted driving behaviours and describes several important theories of behaviour change that can inform distracted driving prevention campaigns. It also highlights essential campaign features that can increase effectiveness.
- Distracted Driving Facts. This fact sheet summarizes the risks associated with distracted driving and shares important data about the problem.
Download in French:
- Parlons Collisions. La langue influe sur les politiques et motive l’action ou l’inaction. Ce document explore d’importantes différences dans la terminologie utilisée pour décrire les accidents et les collisions. Il vise à susciter une prise de conscience sur la nature évitable des collisions et encourage à utiliser la terminologie appropriée.
- Distraction au volant et changements de comportements. Ce document présente les habitudes de distraction au volant et décrit d’importantes théories pour changer les comportements et contribuer aux campagnes de prévention de la distraction au volant. Il contient également des conseils essentiels pour créer des campagnes efficaces.
- Faits sur la distraction au Volant. Ce document résume les risques associés à la distraction au volant et présente des données importantes sur cette problématique.
Educational Tools & Infographics
The Traffic Injury Research Foundation, its Drop It And Drive® program and the Canadian Coalition on Distracted Driving, in partnership with Co-operators, have created two new distracted driving infographics.
Distracted Driving Resources
- Preventing Distracted Driving: One-Stop Resource: The Traffic Injury Research Foundation has worked with a wide range of partners in the public, private and non-profit sectors to help organizations increase their knowledge capital to create safer, more efficient, and trustworthy road safety products, technology and logistics. Our collection of free distracted driving educational resources includes reports, fact sheets, and an educational program to inform decision-making at all levels. This knowledge can turn breakthrough to follow through.
- Distracted Driving Toolkit by the International Association of Chiefs of Police. It includes a report on promising practices for public education, enforcement, and officer safety; a press release and talking points template that can be used to address distracted driving issues for chiefs of municipal governments and community education; two separate 11 x 17 poster infographics – The Dangers of Distracted Driving & The Dangers of Distracted Driving by Law Enforcement Officers; and, a comprehensive list of resources to help agencies address distracted driving crashes.
Related Websites
- Canadian Automobile Association – Distracted Driving Statistics
- Canadian Council of Motor Transportation Administrators
- Cone Zone – Slow Down
- Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030
- Distraction.gov Official US Government Website for Distracted Driving
- Drive out Distraction by Co-operators
- Driven to Distraction International Conference, 2012
- Drop It And Drive®
- IHSA Keep Your Promise
- Leave the Phone Alone National Pledge
- Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure – British Columbia
- Ministry of Transportation – Ontario: Frequently Asked Questions
- National Day of Remembrance for Road Crash Victims
- National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) – Distracted Driving
- NO TIME TO THINK How Technology is Shaping Human Behaviour – Documentary by Road Trip Productions, Oregon, USA featuring Drop It And Drive®
- NOYS
- OSAID – Ontario Students Against Impaired Driving
- Road Safety at Work
- Safer Roads Ottawa Program
- TeenSafe – 100 Distracted Driving Facts & Statistics for 2018
- The Casey Feldman Network
- The Community Against Preventable Injuries
- The Co-operators – Collision: Now What?
- Traffic Injury Research Foundation (TIRF)
- Transport Canada
- WorkplaceSafetyNorth – Industry Experts Analyze Causes of Distracted Driving on The Job
Recommended Reading
- Top 10 Causes of Distracted Driving for Logging Operations, Workplace Safety North, April 2019
- Texting/emailing while driving among high school students in 35 states, United States, 2015 – Li, L., Shults, R. A., Andridge, R. R., Yellman, M. A., Xiang, H., & Zhu, M. (2018). Journal of Adolescent Health.
- National survey on distracted driving attitudes and behaviors – 2015 – Schroeder, P., Wilbur, M., & Peña, R. (2018, March). (Report No. DOT HS 812 461). Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Preventable Injuries/Fatalities Due to Distracted Driving: A Call for a Coordinated Action – Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy, 2016 Volume:46 Issue:10 Pages:818–821 DOI: 10.2519/jospt.2016.0113
- Distracted Driving in Canada: Making Progress; Taking Action
- Measuring Cognitive Distraction in the Automobile III: A Comparison of Ten 2015 In-Vehicle Information Systems, AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety
- NRSPP Guide: Developing An Effective Policy For Mobile Phone Use In Vehicles, NRSPP National Road Safety Partnership Program – Australia
- Employers can End Distracted Driving with Cell Phone Policies (includes link to downloadable Free Cell Phone Policy Kit), National Safety Council – USA
- Canadian Drivers Blame Traffic Delays for Cell Phone Use – National distracted driving survey by Allstate Canada shows Canadians are still finding it difficult to put their phones away while driving
- Driver Distraction and Hands-Free Texting While Driving by the Traffic Injury Research Foundation (Canada), released April 2013
- The Economic and Societal Impact Of Motor Vehicle Crashes, 2010 by the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, released May 2014
- Canadian Teenagers, Especially Males, Still Over-Represented Among Driver Fatalities by TIRF CANADA & State Farm Canada, October 2013
- Driver Distraction and Hands-Free Texting While Driving by Traffic Injury Research Foundation, sponsored by Adept Driver® – April 2013
- Measuring Cognitive Distraction in the Automobile by the AAA Foundation – June 2013