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Study finds negative habitual practices among young Sri Lankan drivers 

19 May 2021

  • DUI, phone use, U-turn/overtaking in restricted areas, not signalling when changing lanes, overtaking from left, speeding to run a yellow when about to turn red, not using seat belt 

By Ruwan Laknath Jayakody    Negative habitual practices among young, inexperienced local drivers act as critical factors in increasing the risk of the severity of the injuries sustained during motor traffic accidents, a local study noted.  The negative habitual practices identified by the study include driving under the influence of alcohol, using the mobile phone, taking a U-turn and overtaking in restricted areas, not indicating signals when changing lanes, overtaking from the left side, speeding to run a yellow light when it is about to change to red, and not using the seat belt.  These findings were made by N. Amarasingha and H.M.M. Firdhaws (both attached to the Department of Civil Engineering of the Sri Lanka Institute of Information technology) in a research article titled Self Reported Habitual Practices and Perceptions of Young Drivers in Sri Lanka which was published recently in the Journal of South Asian Logistics and Transport.  Drivers from the younger generation are more at risk of being involved in vehicle crashes and committing traffic related violations as they have less experience when it comes to driving. Changes in Driving Behaviour Across Age Cohorts in an Arab Culture: the Case of the State of Qatar (2018) by A. Soliman, W. Alhajyaseenb, R. Alfara and I. Alkaabia showed that drivers aged 18 years or less, followed by drivers between the ages of 18 and 25 years, frequently committed driving violations and caused accidents. Young drivers start to drive with more caution but overestimate their skill and start multitasking with mobile phones, eating and talking with other passengers while driving, all of which are sources of distraction as noted by S.G. Klauer, J.P. Ehsani, D.V. McGehee and M. Manser in The Effect of Secondary Task Engagement on Adolescents Driving Performance and Crash Risk (2015). Young people drive faster (speeding being the most common reason for crashes), as noted by C. Horvath, I. Lewis and B. Watson in Peer passenger identity and passenger pressure on young drivers speeding intentions (2012) when they are with peer passengers. This is in order to show both confidence and skill. When there is aggressive behaviour involved while driving, there are higher chances of drivers taking risks, Amarasingha and Firdhaws pointed out. Aggressive behaviour which in turn leads to the exhibition of higher risk taking behaviour occurs when there is less attention to road safety, pressure from friends, and less commitment and communication shared by the person who monitors the young driver’s behaviour while he or she is driving, noted O.T. Ben-Ari, V. Skvirsky, T.J. Greenbury and C.G. Prato in Explaining risks behind the wheel - Comparing Israeli and Queensland young drivers (between 17 and 22 years) (2018).  These issues, Amarasingha and Firdhaws observed, highlight the need for better driver education, a strict licensing process, and proper guidance for young, inexperienced drivers. 
  1. Shaaban, S. Gaweeshb and M.M. Ahmedb in Characteristics and mitigation strategies for cell phone use while driving among young drivers (18 to 25-year-olds with valid driving licenses) in Qatar (2018) found that the majority (90.8%) had agreed that they used their cell phone while driving. When queried about their first course of action when they receive a phone call, the majority (73.2%) mentioned that they usually answer the phone and continue driving, while 11.2% mentioned that they stop the vehicle first and then answer the phone, and 9% stated that they answer first and then stop the vehicle. When questioned about how talking over the phone affected their driving, only 20.5% answered that talking while driving had no effect on their driving performance while the majority stated that their driving was affected in many ways, such as by way of slower driving and drifting in and out of lanes. The driver’s experience and the duration that the driver keeps his or her eyes away from the road when driving has a significant effect on cell phone usage, the same study found. It was also found that young drivers involved in a crash in the past tended to use their cell phones less than those who had never had a cell phone related crash. Therefore, the said study recommended conducting public road safety campaigns to educate young drivers on the risks associated with calling, answering, texting and browsing while driving. 
Soliman et al. also found that individuals who did not wear seat belts (36.6%) reported more driving violations, while female drivers with higher levels of education wore seat belts more often. In terms of the impact of education, Soliman et al. found that those with low or medium levels of education reported that they were more likely to commit driving violations than those who were well educated, and that young male drivers, aged less than 25 years, who had low levels of education, in particular, had the highest frequency of committing driving related violations. Female drivers, Soliman et al., found they drove safer than male drivers and reported significantly fewer driving violations. 
  1. Alreesi, J. Freeman, J. Davey, S.A. Adawi and A.A. Maniri in Measuring risky driving behaviours among young drivers (between the ages of 17 and 25 years): Development of a scale for the Oman setting (2018) revealed seven dimensions and factors for risky behaviours including transient violations, speeding, moody driving, fatigued driving, distracted driving, seat belt usage and following another vehicle closely. Moody, fatigued and distracted driving were, according to Alreesi et al., the reasons for the incidence of crashes among young drivers while the strongest predictor for the involvement in crashes was the distraction factor. 
The results of the survey of Ben-Ari et al. indicated that young Israeli drivers regarded their parents as providing more role modelling and good communication, messages and feedback than those in Queensland where the latter reported less commitment to road safety in their families. Also, young Israeli drivers associated less cost to driving with friends and at the same time took in more communication and experience from their friends than those in Queensland. In the study, a high intention to take risks involved a high tendency towards aggressive behaviour, less family orientation towards road safety, greater pressure from friends and less commitment from friends while driving. Further, women reported much less willingness to take risks than young male drivers while young drivers with divorced or separated parents would drive more recklessly than those from intact families. The central roles of parents and friends, Amarasingha and Firdhaws observed, must therefore be taken into consideration.  The Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) system introduced in Queensland, Australia, in 2007, was designed to facilitate young drivers to get experience in low risk environments and situations. The system has three stages that the young drivers need to pass - the learner’s permit, the provisional or intermediate license, and the full driver’s license - and all three stages have their own limitations and restrictions (initially, there are restrictions on driving in the night and on expressways, which are however lifted once the full driver’s license is obtained after several tests). According to Young, Inexperienced, and on the Road: Do Novice Drivers Comply with Road Rules (2012) by B. Scott-Parker, B. Watson, M.J. King and M.K. Hyde, participants reported on driving experience, difficulties, and the offences they committed like taking an illegal U-turn, using mobile phones, and crashing the vehicle while reversing. The majority reported that they complied with the GDL requirements and the general rules that need to be followed on the road. The results however showed that speeding should be targeted since the speed limit related rule was a rule they obeyed less.  In Sri Lanka, there are two licence categories: light vehicle licence (classes A1, A, B1, B and G1) and heavy vehicle licence (C1, C, CE, D1, D, DE, G and J), the latter which is an extension of the light vehicle licence. According to the guidelines provided by the Motor Traffic (Amendment) Act, No. 08 of 2009, in order to obtain a driver license, a person can register and sit for the written test for the light vehicle category (classes A1, A, B1, B) when 17 years of age. Prior to filling the application for the driving license, an aptitude medical certificate has to be obtained from the National Transport Medical Institute (examines and issues certificates of physical and mental fitness to drivers). Once the medical test is completed, a written test consisting of 40 multiple choice questions (assesses knowledge on road signs and traffic rules) has to be done and passed. Afterwards, a learner’s permit is issued for up to a maximum of 18 months and the holder of the learner’s permit can practice driving under the supervision of a licensed driver along with a ‘L’ board fitted to the front and rear of the vehicle. A person who completes 18 years of age and a minimum of three months of experience under the learner’s permit can face the road test where the general driving ability including aspects such as fastening the seat belt before starting the vehicle, pulling over at the side of the road, reversing the vehicle and parallel parking at the side of the road are checked. In order to obtain the driving license, it is compulsory to face the road test and pass it. The person applying for a heavy vehicle driving licence should be a holder of a light vehicle driving licence of class B or B1 at least two years prior to the date of application. To obtain a licence for the light motor bus and light motor category, the minimum height of the person should be four feet and 10 inches. A minimum height of five feet is required in order to obtain a license for the motor bus and motor lorry category.  This research study by Amarasingha and Firdhaws investigated the habitual practices of 400 young drivers (278 male and 122 female) which lead to accidents.  The habitual driving practices were speeding, driving under the influence of alcohol, mobile phone usage, taking an illegal U-turn in restricted areas, indicating signals when changing lanes, wearing the seat belt for a short trip, carrying more passengers than can legally be fitted into the vehicle, taking a chance by trying to speed and run a yellow light when it is about to change to red, overtaking vehicles in restricted areas (a double lined road area, and on curvy roads), overtaking a slow driver from the left side or curbside, and smoking. The responses included never (one), occasionally (two), sometimes (three), most of the time (four) and always (five).  Data were collected using a questionnaire distributed at Diyatha Uyana in Battaramulla, the Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology in Malabe, the Viharamahadevi Park and the Botanical Gardens in Peradeniya.  The majority was of the 19 to 24-years age group (83.8%). About 6% were below 19 years and 10.2% were above 24 years.  The majority (302) had the full license, 28 had only the learner’s permit while 70 had not obtained the driving license.  Only 172 had driven under the supervision of someone who owns a driving license.  A total of 230 admitted that their parents had imposed driving related limitations which were always about speeding where their parents had always asked them to refrain from speeding.  Only 68 had been involved in an accident.  In terms of traffic offenses, the majority had been pulled over by the Police for overtaking in restricted areas (75), speeding (46), parking in restricted areas (32), driving without a valid licence (30), not wearing the seat belt (16), and crossing the signal before it turned green (12).  Overtaking in restricted areas, and speeding to run a yellow light when it is about to change to red had the highest inter item correlation. This higher value, Amarasingha and Firdhaws noted, indicated that young drivers who overtake in restricted areas are also more likely to speed up and run a yellow light when it is about to change to red.  It was observed that driving after alcohol consumption, mobile phone usage, taking an illegal U-turn in restricted areas, not indicating signals when changing lanes, and overtaking from the curb side (oft seen in urban areas and specially involves motorcycles and three wheelers) are the independent variables which have a significant impact on young drivers not wearing the seat belt, thereby indicating high injury risks. Driving after alcohol consumption is identified as a factor which increases the severity of injuries. Mobile phone usage is also identified as a primary distraction factor increasing the injury risk of young drivers. Proper action should also be taken to prevent the practice among young inexperienced drivers of overtaking a slow moving vehicle from the illegal left curbside, Amarasingha and Firdhaws emphasised.  Shaaban et al., suggested that policy makers should develop programs targeting risky drivers, focusing on education and public awareness about the risks associated with negative habitual practices. Amarasingha and S. Dissanayake in Modelling injury severity of young drivers using highway crash data from Kansas (2013) recommended increasing awareness among the people by educating them through the media. Some studies, according to Amarasingha and Firdhaws, suggest the design of new technologies related to vehicles as well as law enforcement efforts.


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