The purpose of the annual ‘Driver Attitudes, Knowledge, and Awareness’ survey is to obtain information about Washington drivers’ knowledge, opinions, and self-reported driving behavior. NHTSA and the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) developed and tested a set of survey questions to collect information on self-reported seat belt use, impaired driving, and speeding. Eight of these core questions were implemented in Washington. These data are included in the Washington State Highway Safety Plan and Annual Reports and are used to track trends and evaluate the effectiveness of our programs and marketing, particularly with drivers involved in fatal crashes. These data were collected through a state contractor using an intercept method at select Department of Licensing (DOL) locations throughout the state. DOL patrons are approached and drivers aged 18 years and older who are renewing their driver’s license are asked to complete the brief survey while they wait. Beginning in 2014, these questions will be administered on the statewide Behavioral Risk Factor and Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey, resulting in a larger, more representative sample for future reporting. Those results will be available near the end of 2015 or early 2016. Over half of all Washington drivers reported knowledge of enforcement campaigns. According to the 2012 survey results, a large majority of survey respondents reported reading, seeing, or hearing messages about drunk driving enforcement (76%). For seat belt enforcement, 59% reported reading, seeing, or hearing messages and 46% for speed enforcement. Television, radio, and electronic signs were the top reported media channels for these messages but varied by age and Designated Media Area (DMAs). Regarding driver attitudes, four out of five drivers surveyed thought they were likely to get a ticket for speeding (8 MPH over the speed limit). Two-thirds thought they were likely to get a ticket for not wearing a seatbelt. Nearly 90% of drivers surveyed thought they were likely to get arrested if they drove impaired. Self-reported driver behaviors are an important supplement to existing data. This survey enables the collection of data from a sample of Washington licensed drivers, not from just those who encounter law enforcement. These data are especially important for evaluating impaired driving behavior because unlike speeding and seat belt use, there is no observational measure of impaired driving available in Washington State. According to the 2012 survey results, 10% reported driving within two hours of consuming any alcohol. More than half of surveyed drivers reported talking on a cell phone or sending/receiving text messages while driving in the past 30 days. Cell phone and texting behavior varied substantially with age. Responses regarding speeding were more positive; two-thirds of surveyed drivers reported rarely or never driving faster than 30 MPH on a 25 MPH local road. (Author/publisher)
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