Could advanced driver assistance systems increase distracted driving?

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Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) — like adaptive cruise control, collision avoidance systems, traction control, and automotive night vision — are designed to prevent injuries, fatalities, and damage to vehicles.  

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According to a National Safety Council report published in 2019 , ADAS technology has the potential to prevent 62 per cent of total traffic deaths, mostly thanks to lane keeping assist and pedestrian automatic braking features, which sees the brakes activated when a potential pedestrian collision is detected. ADAS features also have the potential to prevent or mitigate about 60 per cent of total traffic injuries, with forward collision prevention (which warns of an impending crash against a slower-moving or stationary vehicle) and lane keeping assist having the biggest impact.

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Still, car crashes involving ADAS happen. And when they do, they often make headlines and bring about questions of driver safety, with critics asking whether manufacturers are doing enough to prevent users from becoming distracted as they rely on these features.

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As ADAS technology becomes more prevalent, could overconfidence in these systems lead to more instances of distracted driving?

The risk of complacency with advanced driver assistance systems

Given that many Canadians believe  distracted driving isn’t as dangerous as studies show , experts are reasonably concerned with how ADAS might influence driver behaviour. 

“The challenge with ADAS systems is the technologies are designed to prevent and mitigate crashes and reduce driver error, but the driver does still need to be fully engaged,” says Robyn Robertson, president and CEO of the Traffic Injury Research Foundation.

“Unfortunately, particularly with the new ADAS systems, like lane departure warning and forward collision warning, and even things like electronic stability control or brake assist, there’s a misunderstanding [about] how the technology works as well as the limitations of the technology.”

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Robertson explains that driving is rote behaviour, which requires divided attention through the use of manual, visual, and cognitive skills. But many drivers are so comfortable with the act they tend to believe they can drive without thinking too much about it. 

“That tends to make them complacent because they feel confident in their driving ability,” Robertson says. Add in a vehicle with ADAS safety features and some drivers might be underestimating how much they actually need to focus.

“There is a general perception that ‘I have these safety features on my vehicle so I’m safe’ but often drivers tend not to fully appreciate the importance of being vigilant and alert when they’re driving and become overconfident and pay less attention because they feel safe,” Robertson says. 

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Like with any technology, it’s not perfect. “The assumption that they’ll work in every situation all the time is perhaps misplaced,” she adds. “The driver monitoring systems are still relatively new and more work is needed to evaluate them to figure out what kinds of prompts or indications the driver best responds to.”

Could ADAS lead to an increase in distracted driving?

Distracted driving can make a big impact on car insurance premiums. According to LowestRates.ca data , one distracted driving charge on an otherwise clean record can raise rates by up to 24 per cent. And two distracted driving charges can raise premiums by up to 41 per cent.

But Daniel McGehee, professor and director of the National Advanced Driving Simulator at the University of Iowa, says he doesn’t think we’re seeing or will see any more instances of distracted driving with ADAS because they can help nudge users to pay attention.

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“The way I describe these systems is that they look over your shoulder and wait for you to make an error,” McGehee says.

“So, if you have lane keeping and adaptive cruise control on the highway and you take both hands off of the wheel and start texting, it recognizes that your hands aren’t on the steering wheel. If the system has a head tracking or eye tracking position monitor, it knows pretty quickly you’re not looking up.” 

These systems are designed to immediately remind the driver to take control, he adds. This can show up as a visual alert, auditory beep, or even haptic feedback (such as a vibration) to the steering wheel. 

Unlike with fully automated vehicles, which are still being tested and many decades away from high-level production, McGehee says, ADAS-equipped vehicles aren’t autonomous. Drivers of these vehicles are still just as responsible for the vehicle’s maneuvers as they would be for one that didn’t have ADAS. 

For Robertson, educating drivers on that responsibility is key.

“Where I think [everybody] can do better is by helping drivers understand new technology and how it works and doesn’t work,” she says, “to make sure that drivers understand the limitations of technology, and are aware of how important it is for them to remain alert.”

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