Driving past billboards: distraction not a problem

By: Staff
Date: 2004-01-26

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Not even the most attention grabbing billboards pull driver's eyes away from the road, according to a new study by Virginia Tech's Transportation Institute (VTTI).

The institute's Center for Crash Causation and Human Factors set up a study with 36 drivers. The drivers were told they were participating in a study of "natural driving behavior," but not that their reaction to billboards was a part of the study. They were given an urban/suburban route in Charlotte, North Carolina. A total of 30 billboard sites along the route were selected with assistance from a Charlotte, North Carolina outdoor advertising company and representatives from the Outdoor Advertising Association of America.

The route included billboards of various sizes, on both sides of the road, and on both interstate and surface streets. In addition, six comparison sites (e.g., logo signs, signs on buildings, etc.) and six control sites (with no distracting visual elements such as buildings or signs present) were included for comparison purposes.

Participants in this study drove a vehicle equipped with cameras and a data collection system that measured where drivers were glancing and also measured driving performances such as speed variation and lane position.

After their drive, drivers were asked questions such as what was memorable about the drive or what they noticed about other drivers. Most of their comments were about traffic, construction, the weather, or aggressive driving by other drivers. Many drivers said they typically also performed other activities while driving, such as listening to music, talking on a cell phone, eating, drinking, smoking cigarettes, or talking to passengers.

The study concluded that the presence of billboards did not affect drivers' speed, lane positioning or other behavior in any significant way, and that not even the most attention-grabbing billboards distracted drivers from their normal driving behavior.

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