Transactions on Transport Sciences 2021, 12(1):4-11 | DOI: 10.5507/tots.2021.004

Smartphones and Pedestrian Behaviour

Beata Suriakova, Matus Sucha
Department of Psychology, Palacky University in Olomouc, Krizkovskeho 8, Olomouc 771 80, Czech Republic

The article deals with the behaviour of pedestrians using a smartphone. The work aims to describe the behaviour of pedestrians using a smartphone while walking and to survey the factors that lead pedestrians to this behaviour. The data gathering was performed at a marked pedestrian crossing without signals in Olomouc. The statistics in question were collected via observation and interviews. A total of 2689 pedestrians were observed and 90 people took part in a structured interview. We observed that 15% of pedestrians use their smartphone while walking. We found out that pedestrians who are holding a smartphone in their hand walk safely across a pedestrian crossing less often, rely on others more often when they are walking in a group, and step into the road more often when cars are supposed to give way to them. Furthermore, we found that pedestrians who were walking in a group and at the same time were on the phone or had on headsets were more likely to be guided by their companions than pedestrians who were not distracted.

Keywords: pedestrian; smartphone; pedestrian crossing; walking

Received: June 5, 2020; Revised: February 14, 2021; Accepted: March 25, 2021; Prepublished online: April 22, 2021; Published: June 29, 2021  Show citation

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Suriakova, B., & Sucha, M. (2021). Smartphones and Pedestrian Behaviour. Transactions on Transport Sciences, 12(1), 4-11. doi: 10.5507/tots.2021.004
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