News item | 26-09-2022 | 06:30
Today the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management is launching the ‘Mij Nie Appen!’ campaign. This is aimed at the senders of messages, and should reduce the number of traffic victims and accidents caused by smartphone use.
When sending messages, almost half of Dutch young people do not take into account whether that person is on the road at that moment, while they know that this often leads to accidents. This is apparent from research by Motivaction, carried out on behalf of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management.
Minister Mark Harbers (Infrastructure and Water Management) says: ”An accident is a small corner, especially if people are distracted in traffic. This often happens through alerts from your mobile, both in the car and on the bike. With the MONO campaign we want to encourage people not to read or write messages while on the road. That is not always easy. You can help your friends, colleagues or family with that: wait to send that message until you know that the person has arrived safely.”
Motivaction’s research shows that a third of Dutch people still send someone a message, even though they know or suspect that the recipient is driving or cycling at that moment. For 16 to 24 year olds this is even half and for 25 to 34 year olds 40 percent (to car drivers) to 49 percent (to cyclists). Nevertheless, nine out of ten Dutch people know that distraction is a major cause of traffic accidents.
Don’t App me!
Until now, the MONO campaign focused mainly on the road users themselves, but Motivaction’s research offers reason to also start focusing on the senders of messages. Since 2018, the MONO campaign has been calling on you not to be distracted by WhatsApp or social media. Now a message is added: Do not App me!
The campaign is also promoted by the MONO partners: provinces, municipalities, police, OM, Team Alert, VVN, ANWB, Shell and Flitsmeister.
Danger of distraction
The risk of an accident is 2.5 times greater when road users are busy with their phones. Previous research showed that seven out of ten Dutch people receive messages or notifications on their mobile when they are on the road. Two-thirds read those messages while driving.
During the national MONO day of action, police forces will carry out massive checks on smartphone use in traffic: a fine is 140 euros on a bicycle, and 350 euros in a car. The starting signal is given in The Hague. Here’s also a ‘Don’t App Me’ drive-in set up by Team Alert, where people are asked to set their phone to ‘Do Not Disturb’.