Skip to main content

Survey: British drivers’ biggest gripes are time wasted in traffic and searching for parking spaces

New online research, commissioned by Nuance Communications and carried out by YouGov, which quizzed drivers on their expectations around in-car digital technology, found that time wasted in traffic (70 per cent) and searching for parking spaces (53 per cent) were cited as British drivers’ most common gripes when on the road. This survey, of 2062 adults, of which 1621 have a driving licence, demonstrates that British drivers would look for in-car technology to humanise their driving experience, by enabli
May 17, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
New online research, commissioned by Nuance Communications and carried out by YouGov, which quizzed drivers on their expectations around in-car digital technology, found that time wasted in traffic (70 per cent) and searching for parking spaces (53 per cent) were cited as British drivers’ most common gripes when on the road.

This survey, of 2062 adults, of which 1621 have a driving licence, demonstrates that British drivers would look for in-car technology to humanise their driving experience, by enabling them to stay in touch with people and increase the enjoyment of driving.

Drivers are also more focused on the driving experience than expecting automotive assistants to help them be more productive. Indeed, many drivers expect their automotive assistants to act as guide while on the road (58 per cent), to help them stay connected with friends and family (21 percent) and to entertain them (22 per cent), while productivity was an important factor for just 10 per cent of respondents.

Further key figures include: 35 per cent of British drivers would prefer a biometric solution (face or voice recognition) to identify them rather than traditional car keys (27 per cent); Two-thirds of drivers would like their automotive assistant to learn from them and their past behaviour to deliver a better user experience; Two in five drivers want their car to learn from their preferred routes, while more than a quarter want their car to remember their behaviour, including individual preferences for types of cuisine, price preferences, off-street parking, etc;  Nearly half of UK drivers want their car to help them deal with car diagnostics, for example, to report issues, and help them understand new car features.

When provided with a list of high profile names to choose from as their preferred digital in-car automotive assistant, one in five chose Stephen Fry, with just 10 per cent selecting driving guru and former Top Gear presenter, Jeremy Clarkson.

Looking to the future, consumers would want their cars to proactively tell them if there is free parking at their destination, let them know if they don’t have enough fuel to complete their journey, and if they are likely to arrive late (60 per cent, 59 per cent, and 34 per cent, respectively).

Related Content

  • Teledyne Flir brings Middle East into vision
    July 10, 2023
    As urban sprawl creeps across the Middle East and Africa, congested roads aren’t far behind. Hesham Enan of Teledyne Flir explains to Adam Hill how traffic technology is helping authorities to cope
  • Construction group launches new highway work zone safety effort
    May 26, 2017
    Forty-four per cent of US highway contractors reported that motor vehicles had crashed into their construction work zones during the past year, according to the results of a new highway work zone study conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America. As a result, association officials have launched a new national advertising and outreach campaign to urge motorists to stay alert and slow down while driving through highway work zones. Stephen E. Sandherr, chief executive officer for the association
  • Need for harmonisation in ITS standards
    February 1, 2012
    As the calendar rolls over, and we hop from continent to continent and World Congress to World Congress, where Memoranda of Understanding and cooperation agreements are the headline news, it is easy for those not intimately involved to forget that standards definition is a well-nigh continual process. Significant progress has been made in recent months towards achieving the critical mass and economies of scale which are going to drive development and deployment in, amongst other things, cooperative infrastr
  • NATSO dismisses tolling study claims
    September 16, 2013
    NATSO, the US association representing travel plazas and truck-stops, has rejected the report prepared by the Reason Foundation that pushes for widespread tolling. "The public detests interstate tolls, and with good reason," said NATSO president and CEO Lisa Mullings. "Tolls divert motorists and truck drivers to non-interstates, leading to more traffic deaths. Additionally, it costs the government more money to collect tolls than to collect fuel taxes."