Heavy metal or classical music - which is safer to listen to while you are driving? It turns out, it does not matter what genre comes belting out of your speakers while you are cruising down the road - it is the speed of the music that matters most. New research in Europe by Allianz, in collaboration with Forsman & Bodenfors and Spotify, has found that lower-tempo music - anything under 80 beats per minute - promotes steadier heart rates, calmer decisions and faster response times, which influence more relaxed, controlled driving behaviour on the road. Tracks such as Ed Sheeran’s Thinking Out Loud, Billie Eilish’s When The Party’s Over, or Adele’s Someone Like You can help regulate heart rate, reduce stress responses and support more controlled decision-making behind the wheel. For the past year, a road safety campaign has run across Ireland, Austria, Hungary, Australia and the United Kingdom, sharing the research findings with drivers, and to date, more than 66,000 people have created their own ‘‘safer driving’’ playlists to be played in their vehicles. Excess speed has been linked to more than half of fatal road crashes worldwide and traditional awareness campaigns had struggled to cut through - especially in an era of constant distraction. Allianz’ challenge was to find a behavioural lever that could influence drivers on the road, rather than rely on warnings or shock tactics. Forsman & Bodenfors executive creative director Damian Hanley said it had been a successful tool for shaping safer driving habits. ‘‘Music sits beside every driver in every car in the world. ‘‘We realised it can be either a good companion, or a bad one. ‘‘So, we wanted to turn it into a safety message people could listen to every single day.’’ The campaign quickly became a global talking point and now drivers are sharing their playlists on TikTok, Instagram and Facebook, proving that safety messaging does not have to be sombre to resonate. Mr Hanley said the campaign’s high engagement rate suggested drivers were not just looking at the playlists, but getting involved, experimenting and opting for safer habits. More than 66,800 personalised safer-driving playlists have now been created. ‘‘Each playlist was generated using Spotify’s API, filtering for tracks under 80 beats per minute. ‘‘That’s tens of thousands of drivers consciously choosing to change their driving environment - a behavioural milestone that traditional public safety announcements can struggle to achieve. ‘‘Those 66,827 safer-driving playlists translated into millions of minutes where drivers were immersed in calmer soundscapes. ‘‘This number turns the abstract idea of ‘music can influence behaviour’, into something quantifiable.’’ The numbers suggested music-driven safety interventions might have the staying power that really mattered, he said. john.lewis@odt.co.nz
