Agency Information Collection Activities; Notice and Request for Comment; Older Novice Driver Study

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2026-0958]

Agency Information Collection Activities; Notice and Request for Comment; Older Novice Driver Study

AGENCY:

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION:

Notice and request for comments on a request for approval of a new information collection.

SUMMARY:

NHTSA invites public comments about our intention to request approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for a new information collection. Before a Federal agency can collect certain information from the public, it must receive approval from OMB. Under procedures established by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, before seeking OMB approval, Federal agencies must solicit public comment on proposed collections of information, including extensions and reinstatement of previously approved collections. This document describes a collection of information for which NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval for a naturalistic driving study with younger (less than age 17) and older (ages 18 to 20) novice drivers in their first twelve months of licensure.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before July 27, 2026.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments identified by the Docket No. NHTSA-2026-0958 through any of the following methods:

•

Electronic submissions:

Go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal at

http://www.regulations.gov.

Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.

•

Fax:

(202) 493-2251.

•

Mail or Hand Delivery:

Docket Management, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Room W58-213, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except on Federal holidays.

Instructions:

All submissions must include the agency name and docket number for this notice. Note that all comments received will be posted without change to

http://www.regulations.gov,

including any personal information provided. Please see the Privacy Act heading below.

Privacy Act:

Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement in the

Federal Register

published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78) or you may visit

https://www.transportation.gov/privacy.

Docket:

For access to the docket to read background documents or comments received, go to

http://www.regulations.gov

or the street address listed above. Follow the online instructions for accessing the dockets via internet.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For additional information or access to background documents, contact Christine Watson, Ph.D., Contracting Officer's Representative, Office of Behavioral Safety Research (NPD-320),

(771) 241-3210, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501

et seq.

), before an agency submits a proposed collection of information to OMB for approval, it must first publish a document in the

Federal Register

providing a 60-day comment period and otherwise consult with members of the public and affected agencies concerning each proposed collection of information. The OMB has promulgated regulations describing what must be included in such a document. Under OMB's regulation (at 5 CFR 1320.8(d)), an agency must ask for public comment on the following: (a) whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) how to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) how to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology,

e.g.

permitting electronic submission of responses. In compliance with these requirements, NHTSA asks for public comments on the following proposed collection of information for which the agency is seeking approval from OMB.

Title:

Older Novice Driver Study.

OMB Control Number:

New.

Form Number(s):

Forms 2228, 2229, 2230, 2231, 2232, 2233, and 2234.

Type of Request:

Approval of a new information collection request.

Type of Review Requested:

Regular.

Requested Expiration Date of Approval:

Three years from date of approval.

Summary of the Collection of Information:

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is seeking approval for a one-time voluntary information collection from older (ages 18 to 20) and younger (younger than age 17) novice drivers to investigate their driving performance and behavior during the first 12 months of independent (unsupervised) driving after licensure in a State(s) that does not apply Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) laws to novices 18 and older. Naturalistic driving data for each participant will be collected for 12 months following licensure using a smartphone-based data acquisition system (DAS) or using both the smartphone-based system and another, more comprehensive DAS installed in participant's personal vehicles. The smartphone-based DAS will use Global Positioning System (GPS) and accelerometer inputs to collect information related to velocity, acceleration, and driver exposure. The vehicle DAS includes video cameras and sensors; data will also be collected from the vehicle data bus. In addition, at the beginning, at the end, and up to four times throughout the study, participants will complete questionnaires about demographic, psychological, or other individual characteristics, such as attitudes and beliefs about traffic safety, that prior research indicates is associated with increased risk of crashes or risky driving.

While the naturalistic data collection does not create a burden to participants, study tasks with associated burden include a 2-minute screening questionnaire and a 10-minute informed consent briefing for potential participants (and their parent/guardian, if under 18). At the beginning of the study, all enrolled participants will complete a baseline questionnaire and hazard perception test and have the smartphone DAS installed (30 minutes); a subgroup will also have the vehicle DAS installed (an additional 240 minutes). During the naturalistic driving data collection period, participants will complete a study questionnaire on their smartphones up to four times (84 minutes). Finally, at the end of the study, all participants will complete a final questionnaire and have the smartphone app uninstalled from their phones (two minutes); the subgroup with the vehicle DAS will also have it uninstalled (an additional 240 minutes).

The total expected annual burden for this collection is 2,574 hours, with an estimated opportunity cost of $110,378. The total annual cost burden is $0. Prior to conducting the study, the research team will obtain review and approval of this data collection from an Institutional Review Board (IRB) that meets all Federal requirements in 45 CFR 46, is registered with the Office for Human Research Protections, and has a Federalwide Assurance. NHTSA will use the results of this study to produce a technical report containing summary descriptive and inferential statistics. The technical report will be shared with State Highway Safety Offices, local governments, policymakers, researchers, educators, advocates, and others who may wish to use the results of this study to support their work on novice and teen driver safety.

Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed Use of the Information:

NHTSA's mission is to save lives, prevent injuries and reduce health care and other economic costs from motor vehicle crashes. To further this mission, NHTSA conducts research as a foundation for the development of motor vehicle standards and traffic safety programs. Because of their increased risk, novice drivers are an area of focus for NHTSA's behavioral safety efforts. State GDL laws have been successful at reducing crashes of younger novices, but an increasing number of young people are delaying licensure until they are 18 or older, when they are typically exempt from GDL provisions. Little is currently known about the driving performance and behavior of novices ages 18-20, but some research indicates older novices may be at higher risk than their teen counterparts.

This study aims to examine the driving performance and behavior of younger and older novice drivers during their first year of unsupervised driving to inform the feasibility of developing GDL provisions that apply to older novice drivers. This study will also examine the driving performance and behavior of novices who are consistently at higher- or lower-risk during this period to inform the development of other behavioral countermeasures like training, education, and messaging. Finally, this study employs the use of smartphone telematics for the collection of naturalistic driving data from all participants, with the goal of removing barriers to participation and recruiting a study sample that is more representative of the older and younger novice driver populations. Because a subgroup of participants will also have naturalistic driving data collected from a vehicle DAS, this study will provide methodological information about the correspondence of driving performance and behavior data collected with the two methods.

Affected Public:

Newly-licensed drivers in one or more States, either less than 17 years old or between 18 and 20 years old.

Estimated Number of Respondents:

The study anticipates screening up to 3,337 potential participants annually. Of this group, an estimated 1,001 potential participants annually (plus an estimated 501 parents/guardians for potential participants younger than 18) will undergo the informed consent briefing. Finally, of this group, about 834

respondents are expected to consent and enroll in the study annually.

Frequency:

This study is a one-time data collection.

Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours:

A screening questionnaire to identify respondents who are eligible for the study will be administered in person or over the telephone. We estimate that 2,336 respondents annually will complete the screening questionnaire but will not be eligible or interested in participating in the study. For this group (“Screened, Ineligible”), completing the screening questionnaire (two minutes) has an estimated annual burden of 78 hours (Table 1).

We estimate that 30% of those who complete the screening questionnaire will be eligible and interested in participating in the study. These respondents will then complete the informed consent briefing. In this briefing, a member of the research team will share an overview of the study, explain the consent form, and answer any of the potential participant's questions. However, we estimate that about 17% of respondents who undergo the informed consent briefing will ultimately decline to participate in the study (167 respondents annually). For this group (“Eligible, Not Enrolled”), completing the screening questionnaire (two minutes) and informed consent briefing (10 minutes) has an estimated annual burden of 33 hours (Table 1). In addition, about half of all respondents who complete the informed consent briefing are expected to be younger than age 18. For these respondents, a parent or guardian must also complete the informed consent briefing. We estimate that about 501 parent/guardians will complete the informed consent briefing (10 minutes) annually, for an estimated annual burden of 84 hours (Table 1).

Finally, we anticipate enrolling 834 respondents in the study annually. Of these 834 respondents, 759 respondents will be assigned to smartphone DAS group and will only have naturalistic driving data collected via smartphone telematics. For the remaining 75 respondents, in addition of being assigned to the vehicle DAS group they will have driving data collected via in-vehicle equipment.

Table 1—Annual Burden Estimates

Information collection

NHTSA form #

Burden per

response

(minutes)

Annual

number of

respondents

Hourly

opportunity cost

Opportunity

cost per

response

Total annual

opportunity

cost

Total annual

burden

(hours)

Screened, Ineligible

2228

2

2,336

$42.88

$1.43

$3,341

78

Eligible, Not Enrolled

2228, 2229

12

167

42.88

8.58

1,433

33

Parent/Guardian Consent (if under 18)

2229

10

501

42.88

7.15

3,579

84

Eligible, Enrolled—Smartphone DAS Only

2228, 2229, 2230, 2232, 2233

128

759

42.88

91.48

69,434

1,619

Eligible, Enrolled—Smartphone & Vehicle DASs

2228, 2229, 2231, 2232, 2234

608

75

42.88

434.54

32,591

760

Annual Total

3,838

110,378

2,574

Table 2—Burden by Form

NHTSA form No.

Form name

Burden

(minutes)

2228

Screening Questionnaire

2

2229

Informed Consent Briefing

10

2230

Baseline Questionnaire—Smartphone DAS Only

30

Baseline questionnaire

15

Hazard perception test

10

Smartphone DAS installation

5

2231

Baseline Questionnaire—Smartphone & Vehicle DASs

270

Baseline questionnaire

15

Hazard perception test

10

Smartphone DAS installation

5

Vehicle DAS installation

240

2232

Study Period Questionnaire (up to 4 times)

84

2233

Final Questionnaire—Smartphone DAS Only

2

Final questionnaire

1

Smartphone DAS uninstallation

1

2234

Final Questionnaire—Smartphone & Vehicle DASs

242

Final questionnaire

1

Smartphone DAS uninstallation

1

Vehicle DAS uninstallation

240

All respondents enrolled in the study will complete the screening questionnaire (two minutes), the informed consent briefing (10 minutes), and all other study activities. These study activities include (Table 2):

• Completing a baseline questionnaire (15 minutes), a hazard perception test to measure the respondent's ability to correctly identify driving hazards in static images (10 minutes), having the app that will collect naturalistic driving data installed on their smartphone (five minutes), and, for the vehicle DAS group, having the in-vehicle data collection equipment installed in their personal vehicles (240 minutes). These baseline activities have an estimated total burden of 30 minutes for the smartphone DAS group and 270 minutes for the vehicle DAS group.

• Completing a study period questionnaire up to four times during the 12-month study period (up to 84

minutes). This questionnaire asks participants to self-report a variety of information that prior research indicates is associated with increased risk of crashes or risky driving, including mindfulness, anxiety, depression, parental involvement, sense of purpose, neighborhood collective efficacy, perceived community support, safety attitudes and behaviors, sensation seeking personality, and sleep quality.

• Completing a final questionnaire that asks participants about any crashes or citations they experienced during the study period (one minute), having the data collection app uninstalled from their smartphones (one minute), and, for the vehicle DAS group only, having the in-vehicle data collection equipment uninstalled from their vehicles (240 minutes). These final study activities have an estimated total burden of two minutes for the smartphone DAS group and 242 minutes for the vehicle DAS group.

Overall, we estimate that for the 759 annual respondents in the smartphone DAS group, the burden per response is 128 minutes, for a total annual burden of 1,619 hours. For the 75 annual respondents in the vehicle DAS group, the burden per response is 608 minutes, for a total annual burden of 760 hours.

The total hour burden for all respondents is 2,574 hours annually (Table 1). A summary of the number of study participants expected to complete each stage of the study (

i.e.,

screening, informed consent, and enrollment) is shown in Table 3.

Estimated Total Annual Burden Cost:

$0.

The subset of participants (

n

= 225) who will have both the smartphone DAS and vehicle DAS installed will need to travel to and from a study location where the vehicle DAS equipment installation will occur. While at the study location, these participants will also have the smartphone DAS installed and complete the baseline questionnaire and hazard perception test. Then, at the end of the study, this subgroup of participants will again travel to and from the study location to have the DASs uninstalled and complete the final questionnaire. NHTSA estimates that each of the 225 participants will travel less than 10 miles one-way to the study location (20 miles round trip), for a total of 40 miles for the two days. Using the IRS standard mileage rate of $0.725 per mile, each participant is expected to incur no more than $29 in transportation costs. Therefore, NHTSA estimates that the total costs to the respondents enrolled in the study will be no more than $2,175 annually ($6,525 total). The costs associated with this travel are minimal and are expected to be offset by the compensation that will be provided to participants (

i.e.,

$220 for the smartphone DAS group and $340 for the vehicle DAS group).

Public Comments Invited:

You are asked to comment on any aspects of this information collection, including (a) whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Department, including whether the information will have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the Department's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

Authority:

The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended; 49 CFR 1.49; and DOT Order 1351.29A.

Jane Terry,

Acting Associate Administrator, Research and Program Development.

[FR Doc. 2026-10429 Filed 5-22-26; 8:45 am]

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