By FREYA BARNES
Listening to music with a fast tempo, exaggerated bass tones or aggressive lyrics whilst driving can promote risky driving behaviours, studies have found.
Tracks with a tempo above 120 beats per minute (BPM), may subconsciously cause motorists to drive faster and switch lanes more often, according to researchers.
A 2003 study found tunes with 'exaggerated bass tones and/or aggressive lyrics, can promote risky driving behaviours (for example, undertaking and braking red lights), or even lead to road rage'.
Music with high BPM can stimulate the area of your brain that processes danger which sets off a flight or fight response causing drivers to react rather than think.
This may cause a lack of alertness, an increase in speed and less concern for safety.
However, Brunel University researchers discovered music matching the average resting heart rate of around 60-80BPM is associated with promoting more focused and calmer driving.
Songs matching the range include Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran, Let It Be by The Beatles and Angels by Robbie Williams.
The study revealed faster tracks can cause increased heart rate variability, elevated mental workload and unpredictable driving patterns.
Listening to music with a fast tempo, exaggerated bass tones or aggressive lyrics whilst driving can promote risky driving behaviours, studies have found
The song Angels by British music icon Robbie Williams matches the average resting heart rate of around 60-80BPM
Let It Be by legendary boyband The Beatles also matches human's average resting heart rate
'Our findings indicate drivers in high-load, urban environments should exercise caution in their use of fast-tempo music,' the academics said.
Spotify, and insurance company Allianz have designed a tool to provide drivers with lower tempo music for safer driving aimed at young people who stream music more.
It creates unique playlists based on the individuals Spotify listening activity by analysing their current playlists to figure out their taste and average tempo they lean toward.
The tool then uses the data to curate a 'safe' playlist of songs with a range of 60-80BPM.
Matt Cox, chief claims officer at Allianz, said: 'We can always do better when it comes to driving safe. We're excited to offer an experience which isn't just personalised, but will potentially help keep the roads safer.'
Some of the playlists the tool has made include hits by Halsey, Tate McRae, Ariana Grande, London Grammar and Justin Timberlake.
In 2021, another study by Brunel University found playing singalong hits behind the wheel may leave you 'mentally overloaded' and at risk of errors.
The researchers put 34 adult volunteers in a driving simulator programmed to replicate urban roads and had them follow a set route.
Don't Stop Me Now by Queen is considered a risky driving song as it matches a heart rate of around 156BPM
Bon Jovi's hit track Livin' On A Prayer is also risky with a beat comparable to a heart rate of 123BPM
During each eight-minute simulation, drivers were faced with five events to handle, including a pedestrian crossing the road, red traffic lights and a truck to overtake.
The team monitored each driver under one of six sound conditions — including urban traffic noise, spoken lyrics and either soft or loud music with or without lyrics.
They found that — perhaps because they were knew they were being observed — the drivers' speed and performance was mostly unaffected by the music choices.
Risky records
- Don't Stop Me Now - Queen (156 BPM)
- American Idiot - Green Day (186 BPMD
- Mr Brightside - The Killers (148 BPM)
- Livin' On A Prayer - Bon Jovi (123 BPM)
- Footloose - Kenny Loggins (174 BPM)
- Safe songs
- Ain't No Sunshine - Bill Withers (78 BPM)
- Let It Be - The Beatles (70 BPM)
- Three Times a Lady - Commodores (75 BPM)
- I Can't Tell You Why - Eagles (85 BPM)
- Back For Good - Take That (79 BPM)
However, the researchers did find that listening to music that was loud or had lyrics led to higher levels of affective (emotional) arousal than soft, non-lyrical pieces.
Past studies have noted that loud, lyrical music can elevate levels of activation and aggression, and encourage overconfidence, particular among younger drivers.
'Drivers should consider the use of soft, non-lyrical music to optimise their affective state during urban driving,' the researchers concluded.
'The most important thing to consider when listening to music while driving is to ensure you are not mentally overloaded,' paper author and psychologist Costas Karageorghis of Brunel University told the Times.
'A number of internal and external factors can influence this, but one of the easiest to control is our choice of auditory stimulation, whether it be talk radio, podcasts or music.
'Through minimising distractions, motorists are much better able to focus on the road and therefore stand a better chance of identifying potential hazards in time.
'The main implication of this simulation study from a safety perspective is that drivers should consider the use of soft, non-lyrical music to optimise their mental state when driving in a stressful urban environment.'
The team's simulator experiments also revealed that drivers were an average of 37 per cent more stimulated when they listened to louder music at around 75 decibels — roughly the noise made by a vacuum cleaner in operation — than softer tracks.
Furthermore, women were found to exhibit higher levels of heart rate than men when driving while listening to music with lyrics.
'Music often plays an integral role in driving,' said Simon Hendrick, a spokesperson for insurance company Direct Line which helped fund the research, told the Times.
'These findings are therefore really interesting from a safety perspective, as they show that music can influence your level of focus when behind the wheel.
'In towns and cities there are so many potential risks, it makes sense to listen to music that keeps you calm but alert.'
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