Milad Haghani, an associate professor of urban resilience and mobility at the University of Melbourne, has spent years studying how music influences driver behavior. Through his own lab simulations and a compilation of global research, Haghani has found one clear winner for the safest soundtrack on the road: silence. “As a result of two decades of research into this, we know that if you drive under the silent condition, you will have lesser errors,” Haghani explained. “You will have lesser risk of crashes… better performance in speed control and better performance in maintaining the distance with the vehicle in front of you.”

Silence may be safest, but Haghani stresses that music is nowhere near as dangerous as texting, driving under the influence, or getting behind the wheel while drowsy. In fact, certain types of music can briefly make drivers more alert. Volume, he says, isn’t a major factor either. Loud music only marginally affects driving performance. And one common belief—that fast‑tempo songs make people speed—doesn’t hold up for most drivers.

-News, podcasts, and talk radio generally have little effect on driving, though financial or economic news caused some drivers to make more mistakes.

-Casual conversations are fine, but emotionally charged topics demand more mental energy and can be distracting. Talking with a backseat passenger or a voice assistant creates a similar cognitive load to talking hands‑free on the phone.

-Drivers who know and enjoy the music they’re hearing tend to be less distracted.