Road Rage:

Drivers Belief About Unsafe Driving

A continuation of Aggressive Driving

Part 2.3 cont., Recent Changes in Driving Behavior, & Aggressive Driving

Recent Changes in Driving Behavior

Comparing survey information from the previous years the following results were found.

• 8% said they were driving faster, and 17% said they were driving slower.
• 52% of the ones who now drive faster said that it is because speed limits have increased.
• For those slowing down 34% said it was because they had become a more mature driver.
• In general driving was very similar to the previous year.  Persons surveyed also believed that it was just as safe to drive as the previous year.
• 20% of all surveyed specifically mentioned careless or inattentive drivers.

Aggressive Driving

Most of the people surveyed did not feel that aggressive driving has increased, but 30% did.  Below is the breakdown of why the survey group thinks drivers are more aggressive now.

The summary from this chapter was:

Three drivers in four said they were driving about the same speed as last year. Half of all drivers felt driving was no more dangerous than it was a year ago, and two-thirds of all drivers felt that aggressive driving was about the same as last year. Drivers' perceptions of the risk of speeding and other unsafe driving behaviors varied considerably among specific behaviors. Some behaviors -- passing a school bus while it was stopped or racing other drivers -- were thought to be extremely dangerous, while others -- driving 10 or 20 miles above the posted speed limit, entering an intersection as the light turned red or a rolling stop at a stop sign -- were felt to be only somewhat dangerous.

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Information provided by National Highway Traffic Safety Administration