Bituminous Insurance Companies
Release Date: April 24, 2009
As many as 56 percent of deadly vehicle crashes involve one or more unsafe driving behaviors typically associated with aggressive driving, according to the report, Aggressive Driving: Research Update, released by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. The analysis of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data shows speeding is the most common contributing factor and is involved in nearly one in three deadly crashes.
Aggressive driving is one of America's main traffic safety worries. Last year's AAA Foundation Traffic Safety Culture Index, a nationally-representative telephone survey, found nearly eight out of every 10 people surveyed rated aggressive drivers as a serious or extremely serious traffic safety problem.
However, in the same survey, many individuals reported driving in ways that could be deemed aggressive. For example, nearly half of drivers reported exceeding the speed limit by 15 mph on major highways in the past 30 days, and 15 percent even admitted exceeding the speed limit by 15 mph on neighborhood streets. This reflects the “Do as I Say, Not as I Do” attitude society has toward traffic safety.
“It's easy to think ‘that the other guy is the problem’ - the one who runs someone off the road, tailgates, or yells obscenities,” said AAA Foundation President and CEO Peter Kissinger. “In reality, examples of driving aggressively - any of which can lead to crashes, injuries and deaths - are all too common.”
“Such examples of aggressive driving include running stop signs or red lights, preventing other drivers from passing, speeding, illegal driving on the shoulder, and failing to yield. The goal in releasing these findings is to educate motorists about the scope of aggressive driving, as well as encourage motorists to reevaluate their own driving behavior, and ultimately to improve this country's traffic safety culture.”
“If you find yourself driving slowly in the passing lane, tailgating, or doing other things to teach the other driver a lesson, you are also part of the problem,” said Kissinger. “An aggressive driving act by one driver can trigger a disproportionate and potentially violent reaction from another driver.”
To view the full report, click on the following link: http://www.aaafoundation.org/pdf/AggressiveDrivingResearchUpdate2009.pdf
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The information contained in this publication was obtained from sources believed to be reliable. ISO Services Properties, Inc., its companies and employees make no guarantee of results and assume no liability in connection with either the information herein contained or the safety suggestions herein made. Moreover, it cannot be assumed that every acceptable safety procedure is contained herein or that abnormal or unusual circumstances may not warrant or require further or additional procedure.