Not Coming to a Place Near You — Polite Driving

The PEMCO poll is focused in the Northwest but you can — however — extrapolate the statistics and apply them anywhere. The subject is driving and, to be more specific, rude driving.

• 36% say, after being tailgated, they occasionally drive slower to teach someone a lesson
• 35% say they sometimes speed up to keep another person from passing

That’s not all that shocking. A lot of us have either done this, or have had it done to us. This is where the survey takes a different turn.

Parents are three-times more likely to do the behaviors above than non-parents.

• 29% of parents say they’ve slowed down to slow down a driver tailgating them
• 9% of non-parents say they’ve done that
• 24% of parents say they’ve sped up to keep someone from passing
• Just 8% of non-parents have done that

PEMCO’s Jennifer Hawton said drivers under 35 are more likely to do these things than drivers over 35. She said, however, that there are also some polite drivers on the road. Many will let people merge, or move over when someone driving more quickly is behind them.

That said:

• 56% say they have seen rude or aggressive driving
• 37% say they regularly see extra politeness on the road

“Aggressive driving may be becoming more common, but it doesn’t have to be the norm,” Hawton said. “Safe, defensive driving helps protect everyone, and often, a small act of kindness behind the wheel can prevent a much bigger problem. It’s important to stay aware of your surroundings and help keep each other safe when driving.”

Source link: PEMCO — https://bit.ly/4ngds1d