Northeast has dumbest drivers

[citydogisu]

from http://www.cnn.com/2005/AUTOS/05/26/...udy/index.html:

Survey: Northeast has dumbest drivers
Test shows 1 in 10 licensed U.S. drivers don't know basic rules. In the East, 20 percent fail quiz.

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - When faced with a written test, similar to ones given to beginning drivers applying for licenses, one in ten drivers couldn't get a passing score, according to a study commissioned by GMAC Insurance.

The GMAC Insurance National Driver's Test found that nearly 20 million Americans, or about 1 in 10 drivers, would fail a state driver's test if they had to take one today. GMAC Insurance is part of General Motors' finance subsidiary, GMAC.

More than 5,000 licensed drivers between the ages of 16 and 65 were administered a 20-question written test designed to measure basic knowledge about traffic laws and safety. They were also surveyed about their general driving habits.

Drivers in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic states did worst. Twenty percent of test-takers failed there.

The state of Rhode Island leads the nation in driver cluelessness, according to the survey. The average test score there was 77, just eight points above a failing grade.

Those in neighboring Massachussets were second worst and New Jersey, third worst.

Northwestern states had the most knowledgable drivers. In those states, just one to three percent failed the test. Oregon and Washington drivers knew the rules of the road best. In Oregon, the average test score was 89.

According to the study, many drivers find basic practices, such as merging and interpreting road signs, difficult.

For instance, one out of five drivers doesn't know that a pedestrian in a crosswalk has the right of way, and one out of three drivers speeds up to make a yellow light, even when pedestrians are present, the study said.

Drivers not only lack basic road knowledge, but exhibit dangerous driving behavior as well.

"As a nation of drivers, we've made little progress in the past 10 years to curb some of the most dangerous driving behaviors, including drinking and driving and speeding," said Susan Ferguson, senior vice president of research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

One out of 10 drivers regularly exceeds the speed limit by 11 or more miles per hour, with drivers aged between 18 and 24 years showing the greatest propensity for speeding, the study said.

Speeding increases both the likelihood of an accident and the severity of the crash, the company added, citing research from IIHS.

Younger drivers are the most likely to fail a written driving test while those between the ages of 50 and 64 are the most likely to pass.

Top five states for driver knowledge:

1. Oregon

2. Washington

3. Iowa

4. Idaho

5. Wyoming

Bottom five states for driver knowledge:

1. Rhode Island

2. Massachusetts

3. New Jersey

4. New York

5. Washington D.C.

[AlphaFrog]

Whoever wrote this article might be able to pass a driving test, but not a states test... Washington D.C. is not a state!

[citydogisu]

Originally posted by AlphaFrog
Whoever wrote this article might be able to pass a driving test, but not a states test... Washington D.C. is not a state!

Should be, unless the US continues to believe in Taxation Without Representation.

[AlphaFrog]

In that case, so should PR and the Virgin Islands

[MaMaBuddha]

whatever...

if you can drive in NYC...

you can drive anywhere!!!!!

[valkyrie]

Well you know, there's not much to do in Iowa but study the rules of the road.

[aephi alum]

I could believe it. I live in the Northeast, and the drivers around here are CRAZY. For example, last year I was rear ended by a b!tch from New York who was too stupid to know that when an accident occurs, you stop! (I got her tag # and called the cops. She was fined for leaving the scene, and I got some $ out of her insurance company for repairs.)

Always assume the other driver is about to do something immensely stupid. You will seldom be disappointed.

Side note about driving in NYC: The New York DMV does not administer road tests in Manhattan. Reason: Road tests should be taken under typical driving conditions, and Manhattan is far from typical! You can take your road test in other boroughs though.

[Lil' Hannah]

According to the study, many drivers find basic practices, such as merging and interpreting road signs, difficult.

Well of course DC is on the worst list...there are many intersections with 5 roads that start at one point and veer off in different directions. It's impossible to tell which sign goes with which road.

[preciousjeni]

Originally posted by aephi alum
I could believe it. I live in the Northeast, and the drivers around here are CRAZY. For example, last year I was rear ended by a b!tch from New York who was too stupid to know that when an accident occurs, you stop! (I got her tag # and called the cops. She was fined for leaving the scene, and I got some $ out of her insurance company for repairs.)

Always assume the other driver is about to do something immensely stupid. You will seldom be disappointed.

Side note about driving in NYC: The New York DMV does not administer road tests in Manhattan. Reason: Road tests should be taken under typical driving conditions, and Manhattan is far from typical! You can take your road test in other boroughs though.

I was actually afraid to drive in Manhattan because of the stories of scariness...but the many times I have put myself in there at different levels of traffic, I've found that it's equivalent to downtown Atlanta except that Atlanta has more SUVs where drivers don't seem to be able to see the road.

[HBADPi]

I'm suprised CA didnt make the list of worst drivers. People suck at driving out here. MA was far better IMPO.

[DeltAlum]

Originally posted by HBADPi
I'm suprised CA didnt make the list of worst drivers. People suck at driving out here. MA was far better IMPO.

Interesting. I've driven in many major cities, and I mean MANY.

The very worst drivers I've ever seen -- including NYC and LA -- are in Boston. Drivers there are crazy.

[Intense1920]

Originally posted by AlphaFrog
Whoever wrote this article might be able to pass a driving test, but not a states test... Washington D.C. is not a state!

In the article they don't list DC as a state. There is a link to the test scores and it says "Scores for 48 states and Washington, D.C.". I think that those were the OP's words.

But yeah DC is horrible but it's only 44 out of 49.

[aephi alum]

Originally posted by DeltAlum
Interesting. I've driven in many major cities, and I mean MANY.

The very worst drivers I've ever seen -- including NYC and LA -- are in Boston. Drivers there are crazy.

They don't call them "Massholes" for nothing...

[HBADPi]

Originally posted by aephi alum
They don't call them "Massholes" for nothing...

HAHA Massholes...I havent heard that in awhile.

DeltAlum I'm probably biased since I learned to drive in MA and I'm use to that style. It always hard to adjust to a new driving style in a new city. The one thing that I dont enjoy about drivers in CA is how they think they friggin own the road...apparently in their book its ok to go 95, zip through lanes and not care about the congestion you cause when everyone you cut off has to break to ensure you dont hit them.

Plus in Boston I never got followed and tailed for 25 miles by some driver because I flashed my high beams at them. In Boston when someone flashes their high beams at you, its common courtesy you let them pass you...NOT follow them home.

[DeltaSigStan]

WRONG, WRONG and DOUBLE WRONG!

Come to California. The Norcal drivers drive too fast, the so cal drivers drive too slow, and when it rains, people down here act like it's armageddon.

I recall a QUARTER INCH of rain caused over 500 accidents in an afternon span.