Women drivers? They’re safer than men

MSNBC ^ | 8:57 p.m. MT, Jan 18, 2007 | Seth Borenstein

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

WASHINGTON - That age-old stereotype about dangerous women drivers is shattered in a big new traffic analysis: Male drivers have a 77 percent higher risk of dying in a car accident than women, based on miles driven.

And the author of the research says he takes it to heart when he travels — his wife takes the wheel.

“I put a mitt in my mouth and ride shotgun,” said David Gerard, a Carnegie Mellon University researcher who co-authored a major new U.S. road risk analysis.

The study holds plenty of surprises.

• The highway death rate is higher for cautious 82-year-old women than for risk-taking 16-year-old boys.
• New England is the safest region for drivers — despite all those stories about crazy Boston drivers.
• The safest passenger is a youngster strapped in a car seat and being driven during morning rush hour.

[Mr. Jeeves]

I have a female co-worker who skewed her center rear-view mirror to see her little kid in the backseat while she was talking to him.

Let me guess: when she got pulled over she got mad at the cop for not understanding how important it was for her to keep an eye on the kid rather than the traffic. ;)

[Hoodlum91]

"My experience in driving, all over the US, is that the more liberal an area, the worse the drivers. "

I started rating drivers and taking note of bumper stickers during the last presidential election. By far the Kerry ones outnumbered the Bush ones when it came to horrible drivers. And I always noticed the driving first, not the bumper stickers.

That said, I've also found that the further south you go, the less capable people seem of merging.

[Hoodlum91]

DC sucks because it's a meeting point of the aggressive Northern driver and the scared s***less Southern driver. Combining the two makes for an interesting commute.

[darkwing104]

I told the VA Doc that all of my "flashbacks" are from driving in the eastern corridor as opposed being in combat zones.

[Fierce Allegiance]

If you travel I-91 much at all, you will see a few types of irritating drivers.

There are the connecticut drivers who immediately go to the left lane and will not move no matter what.

There are asian females with new jeresey plates who make random lane changes for no apparent reason

There are huge dollar cars and suvs with bling bling galore doing about 120 mph,, changing lanes and using every inch ofthe road, with loaded ski racks, heading up to vermont

I-95 is bad with Rhode Island drivers, who run the left lane at 60 mph in a 65 zone, and when you try to pass them on the right after following them 20 miles, will speed up to well over 100mph to keep you from passing. Wha's up with Rhode Islanders in general and their horribly nasty atttitudes? I have been to 47 of the 50 states, and Rhode Island easily is the worst as far as bad attitudes and crappy drivers.

[Fierce Allegiance]

I started rating drivers and taking note of bumper stickers during the last presidential election. By far the Kerry ones outnumbered the Bush ones when it came to horrible drivers.

As much as I hate to admit it, I have found the opposite to be true.

[MrB]

Anyone want to guess the gender of the driver of the first vehicle in this video?

http://www.king5.com/sharedcontent/VideoPlayer/videoPlayer.php?vidId=114054&catId=231

[NavyCanDo]

Another flawed study.

The study shows women have a less chance of being killed in a crash not on how likely they will be involved in a crash. This does not prove they are safer drivers. Men are more likely to die in crashes due to the type of driving habits by both sexes. If they want to prove women are safer drivers don't do so by the fatalities. Go back to the insurance reports or just ask AAA.

Driving habits that make men more likely to be killed.
•Women tend to drive shorter distances and at the slower urban / suburban speeds.
•Men are more likely to drink and drive
•Men are more likely to be driving late hours
•Men are more likely to crash at freeway speed- making accident injuries worse

[unixfox]

I guess they forgot about the part that men drive far more than women do. Just look around, when a man and woman are in the car who is doing the driving? Men. Not to mention that far more men drive for their jobs than women.

So...this study is bogus and crap!

[Oldexpat]

Driving a big RV at slower speeds gives you a different window on what is going on. When an Asian driver starts to pass me I tense up..once they get in front of you they do unpredictable things. I also survey the number of people on cell phones as the pass..higher percentage of women.
My wife terrorizes me when she drives..never had an accident, but close calls. Oversteers..no sense of direction..catches the left edge of the pavement at highspeed..ugh.

[Fierce Allegiance]

Of course there are women that are irresponsible drivers..but there are just as many irresponsible men.

I'll agree as far as irresponsible, but women are far worse as far as lack of skills in controlling a vehicle goes.

[TruthWillWin]

# New England is the safest region for drivers — despite all those stories about crazy Boston drivers.

What about passengers? (In Ted's Olds.)

[docbnj]

This is very old news. Insurance companies have known for ages that young males are responsible for the highest accident rates. It is all in the testosterone: it makes us aggressively competitive and risk-taking.

However, talking on the 'phone while driving is almost as dangerous as DUI. Women are frequently seen holding a 'phone while driving.

There also is a upsurge in rudeness which builds tension in all drivers. It is part of the developing cultural attitude of "I want my way no matter what." There are a lot of people out there who act as if they just got out of an assertiveness-training class. It is the "rights" attitude. People have the idea that they have a right to do whatever they want, and others should make room for them.

Also, in general, Americans are lousy drivers. Our driving qualifications for a license are a joke: any idiot can get a driver's license, and that is partly why there are so many numbskulls and emotionally disturbed people on the road.

Americans who try to get driver's licenses in England or Germany find that they usually flunk the tests their. I am told that if you fail the very rigorous German test three times, you must see a psychiatrist to assess whether you ever should be allowed to drive at all. The required passing score on their test is very high: one mistake on the road test, and you are back to driving school, and can't take the test again for six months. In New Jersey, the passing score on the written test is a mere 70%! What kind of test is that? The test has virtually no questions involving the actually working of an automobile, so operators of a very complex piece of machinery are not expected to understand what they are doing; but you better know such things as how many feet you must be from a fire hydrant, and how many inches from the curb when you park. After you pass the test once, you may never need to be retested again for your entire lifetime.

We badly need frequent and mandatory tests for the elderly, who are as a group responsible for a disproportate share of the accidents. I am all for that, even though I am approaching retirement age myself. I guarantee that the AARP would fight such a reasonable proposal, claiming that it was somehow discriminatory. In this way the "rights" argument destroys any sense of what is practical, including measures for simple public safety and order.

[Hoodlum91]

I had to stop doing it when I realized that the Kerry ones were probably people from the Northeast and the Bush ones were from the south. Hence the driving differences. The Bush ones were ok once they got on the highway, but had the previously mentioned merging problem.

Went to cars instead. Mercedes drivers were the worst, and continue to be so.

[reagan_fanatic]

[Moonman62]

I once had a book called "Wild in the Streets of Boston." It was the funniest thing I ever read. My sides are still hurting.

[joylyn]

I'm a woman, but I'll agree that on the whole the women drivers I know are less skillful than the men. The problem is that the men expect other drivers on the road to be equally skillful. They make maneuvers assuming that the other guy will react quickly and get out of the way.

I know a guy who is a qualified race car driver -- he takes a test annually -- and he's the one who has the accidents. Not his wife who is a timid driver.

[RexBeach]

Sounds like the book was wicked funny!

[rattrap]

Man... those scrappleface guys sure are funny.

[Kenton]

I was stationed at the Boston Naval Shipyards for about six months while my ship was in drydock, and I had a car part of that time. And after getting used to Boston traffic, I think I could manage driving in any city anywhere.