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Christmas Expected to Bring Out Florida’s Aggressive Drivers
Unless you’ve got thousands of dollars to blow and a lot of spare time, you might want to turn off the radio, throw your cell phone in the back seat and pay attention to the road. The Washington Post is reporting that December and the holiday season is a popular time for aggressive driving and we see a serious spike in related traffic accidents.
About a third of surveyed drivers say that they tend to get a little more aggressive behind the wheel during the holiday season. It’s especially those last few days before Christmas that bring out the most dangerous driving habits.
Our Fort Lauderdale car accident lawyers understand that aggressive driving habits aren’t JUST a holiday symptom. According to a Washington Post poll, about 12 percent of drivers said that they felt road rage behind the wheel fairly often. Another 20 percent said that they feel is occasionally. About 70 percent reported that they often observe other motorists driving too aggressively.
But it’s clear that December brings out the worse in driver across the state. more “The pressure of the holiday, the pressure of having to find something and running all over to find it and all of those things would tend to distract them,” said David Brown, a University of Alabama professor who has studied holiday traffic.
According to Brown, the mixture of driver distraction and tension is what affect most of us. And it’s the parents and drivers who are under the age of 49 who were most likely to experience aggression behind the wheel.
With the snowbirds flocking south and tourists adding to the congestion, it’s clear why many of us experience extra stress behind the wheel. It’s important to remember that we’re all in this together and we’re all dealing with the same issues on the road. Now is as good of time as ever to be compassionate.
And you’re going to want to be extra compassionate during the six days surrounding Christmas. This is the most hectic time on our roadways. As a matter of fact, this time period registered close to 20 percent more accidents than the heaviest travel period of the year (Thanksgiving) and more than 25 percent more accidents than New Year’s Eve.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) cites improper lane changing, speeding and tailgating as aggressive behavior.
If you’ve got to drive around the holidays, you’re best bet is to do it on Christmas Day. This year Christmas falls on a Wednesday and nearly no one is expected to be on the roads. Christmas Eve isn’t projected to be that bad either. The worst of the traffic is projected to fall on the Friday before Christmas.
If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident, contact Richard Ansara at 954 761-3641 or (954) 761-4011 for a free and confidential consultation to discuss your case. More Blog Entries: Broward Traffic Safety: Elderly Drivers in Focus, Broward Injury Lawyer Blog, December 5, 2013 Whiplash: Serious Injuries in Low-Speed Accidents, Broward Injury Lawyer Blog, November 1, 2013
