Weird Traffic Facts

Author Tom Vanderbilt has a new book coming out and it’s called “Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What It Says About Us)”. He diligently dug into studies about driving, and uncovered a lot of surprising information about traffic and driving. Here’s some of the weird traffic facts he found:

>> All about honking:
- Men honk more than women, and men and women honk more at women that at men.
- People in “nice cars” honk faster at less-nice cars.
- Drivers in convertibles with the tops down are less likely to honk than those with the top up.
- Drivers honk faster at cars whose drivers are on cell phones.
- Drivers are more likely to honk at people from another state or country than their own.
- Drivers honk less on weekends.

>> On crossing the street:
- After 30 seconds of waiting, most people will begin to cross against the light.
- People are more likely to jaywalk when well-dressed people do it first.
- Pedestrians on cell phones take longer to cross the street, and look at traffic less often.
- More people are killed legally in crosswalks than jaywalking. [OMG! For real??]
- Half of all fatalities happen at impact speeds of less than 35 mph.

>> Miscellaneous weird traffic facts:
- 350 people die every year entering the freeway the wrong way; at least 50 are killed by cars in driveways.
- “Children at Play” signs do not reduce speed or accidents
- The more “Stop” signs a road has, the more likely drivers are to violate them.
- Car drivers drive closer to helmeted cyclists (and further from cyclists who appear to be women).
- Ants obey traffic rules

Source