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Bad Driving In this essay I will discuss when and why bad driving makes mad. There are a lot of stupid things that people do while driving car. Such driving becomes dangerous not only for such drivers but, of course, for the people around. Motorists have revealed that bad driving and unruly children in the car distracts them most. A survey showed that 48 per cent of drivers quizzed claimed that other motorists' faults made them lose concentration behind the wheel. Twenty-one per cent blamed traffic jams and road works for driving them round the bend, while others quoted landmarks, pedestrians and even roadside advertising.
The survey, by Barclays Car insurance, revealed that motorists thought the most distracting thing inside a vehicle were children - well ahead of the car phone. A survey by motoring assistance provider Green Flag shows that most drivers believe that the law should be tougher on those whose bad driving leads to fatalities. More than three quarters of those taking part in the study said motorists convicted of causing death or serious injury either by speeding or dangerous driving should be jailed for from five years to life. Green Flag spokesman Nigel Charlesworth said: 'Our research shows that the motoring public feels penalties for irresponsible driving are not strong enough at present and that there would be widespread support for tougher punishments being introduced. ' (Eriksen, 1999).
Campaigners, who welcomed the plans, have long pressed for the route, the second most popular way of traveling between Inverness and Glasgow, to be upgraded. Police, however, said it was bad driving, not the bad road, that had prompted the blitz. Inspector Charles Gillies of the traffic division said: "My officers are faced every day with bad driving, bad overtaking and blatant disregard for other road users on the A 82. It is therefore necessary to use this initiative to try to educate drivers that this... will not be tolerated. " Five people died on the A 82 last year, the same number as were killed on the more heavily used A 9. There were 81 accidents in which people were injured, against 76 on the A 9.
Ian Dubh MacDonald, the Highland councilor for Claggan and Glen San in Lochaber, welcomed the plans. He has spent years campaigning for upgrading and better policing of the A 82. He said: "This is excellent news and long overdue. I hope the police will throw the book at all those careless, inconsiderate drivers who have no regard for the safety of others. " (Currie, 1998). Further, we will take a look at some real cases bad driving that took place and reasons for that. Saucy adverts for bras are a major cause of road accidents, according to insurance claims.
But mobile phones are even more dangerous - because drivers aren't concentrating on the road when they use them. Yet neither are the main cause of third-party claims - daydreaming is. The insurance arm of bank giants Abbey National said that was the major reason - or excuse - given in a sample of 500 claims in the past year. But group marketing manager David Norton said daydreaming was basically just bad driving - the most obvious cause of road accidents.
He said: "Although we are still seeing traditional reasons for accidents on UK roads, such as weather hazards and driver error, it seems the age of technology and consumerism is finally taking its toll on strained drivers. "Mobile phones and attractive advertising hoardings are making motorists take their eyes off the road momentarily. "Before they know it, they are ruefully exchanging insurance details. " (Leighton, 2001). Saucy roadside advertisements were the eighth most common cause of bumps and scrapes - the Eva Herzigova ad for Wonderbra and Fantasie adverts by Jane Goldman, wife of TV host Jonathan Ross, being among the most famous. Other eye popping billboard distractions cited include a naked couple for online book company BOL. One in four motorists in Britain has been involved in a scrape of some sort, the firm said. They said changing CDs, general chatter, telling the kids to shut up, sneezing and doing make-up were all causes too. Another top 10 reason in the list was rubbernecking - turning to look at other accidents.
Norton said: "Our advice is to keep your eyes firmly on the road and avoid distractions like hand-held phones to dodge those nasty little inconvenient bumps. " The top nine excuses for bad driving are considered to be daydreaming, bad weather, mobile phones, doing make-up, chatting with passengers, changing tape or CD, roadside adverts, kids fighting, sneezing. (Leighton, 2001). Seems girls are catching up to boys in two of the worst ways - girls are almost as dangerous on the road and drink as much alcohol as guys. In 1990, 160 of every 1, 000 girl drivers crashed their cars. That went up 9 percent in 2000, when 175 per 1000 girls wrecked their wheels. Though 16 -year-aid guys still crash more often than girls, their number of accidents decreased in the same period -- from 216 to 210 per 1, 000 drivers.
Researchers say girls might be more at risk because they are driving more, averaging 6, 780 miles a year, while boys are driving less often. Meanwhile, girls are also drinking nearly as often as boys. A recent study by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse shows 48 percent of teen girls and 52 percent of teen boys drink. Among high school freshmen, 41 percent of girls drink compared to 40 percent of boys. Girls, don't be proud of beating out the boys in that stat. Some researchers suggest girls are downing drinks in an attempt to fit in. (Wienpahl, 2002).
A police film showing dead and mutilated car crash victims is inevitably going to shock and disturb. Yet currently available in video shops is another movie, called Crash, which caused a furore last year after censors for passed it showing in cinemas - as entertainment. This is the Nineties dilemma facing those who must decide whether or not it is right to show genuine footage of real crashes and victims to West Lothian secondary school pupils in order to make them more careful drivers. Will such documentary evidence give them sleepless nights, or will they be able to cope with it? In the North of Scotland, police have decided fifth and sixth year pupils will see it.
And those whose children have already died through speeding and bad driving want the film to be shown in schools here. They are right. Today's teenagers are not as easily traumatized as their parents were. Too often young drivers feel they are immortal...
and drive accordingly. Sleepless nights are exactly the effect the gruesome reality of a fatal road accident should have on a healthy teenager. In a world where many teenagers expect a car at their disposal as soon as they become of age to have a license, it takes shock tactics to remind some of them that they are being given access to a lethal weapon. In a world where some people choose a movie which features death crashes as a pleasant way of spending an evening, it takes more than a Green Cross Code to get through to a 17 -year-old that they could be the next corpse in the body bag. (Miller, 2002). Parents are setting their children a bad example at the wheel, according to a new driving survey.
The poll claims parents are allowing their youngsters to become back-seat witnesses to a catalogue of bad driving habits including shouting and swearing at other drivers, jumping red lights and speeding. Conducted by the Opinion Research Business for CGU Insurance, the poll found 53 per cent of children view car journeys with their parents as a nightmare. (Leighton, 2001). Almost a quarter of children questioned reported speeding by their parents, although mums were praised for being slightly more careful. The one thing that irritated children most in the car, the survey revealed, was their dad's singing. All these facts and reasons about bad driving really make me mad! Words: 1, 332.
Bibliography: Currie, N. Riding Hard. New York: Dutton, 1998. Eriksen, G.
Bad Drivers. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1999. Leighton, R. Averts and Driving. New and car driving guide, August, 2001. Miller, T. "Don't get taken for a ride. " Midland, Fer. 2002.
Wienpahl, T. Bad, girls. Girls' Life. June, 2002.
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