And we think we're bad drivers?

Is it really like in the movie European Vacation or has the movie exaggerated it? We are talking about driving abroad. Many of us will never have the opportunity to cruise the Autobahn or navigate the cirque de triumph or even negotiate between livestock and bicycles. However, it doesn't keep us from being curious about the way other countries commute. Harmony would like to give you a little peek at driving abroad, courtesy of the Book Traffic, why we drive the way we do. As you know, we covered the many aspects of our own driving habits, through the pages of this fine read. Now let's look at how this translates to other countries.

Traffic behaves differently in different places around the world. Anyone who has ever spent any time in a foriegn country could attest that traffic has it's own culture and traditions. "The intent of a driver in Rome who blows their horn, isn't the same as driver in Stockholm," the author Tom Vanderbilt, says. "And flashing your lights at another driver is one thing on the German autobahn, but takes an entirely new meaning on a Los Angeles freeway." On roads in Delhi, India, lane markings are often missing, wrecks sit on busy roads and cows lie in the median. "It's said the cows like the median strip because it's dry and the breezes genrated by passing vehicles keep away flies" Vanderbilt explains. "Their presence also forces traffic to slow down. It would be better for a driver to be late for work than hit a cow (considered very sacred in Delhi)" Delhi has five times the number of people in one space as compared to New York City. The drivers in Delhi, may be considered the most gifted or the most risk taking. India uses over 48 (est.) modes of transportation as compared to most US cities using only 5!

China, where cars pay little attention to pedestrians and push their way through masses of people crossing the street, has drivers that are most likely to violate traffic signals. Some even enter intersections before the lights change colors. "People in China even behave different when there's an accident," Vanderbilt says. "In the US, the drivers involved would exchange insurance information and move on. But during my stay in Beijing, I witnessed several minor traffic collisions and the parties involved usually engage in on-the-spot negotiations which can get pretty heated." Vanderbilt continues,"The dynamics of traffic and commuting are changing faster than the Chinese government can keep pace."

When in Rome.....yes, definitely do as the Romans. Narrow streets and motor scooters contribute to the frenetic pace of the city's traffic. "Motor scooters make up as much as 20% of the vehicle traffic on the streets of Rome," states Vanderbilt. "But studies show that Rome is safer than other Italian cities when traveling by motor scooter."

How about the pedestrian traffic behavior? Well pedestrians even act differently in other parts of the world. In New York, where jaywalking is urban moxie and serves to relieve overcrowded intersections, is far apart from the city of Copenhagen, Denmark. Jaywalking there is considered narcissistic and carries penalties adjacent to speeding and excessive lane changing. Safety by all commuters can be attributed to a country's GDP(gross domestic product). Low GDP's yeild fewer fatalities, due to the lesser number of vehicles on the roads. As GDP grows fatality rates rise until a determined GDP is reached ($8,500 as of 1985) at that point the number of traffic fatalities drops.

"In developing countries, the philosophy seems to be 'let's get the cars, buses and motorcycles on the road first, and then let's worry about safety,' so, the fatality rate starts out very high," Vanderbilt says, "But then people begin to take up the cause for safer roads and drivers who become more aware, take some of the risks out of driving as more cars take to the road. Congestion is something every driver dreads, but in general it lowers the number of fatalities."

Harmony could not agree more, hmmm! where have we heard that aware thing before? We invite you to join our cause for safer highways and ask your employer to contact us to schedule a class for your company. The risks of not attending one of these courses, could prove to be a regretful event.

Thanks for reading and if you have your passport stamped, leave the driving to the locals!

What our driving says about us (conclusion)

It's not the inadequate number of roads or the fact there are too many drivers. It is our brains that provide much of the dysfunction on the highways. Our brains, lack the willpower, to remain focused and process everything that happens on the road. The book Traffic, why we drive the way we do, puts this in perspective. Harmony, has been sharing the information, in this very astute look at ourselves as drivers over the last three weeks post's. This week, we conclude the series and offer a review. However, do to the great response, we will give one last snippet from the book next week that will cover driving abroad. It should be interesting. The author of Traffic, Tom Vanderbilt expands on our opening, by stating "Once we feel we have things under control, we begin to act differently. It doesn't take much to distract a driver, whether it's slowing down to look at a couch dumped by the side of the road or fiddling with the radio." He would mean, it's like riding a bike or taking out the trash. Once learned, it doesn't require our full attention. Therefore, our wandering minds, become otherwise occupied, when we should have our complete concentration on the road and our driving.

Vanderbilt believes, we could learn a lesson, from the New World army ant. For complex systems like highways, to work effectively, we must play by the rules. The army ant, as described by Vanderbilt, is one of the worlds best commuters. "When the ants leave the nest to forage for food, they follow a well defined set of rules" says Vanderbilt. "The ants create a three lane highway. They use the outer two lanes to leave the nest, and the returning ants use the center lane. The secret to their efficiency is that unlike humans, the ants are truly cooperative."
So how do we counter the human traits of terrible drivers? Well, the book gives these tips:

If someone pulls out in front of you- DO NOT "target fixate." Instead, look where you want to go and steer away to avoid the vehicle. This would also apply to intersections with pedestrians and making turns. Look ahead to where your desired action will take you.

Forming your own opinions of what's risky and what's safe- First consider, you are using your own flawed judgment. For example, most drivers believe large trucks are dangerous yet, they drive in an unsafe manner around them.

Choosing to drive when we don't understand why the conditions exist- Why are there more people on the road Saturday at 1pm than during regular rush hours? Simply, affluence breeds traffic. If people feel they have extra money to spend, then they feel they have more choices of places to spend it. Almost half of the grocery trips we make are to markets not close to home.

Assuming certain times are more dangerous than others- As we have mentioned several times at Harmony, statistics show, that morning and evening rush hours are the safest drive times in terms of fatal and non-fatal incidents. Morning rush, being the safest of the two.
(visit our site or attend our course to get more info on this topic)

Believing work zones are more dangerous for workers than the drivers going through them-Actually, drivers are more at risk for incidents due to constricted space, unpredictable traffic flow, poor markings and diversions of attention.

Braking first and steering last-That is the majority of drivers. For some reason drivers will hit the brake and then signal their intention or steer into their intended maneuver, if they steer at all! Even if steering is the ONLY way to avoid an incident.

Harmony would like add, that the book points out safety features, as a contributing factor in our poor driving decisions. We would absolutely agree. Features like the high center-mount, third brake lamp, that has not had the intended impact on safety as once suggested. Other features such as air-bags, seat belts, anti-lock brakes and back-up cameras, have just been an invitation to take even greater risks. Vanderbilt says "We have deemed the rewards of mobility worth the risk" Traffic, detailed in nine chapters and 286 pages, is an enlightening "wake-up call" and a comprehensive look at everyday driving. Harmony will recommend this read to all it's clients and
students. Followers of this blog should also consider checking it out.

Thanks for reading and please think before you make that driving maneuver.

What our driving says about us (pt. 2)

"It's not about YOU!" but that's the way we think when we are driving, says Tom Vanderbilt, author of the book"Traffic, Why we drive the way we do" and subject of our continuing series. This week will we cover emotions, sub skills, honking and a few other topics. The book is a very good read and will have an affect on your driving attitude. So, Harmony is sharing it with you, as part of our commitment to safer highways and in keeping with our AWARENESS style of instruction.

Let's look at the question we asked last week, Who honks more, Men or Women? It would seem, according to the book, that men do honk more than women. Not so fast ladies! It was also pointed out that both, men AND women honk more AT women. Honking seems more likely to be done by city drivers than by rural drivers and it would seem that, if you are driving a nice car, you are less likely to be honked at. Who knew so much could be determined by honking? Does your driving say what you really want it to say about you? Vanderbilt also says "If someone cuts you off, you feel that the world is becoming a dark and lonely place," he continues, " But if someone waves you over to get in the turn lane, you have a more positive outlook on life. In theory, neither event should matter all that much."

What kind of merger are you? early or late. Merging is a simple maneuver and proper merging helps keep the smooth flow of traffic. "Early mergers" are considered honorable by most drivers viewpoint, while those who wait till the last minute, are thought to be looking out solely for themselves. Studies in traffic flow with merges, show that later merging actually improves traffic flow by 15%. Now, let's give a short note on parking. The book speaks of an "endowment affect" citing that people take longer to leave a parking space if someone is waiting. The affect being; that once people have something, they are reluctant to give it up. Parking lots are a very big contributor to minor collisions and yield nearly 46% more incidents involving pedestrians. Driving with full concentration means, even when you are not, on the highways.

The skill of driving, encompasses about 1,500 sub skills, therefore, none of us are as good at driving as we think we are. Traffic experts call it the "above average effect." "Driving in traffic works best when there is conformity and cooperation, but when the roads are filled with people who see themselves as superior to everyone else on the road, we all suffer," states Vanderbilt. "Narcissism promotes aggressive driving." As humans, we are capable of making any number of complex maneuvers. Harmony would agree with this and for this reason we would like for you to learn more about what we offer. Our courses are designed to be personal as well as informative. Our approach to educating drivers and helping them improve their habits, proves more effective, than the methods currently offered by defensive type courses. Please attend one of our courses soon. Next time we look at complacency, countering traits and a review. The final post will cover the driving experience abroad.

Thanks for reading and remember, You are not a great driver and yes it CAN happen to you!

What our driving says about us (pt. 1)

The US has 250 million passenger vehicles and 196 million registered and licensed drivers, making it the largest passenger vehicle market in the world. Add to that, nearly 4 million miles of highways and you get a nation with lots of drive. With this information, provided by the US Bureau of Transit and the Federal Highway Administration, Harmony has decided to let you know just what gives us that drive. We have recently discovered a book, written by Tom Vanderbilt, "Traffic, why we drive the way we do." We found it to be worthy of a series of post that will hopefully enlighten drivers about ourselves and our driving convictions.

We start with the influence of personality traits. Do you feel that "My hurry is more important than your hurry?" Does driving sometimes become a survival mission, leaving common courtesy behind? Bouts of road rage can erupt as we spend more and more time on the road. We are becoming a nation of self-absorbed drivers! Author, Tom Vanderbilt, says "driving is the most complex everyday thing we do in our lives." Citing research of the complex web of psychological, physical and technical factors that explain how traffic works and how our thought processes operate, that lead to what our driving says about us. It would seem we find it hard to communicate while driving. Turning away from verbal skills, we rely on the horn and gestures to reveal our thoughts. "We struggle to stay human" says Vanderbilt, we strip down our identities, "traffic is a place where no one knows your name" he [Vanderbilt] says. "Hiding" in our safety glass and alloy enclosures, we tend to do a lot of things in our cars- it is even our favorite crying place.

Drivers who take advantage of this anonymity, may become more aggressive and riskier than others, believing that it's just another vehicle on the the road, after all you will never see them again. "Because you don't know the driver in the other vehicle and will likely never see them again, the normal constraints of life are left behind" says Vanderbilt. " Take away human identity and human contact and we act inhuman." Interesting, can this apply to frustration? let's find out.
Do you get frustrated when you see another line moving faster, than the one you are in? The book says it is part of an illusion. While we wait patiently in a "slow moving" line and others are getting "ahead" of us, we get the feeling we are "losing out" while we wait anxiously to move forward. This is the reason drivers change lanes in heavy traffic so often. A traffic jam can throw off our perception, as the vehicles in the other lane pass, we conclude that the other lane is moving faster, when in most cases it isn't. Therefore, we become frustrated, due to the illusion.

Good stuff so far. Next week we will look at emotions, who honks more men or women, parking and when lanes reduce. Please, if you have not signed up to be a follower of this blog or if you have friends or family that need this information do so now and spread the word. Harmony on the Highways is committed to improving highway safety and hope you get the opportunity to attend one of our classes soon.

Thanks for reading and keep cool out there, someone may be more angry than you today!