found on autoblog. http://www.autoblog.com/2008/12/18/us-dot-...e-of-accidents/

source article:
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/26/2627.asp
the full report:
http://www.thenewspaper.com/rlc/docs...crashcause.pdf
the virginia report mentioned:
http://www.thenewspaper.com/rlc/docs...va-crash07.pdf

 

Finally, someone says what we all know to be true.

 

amen....the speed trap stuff has always been a money making scam

 

that is a surprise. these reports usually help the insurance companies and police make excuses for more money from drivers.



A speeding driver is more alert = better driving imho

 

Agree 100%! We have 70MPH roads here with only a double-yellow between the inside lanes. You don't have to be speeding to die on these roads. Add rain to them and it's a dangerous scenario.

 

that was a great article....i do agree with the statement that people that drive fast are usually more alert. i know if i drive slow im all over the road, but once i hit 90 or up, the car doesnt move.

 

not all drivers who speed are paying better attention.

i do quite a bit if highway driving and i find the people who are going fast enough to pass me (few and far between... ) are on their cell phones around 50% of the time...

 

All the speeders I know are also some of the best drivers I know. That being said tuna has a very valid point...especially in MD, home of the half-attentive speed racer.

 

Same. I drive the fastest out of anyone I know. All of my friends call me such a reckless driver, tell me I'm going to kill someone, etc. However, I've never caused an accident (been rear-ended once, avoided being t-boned twice), and every month one of them does. I think speeding gets such a bad rap because, as people have said, a lot of people zoning out will speed without thinking about it. The cause of accidents they're in, though, is their lack of attention, not their speed. Correlation is not cause.

 

I don't speed in the city, never on city streets but always have on the highway. I'll take a call in the car once in a while, have integrated bluetooth, but on those rare occasions you'll find me in the slow lane on the highway. The rest of the time I'm in the fast lane, speeding, but my 100% attention is focused on driving and nothing else. I ride motorcycles too and you are taught if you go to any kind of riding class, that on the bike you want to be going faster than traffic, like 5mph faster, it's the safest way to pilot it, really.
I apply the same philosophy in the car.