Maryland motorists may not be the nation's worst, but they seem to be close contenders.
The state's drivers scored third from the bottom this year in an annual written test of knowledge of the rules of the road, according to GMAC Insurance.
Maryland drivers placed 49th out of 51 in the company's seventh annual National Driver's Test, with a score of 73.3 percent, trailing only Hawaii (73 percent) and the basement-dwelling District of Columbia. Rounding out the Feckless Five were New Jersey in 48th and Massachusetts in 47th.
Leading the pack was repeat champion Kansas, where the 82.9 percent score was 5 points above the national average. Following close behind were Iowa, Colorado and Minnesota. Oregon, Nebraska, Indiana and Missouri tied for fifth.
How important the results are in terms of actual traffic safety are unclear. In terms of actual road deaths, Maryland is far from the bottom. And even a GMAC representative agreed that the survey is subject to sampling errors.
When the tourist season starts is when you see the worst of the worst. No offense but PA and NJ drivers to me seem to be the worst.
ReplyDeleteMost of those bad Maryland drivers are on Route 12.
ReplyDeleteAnd to those drivers : No, driving 5-10 miles under the posted speed limit does not increase your skills.
The thing i see most is the inability to stay in the proper lane when maikng a turn with multiple lanes involved. like tuening north onto RT13 from Naylor Mill Road. You could get killed there. Even the cops don't know how to do that!
ReplyDelete7:19 AM
ReplyDeleteoh, so that's where you live
I agree with both Flerndip and dan. Driving under the speed limit is just as, if not more, dangerous than driving fast. Especially if the person going slow refuses to pull over and let others by. People are so desperate to pass that they take chances. Not all of us have time to just cruise around! We do actually work. And Flerndip I think PA is the worst lol. They are some CRAZY drivers!
ReplyDeleteThere is no law that I know of that says you can't go 5-10 miles UNDER the speed limit.
ReplyDeleteFlerndip I have to agree with half of your statement. I agree on the PA drivers but I would pick DE drives over NJ.
If you think PA drivers are bad when they are here, go to PA. OMG they don't know how to stop at a stop sign they fly up on it and slam on their brakes, most times they end up coming into traffic before they stop, not to mention they fly no matter what kind of road it is.
I think that the biggest problem with PA drivers is unfamiliarity with the area, and NJ drivers are just crazy. But for sheer overall incompetence, it is hard to beat Delaware drivers. Usually if someone does something boneheaded, I look for the DE tag, and if i don't see one, I assume they were raised there.
ReplyDelete10:22 just because there is no law does not mean there shouldn't be. Driving too slow is dangerous whether or not there is a law pertaining to it.
ReplyDelete10:22 Actually, there IS a law for going 10 under the speed limit. It is Impeding Traffic.
ReplyDelete"Impeding traffic is typically defined when not operating a vehicle reasonably, so as to block the normal flow of traffic. It typically is used in cases where a person is blocking an intersection or driving too slow and causing a log jam. Laws vary by jurisdiction, but are generally follow a standard of "reasonable operation".