Regarding the authors comments about early vs late merging.

I remember when driving in PA rural areas years ago the very-polite Pennsylvanians would immediately merge into the appropriate lane upon passing the first "lane closed ahead" sign. But when driving there a few years later I saw additional signs stating: "use both lanes until merge point" in these situations. It appears the PA highway dept understood this problem very well.

I wonder of this topic is related to the article in the last Atlantic magazine (the one with the cover story, "Is Google Making Us Stoopid?") that suggested maybe we have too many traffic signs in the U.S. and that maybe speed limits aren't such a good idea?

an annoying this is if you are changing lanes, a car further back behind in the lane your changing to- speeds up. a very immature action.

in the early 90's the actor Rowan Atkinson, who is known as Mr. Bean, did a documentary on how humans act in cars. Mr. Atkinson, other than being Mr. Bean is a extreme car enthusiast and has test driven some very important cars.

His documentary studies elements of cars that help/hinder the driver, the psychology on how people interact etc. The video can be found on youtube in parts

The roads are increasingly crowded, many people no longer use turn signals or don't use them until they're already turning, fail to use the left lane on a multi-lane road for passing as it was intended, and my favorite, drive the same speed (40 mph) no matter if the speed limit is 55 or 25.

Its not the New Jersey drivers but New Jersey roads that are the problem. Badly designed exit and entrance ramps have drivers making all kinds of poor choices that make for apparently bad driving, such as entering on the right, crossing three lanes, exiting on the left, etc.

Knowing waiting times for buses is possible now. Several U.S. cities have GPS and phone access to bus schedules and arrival times, a major new benefit that would be especially valuable in the outer boroughs. More important than showing the estimated arrival time on a display at the bus stop, people call a phone number for the estimated time of arrival of bus X at station Y based on the bus position sensed and computed by GPS and historical speed data.

Portland is an example where inquiries via phone are now over a million calls a month. They started with information posted at bus stops but quickly changed to phone access based on public demand. http://trimet.org/

What effect does quality of driving training have on driver accidents and behavior? I understand that driver training in Europe is better and more comprehensive.

I belong to a grassroots group that did a small transportation study. It's true that trucks go down these avenues probably because it's faster than going up or down the FDR up there. The UES is considered the place to drive through on your way to the Central Business District. It hasn't been a destination for a while, even though it's the densest neighborhood in NYC.

I have my learner's permit but haven't gotten my license. I have pedestrian rage, so I'm afraid to start driving. I'm too much of a humanitarian to get behind the wheel of a car.

I believe the reason more pedestrians are hit while crossing with the light as apposed to against the light, is because pedestrians who are crossing against the light are generally always looking, where as a pedestrian who crosses with the light will not necessarily be looking as they assume it is safe to cross. Vigilance is what is most important.

I have been to China and without doubt, riding in the taxis there was the most terrifying automobile ride I've ever had in my life. My fiance was with me and then went to India. She said India was even worse, so I'm not sure about the autocratic/democratic dichotomy. I think its more about experience driving. The Chinese and Indians, for the most part, have not had cars in the past and you have huge numbers of new drivers on the road at the same time.

On driving and democracy, Orhan Pamuk's 2004 article in The Guardian, entitled "Road to rebellion", describes driving through Tehran, arguing that "in a tightly controlled society the highway code is seen as an affront to individualism and the streets become a test of freedom." See www.guardian.co.uk/books/2004/apr/24/fiction.iran.

omg! la has the worst darn drivers! leave jersey alone and we have to realize jerseyans probably just want to get back home so seriosly stay out of their way :-) anyway, i think ny drivers are worse because they drive like maniacs (merging and switching lanes, rushing everywhere) and not surprisingly, there is always an accident on the highways out of manhattan into queen or brooklyn. on another note, i think in manhattan overall drivers and driving are pretty good. maybe it's all those cabbies keeping that standard of driving high!

Hi Tom,

What do you think the chances are of actually getting the City to reduce its default speed limit to below 30mph? Research shows that at 30mph even people IN cars start dying in greater numbers, so of course pedestrians (of which NYC has way more than motorists) will fare even worse!

Yesterday I was waiting to pull out of a parking space while the child of the driver in another space ran around his mother's mother's car and into the parking lot - for about 5 minutes. While she put her bags away in the car I heard her phone ring and thought, "No - she's NOT going to answer her phone while her kid is running around in traffic". Wrong. While she yacked, a car pulled into the lot and turned in to park in the space where her kid was running - the driver was talking on the phone as well. The KID got slapped.
Our standards for behavior have gone down the tubes, and I don't know how you fix that.

My favorite bad driving is the people who refuse to let ANYONE in front of them at a 10 lane down to 2 tunnel merge. They have no idea what "alternate merge" means. It helps to have a beater car to convince them to let you in.

I live on the UES and have noticed how many large trucks barrel down 1st, 2nd and 3rd Avenues. These routes are supposed to be local truck routes only. I have a difficult time believing that these trucks are using these routes as intended. There is just far too much large truck traffic in this neighborhood.

Did Mr. Vanderbilt do any research on coffee and driving habits?...I have a theory that some of the more recent aggressive driving habits correlate with the coffee rennaissance in the US... think starbucks, dunkin dounuts etc.

Theres a simple sollution to talegaters than no one seems to use, simply let them by and you'll be done with them

I hate driving but live in a place where I constantly have to. Yes, I admit I am an inpatient driver because even though driving takes a lot of skill and thinking, anybody who can pretty much manage to breathe can get a driver's license. Until we start being more selective about who can get one, I will continue to hate driving and being an inpatient driver. There are people out there that should not be given a big-wheel, let alone a SUV or pick-up truck.

Tailgating is real big here in Atlanta! Very dangerous practice!

What about "What your refusal to give up driving once you can't do it anymore says about you?" I am sick and tired of people who wait until they get into an accident and kill someone before they give up the car.

I have actually noticed the inverse:

Motorists ith New Jersey and Penn plates which come through my neighborhood in Brooklyn are typically the rudist and do not follow polite traffic edicate.

You honk at out of staters in nyc because they are driving too slowly or just not hit to the program.

Jay walking is a part of life in nyc, in CA it is hysterical to watch people standing on a corner waiting to cross when there are no cars around.

what about motorcycle riders?
i ride a motorcycle and i feel much more attuned to what's going on around me. more dialed in.

Also people do not know how to merge, they often drive very slowly to the end of an entrance ramp and then try to get in to traffic, people should be using the ramp to accelerate and match their speed to that of the highway they are trying to enter

Theres a huge problem when drivers decide they are going "fast enough" The left lane is for faster moving trafffic not for one individual to set pace in. Its the police's job to enforce the speed limit not motorists. Left hand exits are extremely rare and must only exist in a very small percentage compared to right hand exits. The fact that I can breeze down the right hand lane without changing lanes or braking,at 80 mph while the left lane is clogged with cars going 60 tells me theres a HUGE missunderstanding of the "lane "system.

I used to believe that the worst drivers were from NJ and still partially believe in that fact, until I came to LA. Truly the worst drivers are here, the entire range from comically crippled drivers who can't go around another vehicle if part of their lane is blocked to the utterly frightening reading the paper, texting and drinking a latte.

But for all time worst drivers, nyc yellow taxis, especially their first day in the snow!

Driving habits are reflective of where we are in society. Busy, busy, get outta my way, no time, handsfree talking on the cell, texting while driving, the whole thing is outta control.

What makes me most upset is that there are drivers out there who are completely inconsiderate and as scary as this seems, I actually imagine myself kicking the "(beep)" out of them (but I don't think I'm alone there). Frankly, some of the drivers out there deserve a beat down.