Reflections on Driving
TRAFFIC: Why We Drive the Way We Do (And What It Says About Us).
By Tom Vanderbilt.
402 pp. Alfred A. Knopf. $24.95.
The NYT review of this gave a quick overview of traffic-related things this book talks about such as rubbernecking, talking on cell phones, and how roundabouts reduce more collisions than stop lights do.
I've been noticing subtle differences in driving conditions in different parts of San Diego and elsewhere in Southern California, like in more expensive neighborhoods like Point Loma or suburban Temecula, people tend to drive safer than in sketchier parts of town (say, Mid-City or even Ocean Beach). Also, it might just be me, but I have noticed that different freeways have different characteristics. Everybody knows about the slower-traffic-keep-right rule and that the speed demons (when not weaving in and out of traffic) will tend to stay in the left lane, but I've noticed that the general flow of traffic on the 15 freeway is an average of 10mph faster than that of the 5 freeway. I wonder why this happens? Especially when the 15 has an average of 3-4 lanes while the 5 has up to 7 at some points! One would think it'd be the reverse.
It didn't seem like the book addressed what I want to know the most about, and in this way the subtitle why we drive the way we do seems a bit like a tease: I want to know about road rage. Why do some people develop a whole secondary personality when they get behind the wheel of a car? I confess, I suffer from road rage myself. Especially when I am in a high-stress situation, surrounded by SUVs on all sides, that is when it gets its worst. Maybe it's small-dog syndrome? My small car couldn't really do any damage in the incedent of a crash , so maybe I make up for my driving insecurity by being really really pissed off at the other drivers? My sister is actually scared to drive with me during rush hour. Angela is the same way, if not worse (sorry to break it to you Ang, but driving with you 10 minutes in traffic accumulates enough swear words to push a movie into the rated "R" category). Maybe it's a female thing? My guy friends don't tend to morph into the second personality quite as much.