Safe Speed Forums

I found this test on the US Psychology today site:

http://psychologytoday.tests.psychtests ... gTest=1309

NOTE: Some of the questions are general and US oriented but commonsense.

I answered all questions honestly, and got (and remember, in the eyes of some I am a dangerous habitual speeder, as I drive at a "safe speed for the conditions" in a modified car) the following analysis:

"According to your score, you are one calm, cool driver. You don't appear to be the type to jeopardize your own mental and physical well-being, and you certainly don't endanger the lives of others with whom you share the road. Even in circumstances that would send many drivers into a blinding rage, you manage to control your temper and practice a little patience, preferring to let things go rather than exact revenge. This is good news, as many experts believe that road rage may be on the brink of becoming an epidemic. With more people like you on the road, the streets would be a much safer place! Well done!"

_________________
I won't slave for beggar's pay,
likewise gold and jewels,
but I would slave to learn the way
to sink your ship of fools

I got the same text exactly. Most of the questions seemed to be centred at road rage. I'm a fast driver but a calm one.

Same here - although you'd have to be pretty stupid not to see what answers you'd need to make in order to come out as a saint or a sinner! I could truthfully answer that I spent most of my time at or below the speed limit too - what with spending most of my time on single track NSL roads Of course, if I lived in an area where the speed limits were less appropriately set, I guess the answer might be different!

Ditto. Good job swearing within the confines of your own car isn't classed high up the rage scale

I got the same pat on the back as Prof Beard for my present, professional driving style.

Me, five years ago, in my own personal car ...

"According to your score, you are a fairly cool and calm driver. You rarely engage in aggressive behaviors that could jeopardize your own mental and physical well-being, and you certainly do your best not to endanger the lives of others with whom you share the road. Even in circumstances that would send many drivers into a blinding rage, you try to control your temper and practice a little patience, often preferring to let things go rather than exact revenge. This is good news, as many experts believe that road rage is on the brink of becoming an epidemic. Although there may be the rare occasion when you lose your temper, you seem to be capable of controlling yourself rather well."

The above result fails to get that my driving behavior was simply devoid of aggression, rage, but readily instilled the same in others.

My mindset while driving was:
"Traffic control devices are, in theory, there for our collective safety. In practice, however, they are often obstacles and delays to my safe, yet speedy progress. (Rarely, they are even dangerous.) If they can be ignored without increasing the danger level for myself or others, then they are irrelevant, and can be safely ignored.
"Other road users, though not actively interested in slowing me down, usually prefer to be in my way if they have the chance to choose my progress vs theirs. Since I am almost never in the way of someone as long for as they would be in mine, we would in fact be better off if I prevented them from the possibility of choosing priority or initiative whenever safely possible, whether by arriving at the situation before we are in contest, 'drawing' first when a contest is inevitable, or otherwise by driving in a manner that minimizes the effect and / or the possibility that road users should or might want to go first. (For example, why walk across the street when you can jog?)"

Hence, my handle.

It has since been modified with the realization that other people are more likely to miss the gestalt of my example, and that while my worst behaviors may take place at perfectly appropriate moments, the wrong people will be encouraged to do the wrong thing at the wrong time. In other words, I should at least try to NOT be an example of what NOT to do.

_________________
The Rules for ALL ROAD USERS:
1) No one gets hurt
2) Nothing gets hit, except to protect others; see Rule#1
3) The Laws of Physics are invincible and immutable - so-called 'laws' of men are not
4) You are always immediately and ultimately responsible for your safety first, then proximately responsible for everyone's
Do not let other road users' mistakes become yours, nor yours become others
5) The rest, including laws of the land, is thoughtful observation, prescience, etiquette, decorum, and cooperation

12/100 same text as everyone else has got so far.

I thought it'd be much worse given some of my answers relating to speed limits, and lack of knowledge of US-specific laws to do with 4-way stops.

A lot of the questions had a range of responses where only one answer was possible to the non-deranged person:

7/10 maybe I guessed some of the traffic law questions correctly.

Good job there were no questions about what I would do with a disintegrator gun when another driver forgets that there is still quite a lot of their car behind the drivers seat even if they cannot see it at this precise moment. Still, I would only need it a couple of times a year now, five years ago I might have hit the trigger a couple of times a day.

_________________
Driving fast is for a particular time and place, I can do it I just only do it occasionally because I am a gentleman.
- James May

Sorry if anyone can hear me laughing but these psycho tests are a bit of a joke hence the very similar almost identical results indicated on here. I would wager that if everyone in the UK took the` same test we would have 90% of calm drivers out there lol.

Well, they only work if you answer honestly, personally I did (yes if some muppet hasn't seen the green light I will wait a few seconds then beep at them, for example) which may be why I got a "higher" score than others here, or maybe I'm just more of an arsehole than they are, actually it's probably the latter.

Thing is, America has a much lower standard of driving and much higher incidence of road rage, so simply by virtue of being British, our population would get good scores on that test, and by being active participants on a road safety forum (after all even the militant cyclists and pro-camera people here are still in favour of, and think about, road safety) we're going to get even higher scores collectively.

I 2nd that notion. To my experience, the vast majority of American drivers lack 'social driving graces', which is generally to be taught and learned, but isn't covered in most American driving instruction (unless your parents taught you).

An example: the very same man who will hold a door for a lady when he could just as easily not, will rudely and with barely enough regard for his own safety - and not quite enough for hers, she has to make up the difference - try to beat her to or thru an intersection or crosswalk if he perceives the possibility that he will succeed, even if he has to resort to winning the game of chicken he just started without her consent.

Usually, such a conflict fails to yield a collision, initially, though the probability of a collision obviously rises. The driver who was forced to permit the indiscretion then detects a wrong to be avenged.

Of course, the first layer in this 'Swiss Cheese' is the general lower standard of driving education and training, which is lacking in many things, certainly not the least of which is etiquette and decorum.

_________________
The Rules for ALL ROAD USERS:
1) No one gets hurt
2) Nothing gets hit, except to protect others; see Rule#1
3) The Laws of Physics are invincible and immutable - so-called 'laws' of men are not
4) You are always immediately and ultimately responsible for your safety first, then proximately responsible for everyone's
Do not let other road users' mistakes become yours, nor yours become others
5) The rest, including laws of the land, is thoughtful observation, prescience, etiquette, decorum, and cooperation

I alos got the same score. My sub sect knowledge of US driving rules was only 64 as I have only driven there 3 times. Locals in CA when asked about the 4-way stop say stop, smile and gesture the first to arrive to move on as you cannot afford road rage when many have a gun in the glovebox.

I found the US drivers generally courteous.

I consider myself a fast driver who stays calm and leaves other slower drivers behind. I am concerned that, increasingly, drivers in UK seem to think that overtaking is illegal/antisocial/needs to be blocked at all costs

_________________
Richard Ceen
We live in a time where emotions and feelings count far more than the truth, and there is a vast ignorance of science (James Lovelock 2005)

[quote="The Rush]To my experience, the vast majority of American drivers lack 'social driving graces', which is generally to be taught and learned, but isn't covered in most American driving instruction (unless your parents taught you).

.[/quote]


Which is a point I have made many times about UK standards falling -the lack of a sort of mentorship finishing school to driving .The driving school teaches you how to pass the test -in my day if you did that ,some relative/friend etc would help to make sure your road manners were brought up to scratch .Today -it just don't happen -hence the increase in road rage ,not helkped by the lack of trafpols ,looking to help further a new drivers education ,either because they stopped them ,or by being asked .

_________________
lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

Scored 16, same text as the rest

Having been stationed in San Diego (US Marine Corps), and remembering how different each city in California was, and referencing that against driving in NYC and Long Island, perhaps New Yorkers need more guns in their gloveboxes?
Or maybe that's just a proxy for better manners?

When there is but one licensing standard to achieve or aspire to, the idea that all drivers are - or essentially should be - equal gets a claw or two into the minds of those drivers who see driving primarily as an alternative to public transportation.

No one should be surprised that they would feel uncomfortable with the idea that higher licensing standards were about to come into effect. They would be unnerved at the idea that at some - not all, just some - of the people that expressed impatience at them daily on the road would in fact soon be so licensed.

These induhviduals should take comfort in that both good and bad drivers would now be easier to spot by their new conspicuous markings.

I can't help but recall an original example of doublethink George Orwell once wrote ...
"All drivers are equal, but some are more equal than others" ( , my bad! )

Imagine if that statement were to be used as an incentive to improvement, as opposed to a tool of oppression ...

_________________
The Rules for ALL ROAD USERS:
1) No one gets hurt
2) Nothing gets hit, except to protect others; see Rule#1
3) The Laws of Physics are invincible and immutable - so-called 'laws' of men are not
4) You are always immediately and ultimately responsible for your safety first, then proximately responsible for everyone's
Do not let other road users' mistakes become yours, nor yours become others
5) The rest, including laws of the land, is thoughtful observation, prescience, etiquette, decorum, and cooperation