Only 3 out of 10 Romanian drivers usually obey the speed limit when driving in the city, according to a survey carried out by the National Campaign for Road Safety and Prevention, which involved 8,931 respondents, including 8,225 drivers.

Brief information:

• 4 out of 10 drivers meet daily in traffic drivers who move in zigzags (rearranging very often, usually suddenly or aggressively);

• One in four drivers almost always moves from one lane to another, if the lane in which they are moving is slower. The time “won” after this maneuver is estimated in most cases to be less than 10 minutes;

• Only 3 out of 10 Romanian drivers usually obey the speed limit when driving in the city, the number drops to 2 out of 10 when we talk about driving outside the city;

• According to survey participants, drivers who drive at higher speeds confuse traffic more than those who drive slower;

Every driver out of 4 will cross from one lane to another almost every time if the lane they are in is slower. Most people who try this maneuver estimate (without actual measurements) that the time “earned” is less than 10 minutes. In fact, the “savings” of time in most cases are insignificant and do not justify the risks.

The survey assessed drivers’ attitudes and perceptions regarding a range of behaviors that increase the risk of a traffic accident, but which are nevertheless common in traffic.

Aggressive lane change

Almost 4 out of 10 drivers (36% of the survey participants) encounter drivers who make zigzags on the road every day (very frequent changes, usually suddenly or aggressively), and 33% – several times a week, according to the results of the survey. Also, 1 out of 2 drivers (50% of respondents) believe that these drivers confuse the traffic a lot, and 28% – quite a lot.

Ask if you’re in a lane where cars are moving slower than the other lane to move into the faster lane, nearly 1 in 4 drivers (24% of respondents) said they do it every time, and 33% often often.

The main reason they do this is because “they don’t like to spend time in traffic, whether they’re in a hurry or not.”

How much time do drivers gain by changing from the “slow” lane to the faster one? A quarter (25%) of respondents earn “less than 5 minutes”, and 23%, “from 5 to 10 minutes”.

In addition, 15% estimate 10-15 minutes, only 11% believe that the time saved is more than 15 minutes. Almost a third do not know or prefer not to answer. However, it is important to note that in 80% of cases the specified time was only estimated and not actually measured.

How do Romanian drivers drive in and out of the city?

Both in and out of the city, drivers tend to go faster than they should and exceed the speed limit, and, as expected, this phenomenon is more pronounced on roads outside cities. So, while 32% of drivers who took part in the survey said that they follow the speed limit when driving in the city, only 23% did so when driving outside the city.

According to the results of the survey, in the city, 45% of drivers drive a little faster (exceeding the maximum speed by 10 km/h), and 19% drive fast, i.e. by at least 10 km/h. limitation. By comparison, outside the city, 41% drive slightly faster (at most 10 km/h over the limit), while 34% drive fast (at least 10 km/h over the limit).

Drivers who go too slow and drivers who go too fast – who is more disruptive?

Both drivers who go too fast and drivers who go too slow can cause traffic problems. Which category, according to the survey participants, poses a greater danger?

Drivers who are considered “slower” by other road users seem to be mostly present on inner-city roads. 41% of respondents said that they meet drivers who “drive too slowly” in city traffic every day, and 30% several times a week. Outside the city, only 27% of drivers note that they meet such drivers every day, another 27% – several times a week.

On the other hand, speeding drivers seem to be more present in traffic and, in turn, also more common in cities. 63% of survey participants said that they meet drivers who “go too fast” in city traffic every day, and 25% – several times a week. Outside the city, 47% of respondents meet such drivers every day, and 27% – several times a week.

“Too slow” drivers are perceived as a problem rather outside the population centers. 17% of respondents believe that drivers who drive too slowly confuse traffic in the city “a lot” (and 29% – “quite a lot”), and 27% believe that they confuse traffic outside the city. a lot” (in 27% – “quite a lot”).

On the other hand, 12% and 13% of respondents, respectively, believe that they do not confuse traffic in the city, respectively outside of settlements.

On the other hand, speeding drivers are also perceived as problematic. 25% of respondents believe that drivers who drive too fast cause a lot of confusion in the city, and 31% think “quite a lot”, while 23% think that they cause a lot of confusion in the countryside, and 26% quite a lot. On the other hand, 13%, respectively 21% of respondents believe that they do not confuse the traffic in the city, respectively outside the population centers.

Sample: A total of 8,931 respondents took part in the survey, of which 65% were men and 35% were women, and almost half (46%) were aged 35-55, and 22% were aged 26-34, and almost 21%, from 18 to 25 years old. 92% (8225) are drivers – over 67% of them drive daily and 24% at least a few times a week