Traffic SafetyThe National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) defines aggressive driving as "operating a motor vehicle in a manner that endangers or may endanger persons or property": traffic and not a criminal offense like road rage. Examples include speeding or driving too fast for conditions, improper lane changing, tailgating, and improper passing. Approximately 6,800,000 accidents occur in the United States each year; It is estimated that a considerable number are caused by aggressive driving. 1997 statistics compiled by the NHTSA and the American Automobile Association show that nearly 13,000 people have been injured or killed since 1990 in crashes caused by aggressive driving. According to an NHTSA survey, more than 60 percent of drivers consider unsafe driving by others, including speeding, to be a serious personal threat to themselves and their families. About 30% of respondents said they felt their safety had been threatened in the past month, while 67% felt this threat in the past year. Swerving, tailgating, distracted drivers and unsafe lane changes were some of the unsafe behaviors identified. Aggressive drivers are more likely to drink and drive or drive without a seatbelt. Aggressive driving can easily escalate into a road rage incident. Motorists in all 50 states have killed or injured other motorists for seemingly trivial reasons. Motorists should remain calm in traffic, be patient and courteous to other drivers, and correct unsafe driving habits that may endanger, antagonize, or provoke other motorists. More than half of those surveyed by NHTSA admitted to driving aggressively on some occasions. Only 14% believe it is “extremely dangerous” to drive 10 miles per hour over the speed limit. 62% of those who frequently drive unsafely and illegally said the police had not stopped them for traffic reasons in the past year. The majority of NHTSA survey participants (52%) said it is "very important" to do something about speeding. Ninety-eight per cent of those surveyed thought it was "important" that something was done to reduce speeding and dangerous driving. Respondents ranked the following countermeasures, in order, as those most likely to reduce aggressive and unsafe driving behavior: (1) more police assigned to traffic control, (2) more frequent fines for traffic violations , (3) higher fines and (4 ) i...... half of the document ......ture a risk-taking species. In ancient times people took risks just to eat. We then took enormous risks by setting out in small wooden ships to explore the earth's surface. We continued trying to fly, travel faster than the speed of sound, and go into space. We rely on increasingly complex equipment and continually strive to design and produce faster and more elaborate devices. It goes without saying that every effort is made to ensure our “safety”; to protect us from harm or danger. Every time you slip behind the wheel of your vehicle you run a risk. Driving is the riskiest activity in our lives. It is an inherently "unsafe" environment. The most perfect vehicles on the best-designed highways on beautiful sunny days driven by fallible human beings crash into each other. The only way to drive “safely” (as we are all exhorted to do!) is to learn more about the process. Find out more about your vehicle and how to maintain it; learn how to use your eyes to.