Nearly 20 Percent of Drivers May Be ‘Unfit for Roads,’

By TANYA MOHN

GMAC Insurance
College and high school students may not be the only ones humbled this time of year by mediocre test results.

Roughly 38 million licensed drivers — nearly one in five — would not pass a written drivers exam if taken today, according to a survey released Thursday morning.

The survey, the National Drivers Test, conducted by GMAC Insurance, polled 5,202 licensed drivers from 50 states and the District of Columbia. Driving knowledge was based on 20 questions taken from exams given by state departments of motor vehicles. Questions addressing distracting driving behavior were also included in the report.

The overall findings indicate that many licensed drivers lack knowledge of basic rules and “may be unfit for roads.” Eighty-five percent of participants could not identify the correct action to take when approaching a steady yellow traffic light, and many remained confused by safe following distances.

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http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/27/nearly-20-percent-of-drivers-may-be-unfit-for-roads-says-survey/

My answer erred on the side of safety so I wouldn't consider it a BAD wrong answer necessarily (I chose a longer than necessary following distance from the car in front of you, i.e. 10 seconds instead of 3).

Final score? 95%.

I guess I'm safe :).

On even veguely well traveled roads all that would mean is that you would be constantly slowing down sharply (and dangerously as it would be seen as sudden and unnecessary and hence unpredictable) to open up that gap again after every driver moving with traffic flow slotted (heck slotted is not really the word for a gap this size - how about "encamped") into the 170yd gap between you and the car in front of you.

My favorite experience is probably the woman who stopped her suv in the left lane of a highway when an ambulance came up behind her.