New research, conducted by road safety charity IAMRoadSmart, has found that millions of motorists are worried about driving…

Motorists Stressed About Driving 

IAMRoadSmart surveyed 1,004 motorists concerning the types of roads that cause them to worry the most. Overall, some 60% of the respondents reported that they’re worried about driving in general. If this figure is representative of the nation as a whole, it means 24 million of the nation’s 40 million motorists are stressed about taking to the road network.

Specifically, 33% of the respondents said they were most concerned about driving on smart motorways; meaning they’re the most anxiety-inducing roads overall. Conversely, just 6% of them stated that they were worried about driving on a motorway which possesses a hard shoulder.

Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, just 14% of the survey’s respondents said they were worried about driving on rural roads. This is despite the fact that, statistically, people are more likely to experience a fatal accident on them than any other type of road.

Unique Challenges 

Neil Greig, director of policy and research at IAM RoadSmart, commented on the survey’s results. He said, “our research has laid bare the staggering number of people who feel worried about driving on Britain’s roads. We would encourage drivers to do all they can to re-educate themselves, especially during National Road Victim Month, on how to navigate the unique challenges and considerations each road type presents”.

He continued, “while statistics may well show that smart motorways have fewer fatal crashes than conventional motorways, our research shows that far too many drivers still don’t feel safe on them2.

Grieg also emphasised that National Highways needs to do more to reassure people about the safety of smart motorways. He explained, “moving forward, it is vital that National Highways up their efforts to keep the public informed and continue to raise awareness of how to drive safely on smart motorways. It is also clear that awareness needs to be raised about the risks of rural roads. Far from being a pleasant drive in the countryside, these are the type of roads which can punish mistakes with death and injury”.

Over 40,000 Breakdowns Were Tyre-Related Last Year – https://autoservefleet.co.uk/latest-news/over-40-000-breakdowns-were-tyre-related-last-year/

Majority of British Drivers Have Nearly Had A Crash – https://autoserve.co.uk/motoring-news/majority-of-british-drivers-have-nearly-had-a-crash/

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