Tag: accidents

5 Most Dangerous Countries to Drive In

Driving can have its share of dangers, but there are certain countries where drivers have to take special care. These places have roads and other conditions that make them more of a challenge when taking to the road. If you are traveling to these countries, be sure that you are aware of traffic laws, safety precautions and prepared for any emergencies that could arise. All figures in this article are for the period from 2006-2007.

United Arab Emirates

1. United Arab Emirates
This country is in the top ranks of the most dangerous countries to drive in. It has more than a million vehicles that are registered to drive on the roads. The United Arab Emirates also has an astonishing 1,056 car-related deaths, with a rate of deaths in accidents at 37.1 per 100,000 residents in the country. This number of accidents also leads to a higher rate of filing auto insurance claims.

Gambia

2. Gambia
Gambia has a large population of over 1,000,000 people with over 14,000 vehicles that can legally be on the road. There have been at least 54 deaths in vehicle accidents, with an accident death rate of 36.6 individuals out of 100,000. This makes for a lot of traffic and busy streets while driving, so if you are visiting, watch for possible accidents on the road.

Niger

3. Niger
This is a beautiful, prospering country that boasts a population of over 14,000,000 people who drive over 76,000 vehicles on its roads. The busy traffic has led to a total of 570 deaths in car accidents, with a vehicle accident death rate of 37.7 per 100,000 people.

Iraq

4. Iraq
Iraq's population of over 28,000,000 people has had to contend with war over the years, and have also garnered a top spot on the list for being dangerous to drive in. There are over 2,000,000 vehicles on the road daily, with a total of 1,932 deaths from accidents. Every 38.1 out of 100,000 people die in vehicle crashes.

Egypt

5. Egypt
Egypt is a country that is popular with tourists, since it has the pyramids, its history and beautiful cities to tour. It has one of the highest spots on the list of dangerous countries to drive in with a total of 15,983 deaths from automobile accidents. This is possible with over 75,000,000 people in the population and more than 4,300,000 cars on the road. There is a mortality rate of 41.6 per 100,000 people.

If you are planning to travel overseas, make sure that you are prepared for the possibility of an accident. Preparation includes knowing the traffic laws, having good car insurance and being aware of the heaviest traffic zones. This knowledge is vital to making your drive overseas smoother and safer.

Written by Christina Jones

Watch it in Wet Weather!

I am sure everyone in the Baltimore area and Maryland experienced the rather quick switch in weather from sunshine, to heavy rain, some sunshine, light rain, sunshine, heavy rain!  It was a little bit ridiculous.  It's a good reminder to be prepared for anything when driving and to stay alert.  You need to be constantly aware of the driving conditions you are dealing with, espicially in wet weather.

A few weeks ago when I was headed to the Baltimore Grand Prix Economic Press Conference, it was raining like nobody's business!  Not far from my house these was this accident.  It was pretty serious as you can see from the pictures.  These two small SUVS did a lot of damage hitting each other, at what I assumed was relatively low speeds.  This was most likely due to the fact that one of the drivers did not adjust their driving for wet conditions.  Since they were relatively the same size and type of vehicle, it seemed nobody was seriously injued. (Actually both were Honda CRVs).  Consider if one of the vehicles was a truck hitting a compact car.  Not good!

Jalopnik Rates Baltimore 2nd Worst Driving City in Country, DC 1st

The Grand Prix in Baltimore

Baltimoreans… our humble city has been rated the 2nd worst driving city in the country!  Why such a rating?  Apparently drivers of Baltimore get into 88% more accidents than the rest of the country.  “Charm City residents apparently see their vehicles as just another crustacean waiting for its shell to be cracked open” is the way Jalopnik put it.  Somehow there is some truth to that statement.  The rankings were taken from Allstate's data, which insures 10% of all US drivers.  Jalopnik sorted through the data to compile the list.  It's hard for me to believe we are the 2nd worst in the country, but I guess the numbers speak for themselves.  No wonder insurance is so expensive here!

The first city on the list is Washington DC.  All the super yuppies (as I like to call them) are apparently twice as likely to get into an accidents as the rest of the nation.  “There are so many possible reasons — the city's cross-hatch street layout, it's population of drivers with diplomatic  immunity, tour-bus related congestion — that it's hard to assign blame, exactly the kind of problem Washington excels in creating.” commented Jalopnik.  Essentially this means the Baltimore-Washington Metro area is the worst driving area in the country!

I would definitely like to hear people opinions on this.  Do you agree or disagree?

Ten Worst Driving Cities in the US! 

  1. Washington DC
  2. Baltimore
  3. Glendale, CA
  4. Newark, NJ
  5. Providence, RI
  6. Philadelphia
  7. Hartford, Conn.
  8. Jersey City, NJ
  9. San Francisco 
  10. Alexandria, VA

 


Driver’s Edge: Real driving Education for Teens

Driver's Edge is a great organization with a very important mission. To save the lives of young drivers! The aim of Driver's Edge is to bring European driver education (which is more stringent and advanced) to US teenagers. The biggest killer of teenagers is not guns, drugs, or alcohol….. but car accidents. Bringing better driving education to this age group, Driver's Edge is trying to get those car accident deaths of young drivers down.

When you go out for the day to one of the Driver's Edge programs, it's a lot of fun. They will run a you through several different emergency maneuvering techniques. (In a BMW!) You'll get to experience what is like to take a car to it's limit in a controlled situation. You also get some Free goodies. I got a T-Shirt and emergency roadside kit, that I still have in my car.

I had a great time doing it and I highly recommend any teenagers sign-up or parents with teenagers sign-up and go. Best part about Driver's Edge? It's completely Free!

Driver's Edge will be conducting a program in Washington D.C. The program will be the weekend of June 18 & 19, 2011 at FedEx Field in Landover, MD. You must register for the program, if you are interested. It's done on a first come, first serve basis! Registration will open Thursday, May 12 AT 6:00pm (Eastern Daylight Time). Spots are expected to fill quickly, so please sign-up asap if you want a spot or a spot for your teenager. Driver's Edge is open to anyone age 21, or younger, with a valid learner's permit or driver's license.

4 Time Slots are Available, See below for instructions. Only register for one class. Students must stay for the full duration of the class.

  • Saturday, June 18, 8:00am – 12:30pm
  • Saturday, June 18, 1:00pm – 5:30pm
  • Sunday, June 19, 8:00am – 12:30pm
  • Sunday, June 19, 1:00pm – 5:30pm

On Thursday, May 12 at 6:00pm (Eastern Time), you will see that WASHINGTON D.C. will become available for registration on our Tour Schedule & Registration page (link below). Click on “register now” to sign up. **IMPORTANT NOTE** Submitting Registration – When completing your registration, there will be a submit button after you fill out the student's information: “Sign Me Up”. PLEASE CLICK THE “SIGN ME UP” BUTTON ONLY ONCE. After clicking “sign me up”, the next page will take SEVERAL MINUTES TO LOAD. Every time “sign me up” is pushed, a registration is submitted. Please be patient. Thank you. *We are working on resolving this technical issue and appreciate your patience in the process. PLEASE DO NOT REGISTER FOR MORE THAN ONE SESSION. All registrants will receive an e-mail with class details approximately 7 days PRIOR to the program date. THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2011 AT 6:00P.M. (Eastern Time)

To register visit: www.driversedge.org/events/currentevents.aspx

For more info visit: http://www.driversedge.org/