Slow driving in the left lane was more dangerous than speeding

Slow driving in the left lane was more dangerous than speeding

American edition of Vox Reporters found out why the death rate in the no-limit autobahn in Germany is lower than on highways with speed limit

 As it turned out, the reason for this lies not in speed. Much more important for drivers to use the left lane only for overtaking, and having made it back to the right lane.

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As explained by journalists, prolonged driving in the left lane at an average flow rate or lower are much more dangerous than speeding. The reason for this is quite simple: the other motorists are trying to overtake the slow-moving driver's right. Because of this, the number of evolutions, and hence the risk of accidents will inevitably grow.

This statement is also well supported by statistical data. In 1970, the number of deaths in traffic accidents on highways in the United States and Germany were the same: about 27 people per billion kilometers. At the same speed on the autobahn in Germany, unlike the United States, it has not been restricted. Since that time, the accident rate has decreased both in Germany and in the United States, but the Germans managed to bypass the Americans. Thus, in the years 2003-2004 was recorded about 3 fatalities per 1 billion km in Germany and in the US - 6-7 dead.

The authors attributed these figures with the ban on movement in the left lane, which is strictly observed in Germany. In the United States, in turn, it is usually appeared recently, and not every driver knows about its existence. Therefore, journalists are calling all the talk about the need to use the left lane as directed.