The New Year presents an opportunity for self-improvement. With that in mind, the GoldenbergLaw car accident lawyers in Minneapolis and St. Paul want to share some facts about the prevalence and dangers of aggressive driving.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NTHSA), aggressive driving is defined as any behind-the-wheel behavior that puts other people or property in danger.

The most common of these behaviors is speeding, or simply traveling too fast for road conditions. Nearly all drivers admit to doing it at one time or another.

Here are three reasons to make your speeding habit one to kick in 2016:

Reason No. 1 to Stop Speeding: Speeding was the leading cause of fatal crashes in 2013, according to the NHTSA.

Reason No. 2 to Stop Speeding: That year, speeding was a factor in nearly 20 percent of all car accident fatalities.

Reason No. 3 to Stop Speeding: On average, car accidents caused by speeding cost Americans more than $44,000 per minute, and more than $23 billion a year.

According to the Insurance Information Institute, other aggressive driving behaviors that can prove dangerous include:

  • Following improperly
  • Improper or erratic lane changing
  • Illegal driving on road shoulder, in ditch, or on sidewalk or median
  • Passing where prohibited
  • Operating the vehicle in an erratic, reckless, careless, or negligent manner
  • Changing speeds suddenly
  • Failure to yield right of way
  • Failure to obey traffic signs, traffic control devices, or traffic officers
  • Failure to observe safety zone traffic laws
  • Failure to signal
  • Making an improper turn

One last aggressive driving note for all parents: If you speed with your kids in the car, you are potentially putting them in harm’s way. You are also sending them the message that it is okay to speed while driving. That message has had an impact on teen-driving in the past decade. Consider that speeding caused more than one-half of all teen-driver car accident fatalities in 2008 and 2011, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

If aggressive driving was a factor in your Minneapolis/St. Paul-area car crash, the Minnesota accident lawyers at GoldenbergLaw can help you figure out what to do next. Contact us today for your free case consultation.