She drives me crazy . . . and driving might just be the craziest thing we do

Interesting | Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What It Says About Us) | Tom Vanderbilt

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	• Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What It Says About Us) Tom Vanderbilt Knopf, 2008 - 416 pages average customer review:based on 50 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Audiobook, abridged

(Audibook, abridged). Full of great insights, not only into the externalizations of traffic, but my own internal psychological state of mind as a driver - I thought I was unique in many things but it turns out I'm like most other people. There are a ton of ideas and perspectives and I think it would take some time to fully absorb them, to drive and test them out in the real world, to observe the things described. Unfortunately I chose the audiobook version which is a poor choice for information-dense material since there is no pause in the pace and a lot of the material went by quicker than I could remember. However I did learn a lot and someday I might pick up the book as a reference to dip into here and there in smaller pieces. I really appreciated Vanderbilt's focus on people and human nature versus the more mundane things like chaos theory and mathematics. It's a challenging and powerful book if you use to question your own beliefs about yourself as a driver. Who knew a book about traffic could be so deep, or that driving could be so fascinating a subject.

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She drives me crazy . . . and driving might just be the craziest thing we do

Interesting study of the science, engineering, and psychology of driving: drivers, roads, vehicles, and the environment in which they interact. As the father of three young drivers, I have a first hand awareness of the dangers of driving. Each of my drivers and each of my three vehicles were involved in at least one "accident" (Vanderbilt talks about the inadequacy of that term to describe incidents that are not purely random or unavoidable) in a nine month period. I didn't realize until my kids started driving how risky (and expensive; my car insurance is unthinkable!) it is to put 3,000 pounds of steel moving at such high speeds in such close contact in the hands of such young drivers. Driving never seemed so daunting, complex, and risky when I was a 16-year-old new driver.

Risk is a subject that Vanderbilt devotes much time to examining. Drivers and highway designers often misunderstand and misjudge risks, and therefore the steps necessary to reduce or avoid them. For example, Vanderbilt talks about the failure of safety devices like anti-lock brakes and seat belts to achieve the expected level of risk reduction, and drivers' inability to correctly assess the risk of actions like tailgating, speeding, or passing. Perhaps most interesting are his discussions about signage, of which there may be too much, and "safe highways", which might be safer if not so designed for "safety."

While "Traffic" is fun and philosophical, it isn't prescriptive. Vanderbilt doesn't have or offer any answers to address any of these problems. The best result of the book perhaps is to make the reader a more aware driver--for at least a few miles down the road.

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Interesting

This book is a great read it offers factual information in an interesting manner.
If you ever sat in traffic and thought you could do a better job in traffic/city planning this book will make you realize how complicated it really is.

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So much to take in!!!

So much information in this book (and let me say, really interesting facts on traffic, roads, drivers etc) but you get brain-strain trying to remember it al1.

Feel like I need to get an edited copy, with some of the most important and relevant facts all compiled easily (a bit like the Q&A with the author that is attached to this book listing in Amazon). It is a worthwhile read but its not one that you can read all in one go as there is a lot to take in.

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Would you be surprised that road rage can be good for society? Or that most crashes happen on sunny, dry days? That our minds can trick us into thinking the next lane is moving faster? Or that you can gauge a nation?s driving behavior by its levels of corruption? These are only a few of the remarkable dynamics that Tom Vanderbilt explores in this fascinating tour through the mysteries of the road.

Based on exhaustive research and interviews with driving experts and traffic officials around the globe, Traffic gets under the hood of the everyday activity of driving to uncover the surprisingly complex web of physical, psychological, and technical factors that explain how traffic works, why we drive the way we do, and what our driving says about us. Vanderbilt examines the perceptual limits and cognitive underpinnings that make us worse drivers than we think we are. He demonstrates why plans to protect pedestrians from cars often lead to more accidents. He shows how roundabouts, which can feel dangerous and chaotic, actually make roads safer?and reduce traffic in the bargain. He uncovers who is more likely to honk at whom, and why. He explains why traffic jams form, outlines the unintended consequences of our quest for safety, and even identifies the most common mistake drivers make in parking lots.

The car has long been a central part of American life; whether we see it as a symbol of freedom or a symptom of sprawl, we define ourselves by what and how we drive. As Vanderbilt shows, driving is a provocatively revealing prism for examining how our minds work and the ways in which we interact with one another. Ultimately, Traffic is about more than driving: it?s about human nature. This book will change the way we see ourselves and the world around us. And who knows? It may even make us better drivers.