Who's to Blame for Your Bad Driving?

Researchers say your parents could be to blame for a "bad driving gene"

Researchers at UC Irvine might have uncovered the reason why you are such a bad driver ... er, other people, that is, not you. It could just be mom and dad's fault for passing on the bad-driving gene.

According to the study, people with a particular gene variant performed 20-percent worse on a driving test than people without it. And about 30 percent of Americans have this gene variant.

"These people make more errors from the get-go, and they forget more of what they learned after time away," said the study's author, Dr. Steven Cramer.

But before we start calling our parents to complain about how high our cost of auto insurance is, keep this in mind: A group of researchers in Sweden claim that rude and aggressive drivers -- referred to as LA drivers -- actually help traffic.

This means bad driving could be a solution to the LA's traffic problem, The Press-Enterprise reported:

The report found that although everyone obeying the laws and passing on the correct side and not cutting off others is efficient, the best results are when about 40 percent of the drivers aren't following all the rules.

The study, which has made the rounds as a defense of offensive driving, concluded that people who fight their way through traffic end up diluting the number of cars getting through by using every chance they get. The rude drivers also help create paths through slower drivers.

So the next time you're stuck in traffic on the 101 and someone weaves by recklessly, don't curse them. Actually, you may want to thank them for "moving traffic."

Contact Us