Driving motives & road sense

What puts us behind the wheel

Driving motives are legitimate – but they are not neutral:

• Mobility: getting somewhere. Becomes risky as soon as the schedule outweighs safety.
• Enjoyment: driving for the pleasure of it. Becomes risky where the road is not suited to it.
• Freedom: deciding for yourself. Becomes risky when it turns into rejecting the rules.
• Recognition: impressing others. The most dangerous motive, because it needs an audience.

Time pressure and group influence

Time pressure is the most ordinary risk factor of all. It shortens gaps, stretches overtaking manoeuvres and turns amber into green. Yet the arithmetic is simple: on an urban journey, driving considerably faster saves only a few minutes – at a far greater risk.

Group influence works more quietly. With passengers of the same age, risk-taking rises – not by decision, but by atmosphere. An explicit dare is rarely needed.

Remember: you answer for your driving, not your passengers. The licence is in your name.

Staying in control

• Leave earlier rather than drive faster – the only measure that genuinely addresses time pressure.
• Say when you are uncomfortable as a passenger: it works better than people expect.
• Ask yourself before setting off: am I rushed, annoyed, tired? That changes how I drive.
• Decline when your condition does not allow it – postponing a journey is not a failure.