When it comes to your daily commute, you probably resent the morning trip more than the one in the afternoon. You may have only gotten out of bed an hour or two before you get behind the wheel, and you probably aren’t excited about grinding through another day at work.
Getting out of work, on the other hand, means heading home to some free time or family time. While the drive may take almost the same amount of time in each direction, it probably feels a lot longer in the afternoon. What you may not realize is that it is also much more dangerous for you during your afternoon commute than it is during the morning.
Rush hour statistically has more crash risk than morning driving
Although everyone who gets out in the afternoon also drives to work in the morning, the possibility for a crash just isn’t as high in the morning as it is during the commute back home. According to research by the National Safety Council about when the most collisions occur, rush hour remains a risky time to drive.
Between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. is the most dangerous time of the day to be on the road. All of those people trying to get home as quickly as possible and possibly multitasking means that crashes occur every day that affect commuters.
While you can’t just avoid your commute, you can make it safer
Obviously, you can’t avoid driving on public roads in the mid-afternoon and early evening because you still need to work a job, pick your kids up from school and run errands. What you can do is make a commitment to your own safety while driving.
Making sure that you have sunglasses, even during the winter, giving yourself a little extra time so you don’t have to rush and driving a slightly longer but less-congested route home are ways to help you avoid getting hurt in a crash. Being more attentive due to your increased risk can also help keep you safer.
Understanding what causes crash risk can, at least, help you avoid being the one responsible for a collision if you experience one.
