A new report by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that speeding, distracted driving, and aggressive driving are the most prevalent dangerous driving habits in the U.S.

In 2023, nearly 41,000 people were killed in U.S. traffic crashes, while a slight decrease from the previous year, AAA says the threat posed by risky driving behaviors remains alarmingly high.

AAA’s annual Traffic Safety Culture Index (TSCI) survey identified five driver profiles:

The survey asked drivers about their perceived level of danger for various driving behaviors, with most drivers saying unsafe driving behaviors are very or extremely dangerous. Yet, many have admitted to doing these dangerous behaviors at least once in the previous 30 days.

“Behind every deadly statistic is a real person,” said David Yang, AAA Foundation president and executive director, in a news release. “This work helps us uncover the public’s perspective on traffic safety, enabling the creation of targeted solutions that make a real difference in reducing traffic crashes and fatalities.”

Safe drivers admitted to driving less while the most dangerous drivers — who admitted to speeding, distracted, and impaired behaviors — logged more miles on the road, often in older vehicles with fewer safety features.

Safe drivers condemned risky driving behaviors but other profiles seemed more indifferent to the dangers, AAA said.

“Surprisingly, safe drivers and their riskier counterparts shared a similar disregard for the potential consequences of their actions,” the release states.

Ninety-three percent of drivers said they recognize the dangers of texting, emailing, and reading while driving. However, 27% of drivers said they had sent a text or email, read a text or email (37%), or held and talked on a phone (36%) while driving in the past 30 days.

Most drivers perceive aggressive driving (89%) and running red lights (81%) as dangerous yet 27% ran at least one red light in the previous 30 days, according to the survey results. Forty-nine percent of respondents admitted to driving 15 mph over the posted speed limit on a freeway at least once in the past 30 days while 36% of drivers reported driving 10 mph over the posted speed limit on a residential street.

Ninety-six percent of drivers said they recognize the dangers of drowsy driving but 20% admitted to driving while drowsy in the previous 30 days.

Drivers overwhelmingly said drunk driving is dangerous (95%) and socially unacceptable; however, 7% admitted engaging in this behavior in the previous 30 days. By comparison, 70% of drivers felt driving within an hour of using cannabis to be very or extremely dangerous, and 6% reported having done it in the previous 30 days.

“It’s time to work smarter with the resources we have to save lives.,” said Jake Nelson, AAA’s director of traffic safety advocacy, in the release. “The AAA Foundation’s new survey highlights that most risk-taking drivers also speed. By prioritizing speed enforcement, police can curb a wide range of risky driving behaviors and maximize their lifesaving impact.”

Two recent studies by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) found drivers are more likely to multi-task with partial automation, even while following the system’s safety rules.

“Our findings suggest that driver disengagement when using partial automation is greater than when driving without it, with differences evident despite software updates that changed system characteristics and wide variation in the samples’ commuting patterns and propensity to use automation,” IIHS reported.

IIHS President David Harkey added, “These results are a good reminder of the way people learn. If you train them to think that paying attention means nudging the steering wheel every few seconds, then that’s exactly what they’ll do.”

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