There are tons of videos on YouTube showing collisions on Russian roads. The overall impression I get is that Russian drivers in general drive too fast for the road conditions, they don't seem to slow down enough when there is heavy snow etc. Is this impression correct or do the YouTube videos present a biased view considering they are only showing drivers involved in accidents?
Russian Drivers
- Thread starter George7941
- Start date
- Status
They all drive their Lada too fast and listen to their techno music too loud it seems.
Originally Posted By: George7941
There are tons of videos on YouTube showing collisions on Russian roads. The overall impression I get is that Russian drivers in general drive too fast for the road conditions, they don't seem to slow down enough when there is heavy snow etc. Is this impression correct or do the YouTube videos present a biased view considering they are only showing drivers involved in accidents?
Every Hyundai that passes through my hands needs works doing. Maybe my view is biased aswell as I'm a Hyundai tech.
Yes the situation isn't good in Russia, I suspect vodka and beer are cheap. But the view that youtube gives is also pretty biased, nobody wantsto see or upload a video without a crash...
There are tons of videos on YouTube showing collisions on Russian roads. The overall impression I get is that Russian drivers in general drive too fast for the road conditions, they don't seem to slow down enough when there is heavy snow etc. Is this impression correct or do the YouTube videos present a biased view considering they are only showing drivers involved in accidents?
Every Hyundai that passes through my hands needs works doing. Maybe my view is biased aswell as I'm a Hyundai tech.
Yes the situation isn't good in Russia, I suspect vodka and beer are cheap. But the view that youtube gives is also pretty biased, nobody wantsto see or upload a video without a crash...
Kestas
Staff member
That depends on what statistics are presented.
Is it total fatalities per country?
Is it fatality rate per population?
Is it fatality rate per vehicle mile?
Each could give you a different ranking.
Is it total fatalities per country?
Is it fatality rate per population?
Is it fatality rate per vehicle mile?
Each could give you a different ranking.
I suggest you do this search in the Youtube search box:
dashcam crash
dashcam crash
China is in the running. A video last year that was taken down showed a child being hit in a crosswalk. The driver that ran a red light did not stop and other drivers are going around the child's body without stopping. The child looks like she is having a seizure but after a couple of minutes all movement stops but still no one stops to help. The video finally ends and you never see anyone stop to check on the child.
4WD
$50 site donor 2024
Have spent plenty time in both places - and find Korean drivers worse than Russian. They don't stop at red lights and blow the horn if you do. Had one go around me for stopping at a school crossing - the kids got in front of me just in time.
I took defensive driving there and they claimed to have same stats as USA - when I asked per capita they "crawfished" ...
One thing I found really odd in Russia is the mix of vehicles - and that some were RH drive - some were LH drive - so regulations could be tighter ... (We had land cruisers with the correct set up) ...
And yes, road conditions, weather, and vodka would contribute ... (Or rubber necking to see the ladies there.
I took defensive driving there and they claimed to have same stats as USA - when I asked per capita they "crawfished" ...
One thing I found really odd in Russia is the mix of vehicles - and that some were RH drive - some were LH drive - so regulations could be tighter ... (We had land cruisers with the correct set up) ...
And yes, road conditions, weather, and vodka would contribute ... (Or rubber necking to see the ladies there.
Originally Posted By: veryHeavy
Russia Today says Russia is #1 in Europe for traffic fatalities.
Wikipedia says Russia is "average" for worldwide traffic fatalities. It also says U.S. has more deaths than E.U.
I don't know where RT got its stats, but Wikipedia is sourcing "deaths per 100,000 persons".
Russia Today says Russia is #1 in Europe for traffic fatalities.
Wikipedia says Russia is "average" for worldwide traffic fatalities. It also says U.S. has more deaths than E.U.
I don't know where RT got its stats, but Wikipedia is sourcing "deaths per 100,000 persons".
North America, Europe, Japa, Australia and New Zealand, all are much safer than the world average, which includes developing countries with rudimentary roads, untrained drivers, and a plethora of badly mantained overloaded and out of date vehicles. To be average in such a varied mix isn't something to be proud of.
Roger.
Roger.
Yes, lets make blanket statements and draw conclusions based on youtube videos.
Answering the OP questions - yes, the drivers suck over there. Mainly because traffic laws are not enforced as much as US, so you will very often see 7 lanes of cars on a 3 lane highway. But again - you only see crash videos on YouTube, because no one wants to watch a boring uneventful drive dash cam video. And not many people in US use dashcams, until recently at least... Lately I started seeing more and more "North America dash crash" videos, so I guess people in US are finally starting to buy dashcams.
Ratio wise - the amount of crashes in Russia is only slightly higher than USA.
P.S. Sometimes I drink vodka with my pet bear in the passenger seat, and red flags waving above my roof. Because Mother Russia.
Ratio wise - the amount of crashes in Russia is only slightly higher than USA.
P.S. Sometimes I drink vodka with my pet bear in the passenger seat, and red flags waving above my roof. Because Mother Russia.
OneEyeJack,
I read sometime ago that the reason they don't bother with helping in such situation is because for fear of being blamed/sued even though the person helping was not the one who caused the accident. Again, I just read it and do not know for a fact if it is true.
I read sometime ago that the reason they don't bother with helping in such situation is because for fear of being blamed/sued even though the person helping was not the one who caused the accident. Again, I just read it and do not know for a fact if it is true.
Kestas
Staff member
I've had the opportunity to be driven around in the old former Soviet Union, including Russia. They have little money and decent mass transit, so having a car there is somewhat special. Compare that with the US, where it seems everyone has a car. We use a car chiefly to get from point A to point B. Over there, they use it as an opportunity to sport around and act like a big shot. Most of the people I've seen there drive like they're in a rallye.
There's one good russian proverb that explains what's goin on: Your optionality compensates the severity of law.
It means that there's no cameras except really big cities, traffic police controls, really controls, quite petty km of roads especially interstates. Road infrastructure is very poor, sometimes you can trace only few pieces of asphalt especially in the spring. And of course- no mental limits, probably the biggest problem, the worst thing about it- [censored] happens because of alcohol sometimes, much more often accidents are caused by aggression, incivility, poor knowledge of rules or imaginary 'cool' status that disallows all the rules.
No control and pure mentality, to say it shortly.
This insider's information)))
It means that there's no cameras except really big cities, traffic police controls, really controls, quite petty km of roads especially interstates. Road infrastructure is very poor, sometimes you can trace only few pieces of asphalt especially in the spring. And of course- no mental limits, probably the biggest problem, the worst thing about it- [censored] happens because of alcohol sometimes, much more often accidents are caused by aggression, incivility, poor knowledge of rules or imaginary 'cool' status that disallows all the rules.
No control and pure mentality, to say it shortly.
This insider's information)))
Originally Posted By: bioburner
Most insurance companies require dash cams because they are such poor drivers so I have read many times.
I thought it was the other way around. They have dash cams to prove that they didn't cause the accident or to prove that someone else did it. Otherwise the other driver would say it wasn't them.
Most insurance companies require dash cams because they are such poor drivers so I have read many times.
I thought it was the other way around. They have dash cams to prove that they didn't cause the accident or to prove that someone else did it. Otherwise the other driver would say it wasn't them.
Have been a passenger to several (approximately 6) Eastern-European drivers over time.
- Most have an "all or nothing" approach to acceleration
- Often heavy braking up to stops
- (Sometimes) failure to indicate lane changes
- Vehicles with manuals are lugged around, with foot in floor
- Maintenance reminders, CEL etc illuminated, or vehicle is just running rubbish
- And yes, the techno music
I don't know if most of this is because drivers need to be on their toes in that part of the world to avoid accidents, or just a general attitude towards driving. My limited sample size isn't any means of determination.
For the record, I find Norwegian drivers do tend to accelerate rather quickly - but overall have a far more controlled technique.
- Most have an "all or nothing" approach to acceleration
- Often heavy braking up to stops
- (Sometimes) failure to indicate lane changes
- Vehicles with manuals are lugged around, with foot in floor
- Maintenance reminders, CEL etc illuminated, or vehicle is just running rubbish
- And yes, the techno music
I don't know if most of this is because drivers need to be on their toes in that part of the world to avoid accidents, or just a general attitude towards driving. My limited sample size isn't any means of determination.
For the record, I find Norwegian drivers do tend to accelerate rather quickly - but overall have a far more controlled technique.
Insurance companies require dash cams due to cheating. That produces slew of videos that gives impression that there is total carnage in Russia. That being said, they are really aggressive drivers.
But I have to say, skill wise, far ahead of American drivers. it is just that luck is not always there
But I have to say, skill wise, far ahead of American drivers. it is just that luck is not always there
I recall one Youtube video where the Russians ran into a pole, and the car caught on fire. The driver was actually screaming in pain, until some bystanders knocked-out the windshield and drug him out.
The rear passengers were either dead on impact,
or they were unconscious and burned alive.
The video shows it all.
The rear passengers were either dead on impact,
or they were unconscious and burned alive.
The video shows it all.
- Status
