Driving at night (unlimited, driver, diesel, headlights)

[CoastalMaineiac]

Originally Posted by duster1979

Possums and Raccoons are likely to be crossing the road at about that time, but I'm not concerned about the outcome of a meeting with them.

Skunks, too, and I definitely don't want to hit one of those.

[Garthur]

I used to drive to work at 3-4am each morning. I would have to say that even though there was less traffic, I saw more accidents during those hours then during day light. Semi crashes, drunk drivers, serving traffic and deer on the road (at 3 in the morning). I saw more mayhem on the roads in the 4 years that I drove to work at night then I have in the last 40 years of daytime driving.

[reneeh63]

Just my feeling but I think it's safer...less traffic...more "professionals" on the road (proportionately)...and I think it's easier to see traffic coming at you and traffic you're coming up on because of their lights. But you have to be alert and not sleepy to be safer!

[Army_Guy]

I prefer to drive at night. If you're not counting fatigue as a factor, I would say driving at night is safer because there is less traffic. I see other drivers being more dangerous than the 4 legged type.

In addition to less traffic at night, the cooler temperatures usually get you slightly better mileage.

Personally, I can drive any time of the day, I'm used to being up odd hours or long periods of time. One day, I will tell my kids about the time I stayed up for 40 hours straight in Afghanistan...

[marlinfshr]

I used to try to time my long drives to take place at night. I felt safer with there being a lot less traffic and what little traffic there was was mostly truckers. To me that was much safer then being on the interstate in the day, passing by cities during rush hour with all the heavy traffic.

Now, On a long drive, with light traffic, far from the cities, I'll take the day. Visibility makes that a given.

Now as far as where I live now and the explosion of the deer population in the last 20 years, I hate driving at night. I live in coastal MD and most of my long drives take me to the OBX of NC or FL. So of course that takes me thru farmland full of corn and beans in MD and VA's eastern shore and eastern NC ----- That whole section is practically Bambi central and those critters just love coming out of nowhere. I hate driving those roads at night now, especially in the fall.

[rbohm]

Originally Posted by duster1979

Deer typically aren't moving between 2 am and 5am.

you havent been to the national parks in the wee hours of the morning have you?

[DippIT]

base on my own experience, driving at night is much safer. Less traffic, and the cool temperature somewhat keep me more focus on the road.

[boxus]

Here is a good article;

Most Dangerous Times To Drive - Forbes

As for myself, I try to avoid driving at that time, it seems almost every traffic related death here in the Miami area is between those times, always drinking the cause. Out doing long distance driving, I will be stopped for the night anyway regardless.

[ItsRick24]

In the occasions when I drive at night, I'm generally too excited to sleep or even be tired, as I'm anxious to get to where I'm going. Last summer, I did a night drive to Ohio from NJ. Left at Midnight, drove the entire night (all interstate highway), arrived just after sunrise. A bunch of cassette tapes and CDs (my car has both) with great music kept me going.

[f5fstop]

Also from a Forbes article....
According to the IIHS, an average 6.6 people are killed between the hours of 5 p.m. and 6 p.m., and another 6.6 between the hours of 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. Those rates are the overall highest of any time during the day. In 2007, 14,055 people were killed in the 5 p.m. hour. But the hours between midnight and 4 a.m. have the highest number of fatalities when calculated as a percentage of the amount of people on the road, according to AAA. During that time, statistically speaking, 5.87 per 100 million people on the road will be killed.