National Road Rage Survey Ranks San Francisco 11th Most Courteous Courteous City in U.S.

Norwalk, Conn., June 16, 2009 – The commute to work can be an unpleasant one for people across the country, and the road is pretty smooth for San Francisco drivers.

The fourth annual In the Driver’s Seat Road Rage Survey, commissioned by AutoVantage, a leading national auto club, found that San Francisco (tied with L.A.) is the 11th most courteous city in the country, in terms of road rage, compared to 24 other major American cities. That’s a slight change from last year’s No. 10 ranking.

Survey findings show that San Francisco drivers are the second least likely (tied with Washington, D.C.) to observe other drivers talking on their cell phones every day. But keeping them from moving up in the ranking, they are No. 1 for observing other drivers texting, e-mailing and/or using their BlackBerry behind the wheel (tied with Detroit) and they are the third most likely to see other motorists multi-tasking (such as putting on makeup, shaving or reading) daily.

For the first time in four years, a new city claims the title as the worst in the U.S. for road rage; New York has unseated Miami as the least courteous. Portland, Ore., ranked as the most courteous city.

The In the Driver’s Seat 2009 AutoVantage Road Rage Survey, released today, was conducted to determine the driving habits and attitudes of commuters across the country and to learn more about consumer views on the topic of road rage.

“At AutoVantage, we’ve made the drive easier every day by completing more than 1 million service calls for our customers, with everything from 24-hour roadside assistance to towing to lockout service and more. This survey is another way we assist drivers by revealing the latest driving trends and attitudes to educate and influence safer—and perhaps more courteous—driving habits,” said Brad Eggleston, vice president of AutoVantage.

Download the entire release (pdf)