THE most stressed motorist on Irish roads is a Dublin woman, married with kids, late 30s and working class. That is the finding of recent research carried out by tyre company Semperit.

The survey also revealed that tailgating and driving in heavy rain on a motorway top the list of “most stressful” aspects of motoring for Irish drivers. The survey exposed some lax attitudes towards tyre safety with a worrying 47% of female motorists admitting to never checking their car’s tyre pressure.

The research, carried out by Lansdowne Market Research, covered a range of attitudes and behaviour among Irish motorists. In particular, participants were asked what elements of motoring bring the most stress.

Alongside tailgating and motorway driving, motorists highlighted the following as stressful: parallel parking on a busy street; long journeys; the hassle of trying to find parking; fitting a child seat; and changing a tyre. 

In the survey, 65% of ladies and 50% of men agreed that being tailgated is a stressful experience. Driving on a motorway in heavy rain achieved similar results in terms of stress, though not among younger drivers, with 20% of under 24 year olds claiming to find such driving ‘easy’. This was much higher than for any other age group.

Paddy Murphy, General Manager of Semperit Ireland, commented: “This finding suggests a worrying overconfidence among young drivers, who lack the experience of older motorists in hazardous conditions.”

In many areas of the survey, there was a marked difference in male and female attitudes.  In relation to changing a tyre, almost 60 percent of females, but just 13 percent of males considered this to be stressful – this was the biggest gap between the sexes in the survey.

30% of males thought that parallel parking on a busy street was very easy.  Only 15% of females shared this sentiment.   Those who considered this a very stressful manoeuvre included 36% of males and 54% of females.

There were some worrying results in relation to motorists’ care of their tyres. More than a quarter of all motorists NEVER check their tyre pressure, while less than one in eight are aware of the legal tread depth limit of 1.6mm.

 “The figure is worse than a similar survey that we carried out in the year 2000 (one in seven in that survey)”, said Paddy Murphy of Semperit Ireland. “Furthermore, only 14% of under 24 year-olds knew the tread limit, despite having had to sit the theory test in the past few years.” 

“Tyres are such an important part of the road safety equation; it is worrying that there is such a level of disregard for what is in effect, a car’s only contact with the road surface”.

Only one in ten female motorists regularly check their tyre pressure compared to 23% of males. 

“These results are shocking. Tyres that are not inflated to the correct pressure are not safe, it’s that simple,” contends Paddy Murphy.  “Under-inflated tyres can overheat and will use more fuel, while over-inflated tyres can lead to poor vehicle handling and reduced grip on the road”. 

Alongside the profile of the most stressed Irish driver, the Semperit research also revealed a picture of the least stressed: he is a young male, from the West of Ireland, unmarried and likely to be a farmer.

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