The proportion of Canadians who say drivers are “worse” than five years ago has fallen from 50% in 2018 to 39% this year.
Vancouver, BC [November 30, 2021] – The proportion of Canadians who believe drivers in their city or town are getting worse has reached the lowest level recorded over the past four years, a new Research Co. poll has found.
In the online survey of a representative national sample, 30% of Canadians say drivers in their city or town are worse now than five years ago, while half (50%) report no change and 10% believe they are better.
“When we first asked this question in 2018, half of Canadians (50%) felt that drivers were worse than in the past,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “The proportion has fallen each year, to 47% in 2019, then to 39% in 2020 and now to 30% in 2021.”
At least a third of Canadians who reside in Saskatchewan and Manitoba (35%, -7), British Columbia (34%, -6) and Alberta (33%, -9) believe drivers in their city or town are worse now than five years ago. The proportion is lower among Canadians who live in Ontario (30%, -13), Atlantic Canada (25%, -14) and Quebec (24%, -8).
Canadians aged 55 and over are more critical of drivers in their city or town, with 36% believing that the situation is worse now than five years ago, compared to 32% among those aged 35-to-54 and 21% among those aged 18-to-34.
The survey also tracks the incidence of six specific occurrences on the country’s roads. A majority of Canadians (55%, +1) report seeing a driver not signalling before a turn over the past month, a proportion that climbs to 62% in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
Almost two-in-five Canadians (38%, +2) witnessed a driver not stopping at an intersection and a third (32%, -1) saw a driver turning right or left from an incorrect lane, including 37% of British Columbians.
Fewer than three-in-ten Canadians (28%, +2) experienced a close call, or having to slam the brakes or steer violently to avoid a collision. In addition, 41% of Canadians (+3) say they saw a car taking up two or more spots at a parking lot, including a majority of Albertans (51%).
Just over half of Canadians (51%, -5) say that there are specific groups or people in their city or town who are worse drivers than others.
The top four responses among Canadians who blamed a specific group for bad driving behaviours are “young” (32%, -11), “elderly” (21%, -4), “Asian (16%, -1) and “immigrant” (6%, +1).
Methodology:
Results are based on an online study conducted from November 20 to November 22, 2021, among a representative sample of 1,000 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is +/- 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20..
Find our data tables here and download the press release here.
For more information on this poll, please contact:
Mario Canseco, President, Research Co.
778.929.0490