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Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Neil Shaw

Music which will make you drive fast and dangerously revealed by scientists

Researchers have discovered which songs make people drive faster - and more dangerously - and which are the best tracks to have on in your car if you want to stay safe.

Unsurprisingly some modern and classic rock songs feature in the worst music to choose, but there's also some rock in those which will help you keep your speed down.

A study at the South China University of Technology found that songs with a fast tempo - 120BPM or more - are most likely to make you drive faster and risk dangerous moves.

Researchers put drivers in a simulator where they tried to negotiate six-lane motorway traffic either in silence, or while listening to different types of music.

On average in a 20 minute simulation drivers would switch lanes 70 times - but when listening to rock music that doubled to 140.

Rock music also saw their speed increase to an average of 5mph above the limit.

Based on the results, Green Day's 189BPM American Idiot is the worst possible choice, while Led Zeppellin's 63BPM Stairway to Heaven is the best.

Lead researcher Qiang Zeng, said:  "The findings are useful for the development of effective driver education strategies — in particular, a publicity programme that could enhance public awareness of the negative impact of music listening on driving performance.”

The five most dangerous songs are:

  1. American Idiot – Green Day
  2. Party in the USA – Miley Cyrus
  3. Mr Brightside – The Killers
  4. Don’t Let Me Down – The Chainsmokers
  5. Born to run – Bruce Springsteen

The least dangerous five songs are:

  1. Stairway to Heaven – Led Zeppelin
  2. Under the Bridge – Red Hot Chili Peppers
  3. God’s Plan – Drake
  4. Africa – Toto
  5. Location – Khalid
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