Rubbernecking

Rubbernecking must be up there if not topping preventable causes of traffic. But how can’t you look at an accident while sitting in the rubbernecking traffic? If I don’t look how will that speed things up? An accident happens. A car or group of cars decides to slow way down to gawk. How slow were they going while gawking to start the chain reaction of miles of cars creeping past the accident scene backing up traffic for miles? We’re not even on the same side of the highway as the accident! We’re slowing down for a look – maybe we’ll see a body part or blood.

Not surprisingly, taking rubbernecking to its extreme is George Carlin in an excerpt from his 2001 appearance on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno.