Science proves that tailgating at traffic lights won’t get you past the green light any quicker

GET OFF MY BUTT, MATE!

If you’ve stopped just a hair’s breadth behind the car in front at a traffic signal in the hopes that you’ll get through the green light more quickly, maths has just proved you wrong. To achieve this, researchers in the US lined up 10 identical sedans at a traffic intersection on a test road at differing distances between each other. Overhead footage was captured as the lights turned green and it was discovered that any distance made up to get closer to the lead car is offset by the time it takes the car to regain the space needed to accelerate safely. The results of this experiment were significant enough to be published in the New Journal of Physics. So the next time you’re in a hurry and waiting at the lights, don’t get aggressive and tailgate — better to be safe than sorry.