A NEW POLL BY AA MOTOR Insurance shows that women become more stressed about driving activities than men.

Three times more women than men said they found changing lanes at speed quite or very stressful.

Almost a quarter of women who took part in the poll said they thought overtaking another vehicle vehicle was stressful, compared with just under 10% of men.

AA Motor Insurance director John Farrell said a little stress could be a “good thing” for drivers, as women have fewer crashes than male drivers. Farrell said that while aggravation can be a distraction for drivers, being naturally cautious “can improve your driving by making you more careful”.

Overall, the single most stressful activity identified in the poll was driving in an unfamiliar city, with 71.8% of all respondents citing this as causing them stress. The second most stressful activity overall was rush hour traffic.

Almost half of the drivers said that driving on a motorway was the least stressful activity.

Over 21,000 drivers from around Ireland took part in the poll at the end of January, according to the AA. The AA recommends allowing plenty of time for your journey and listening to traffic updates to avoid frustrating traffic jams as ways to reduce driver stress.