Why is driving much slower than traffic just as dangerous as driving much faster than traffic?

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The key idea is that how fast you drive relative to surrounding traffic greatly affects predictability and reaction time for other drivers. When you go much slower than the flow, drivers behind you have less time to react and may have to brake suddenly or attempt to pass in busy conditions. Those maneuvers introduce opportunities for errors and collisions, especially in dense or high-speed traffic. So driving well below the pace of traffic increases the likelihood of a crash because speed differences create risky, unexpected situations for other drivers. While slow driving can lead to vehicles backing up behind you or needing to pass, the overarching safety issue is the higher chance of collisions due to that speed mismatch. Wasting fuel is not a direct safety concern.