Why holiday music can encourage unsafe driving

Of course, other factors besides beats per minute can lead to distracted or erratic driving. Researchers pointed out that volume, genre, driver temperament, road environment and traffic conditions must be taken into account to determine the true effect, they said.

“The published research paper seems interesting and may have some value,” said Curtis Craig, a researcher at the University of Minnesota’s Department of Mechanical Engineering. “But Insuranceopedia oversells the conclusions.”

So go ahead and listen to your holiday favorites as the season is short this year because there are even faster songs that can induce reckless driving. That includes Moby’s 1993 dance single “Thousand,” once listed by Guinness World Records as having the fastest beats per minute, peaking at 1,015.