Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Data shows road rage episodes have surged by over 400% in recent years. getty Sadly, road range incidents have become all too common in our short-tempered society. In recent days alone, a motorist in Valley View, OH was killed in an act of road rage; in Indianapolis, IN an armed man angrily approached a pickup truck with gun in hand, only to be shot by the subject of his discontent; a physical altercation between two drivers in Billings, MT resulted in the death on a 55-year-old man.
Experts advise motorists to stay cool and collected behind the wheel, especially with the additional traffic hitting the roads for the upcoming Labor Day weekend. That’s because reported road rage episodes have surged by over 400% in recent years according to the anti-gun violence website The Trace , with ticked-off drivers being responsible for 3,095 shootings and 777 deaths between 2014 and 2023. A separate report commissioned by the dash cam company Nextbase found that 79% of all U.
S. drivers have experienced aggressive driving or outright road rage, with a third of them being subjected to multiple roadway skirmishes each month. "As Labor Day approaches—a time when millions of Americans take to the roads for holiday travel—road rage becomes an even more pressing issue," says Bryn Brooker, Head of Road Safety for Nextbase.
"Increased traffic, longer drives, and heightened stress levels make drivers more susceptible to aggression and innocent families more vulnerable.” The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration defines road rage as, "The operation of a motor vehicle in a manner that endangers or is likely to endanger persons or property." There’s even a medical term for those who vent their fury on impulse upon other motorists, “intermittent explosive disorder.
” MORE FOR YOU Ransomware Gang Targets Google Chrome Users In Surprise New Threat Twist Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Clues And Answers For Tuesday, August 27th New Details Emerge About Why ‘The Acolyte’ Was Cancelled Often the aggressive driver is in a hurry, is intoxicated or is suffering from mental or emotional issues. Road rage can manifest as one motorist shouting or making an obscene gesture to someone in another vehicle, angrily honking the horn or reckless driving that involves cutting off, tailgating, chasing, brake checking or deliberately crashing into another vehicle and/or running it off the road. At the extreme it can cause a fuming motorist to exit his her vehicle and either threaten, physically attack or even fire a gun at a fellow motorist or pedestrian.
Perhaps not surprisingly, road rage outbursts tend to be most prevalent in larger cities, with these big burgs leading all metropolitan areas in this regard, according to theTrace, with the number of incidents recorded from 2014-2023 noted: function loadConnatixScript(document) { if (!window.cnxel) { window.cnxel = {}; window.
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render(randId); }); })(); Houston, TX (215) Memphis, TN (107) San Antonio, TX (107) Milwaukee, WI (105) Chicago, IL (75) Detroit, MI (63) Albuquerque, NM (61) Philadelphia, PA (59) Phoenix, AZ (58) Atlanta, GA (55) Note that the aforementioned estimates of reported incidents are likely to be conservative as road rage is rarely reported as such. While several states have passed laws against “aggressive driving,” only one, California, has a bona fide road rage bill on the books. Experts say the best way to respond when another driver seems to be venting his or her anger in your direction is not to react at all.
If another driver cuts you off or is otherwise driving aggressively, slow down and give them room to pass. Do not respond with obscene gestures or equally hostile actions. If you inadvertently cut off another driver, try to apologize by making a suitable hand gesture.
If you feel you’re in danger because of another driver’s actions, use a cell phone to call police or drive to a police station if there’s one within proximity to get law enforcement involved. Never exit your vehicle to confront the other person if you’re at a traffic signal or are otherwise stopped. According to transportation data supplier INRIX , those taking to the road for the last holiday weekend of summer should avoid the afternoon and early evening hours of Thursday and Friday, as those times will be the most congested and most likely to set off motorists with quick fuses.
Mornings are usually the best times to hit the road except for Saturday when it’s a better choice to depart by car in the afternoon. The firm’s data also shows that those headed back home on Sunday and on Labor Day itself should leave as early as possible to avoid what’s assured to be dense congestion in the afternoon. Let’s all take it easy out there and stay safe to celebrate many more Labor Day weekends down the road.
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