While driving on California roads, you expect to have a normal experience getting to your destination, but that isn’t always the case due to incidents of road rage. It seems that this problem only worsens over time, so you may want to know how bad a problem this is for drivers.
What are the statistics on road rage?
The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety reported that around 80% of drivers admitted to becoming angry while on the road. Some of those drivers also admitted to engaging in acts of road rage at least once throughout the past year. This behavior can easily lead to motor vehicle accidents, making it a huge problem in California and across the entire country.
The study showed that around 8 million people admitted to severe road rage actions such as ramming their vehicles into other cars or getting out of their cars. In addition, an estimated 101 million drivers in the country admitted to deliberately tailgating other vehicles due to anger. Also, 24% admitted to preventing other drivers from switching lanes, and 12% admitted to deliberately cutting other vehicles off deliberately. Other road rage behaviors that people admitted to included honking, making obscene gestures and yelling.
What are common road rage situations?
As road rage can quickly lead to car accidents, it’s important to know common situations. If you can recognize these behaviors of road rage, you may be better equipped to avoid them:
- A car merging onto the highway or lane but not leaving enough space while doing so can cause another driver to react in anger.
- A driver who travels too slowly in the left lane where traffic is meant to be faster can lead to anger.
- Not allowing enough space between a car and the vehicle in front, known as tailgating, can lead to the front driver getting angry.
- A driver making obscene gestures to another driver can cause anger.
Avoiding these situations can help to prevent instances of road rage. If an angry driver is nearby, it’s important to stay away from them or let them pass if that’s their goal. If another driver is threatening you, you should call for help.
