ROAD RAGE: EVERYBODY’S DOING IT

A study conducted by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety finds that around 8 million U.S. drivers took part in “extreme examples of road rage” last year. That’s nearly nearly four in five drivers. “It’s completely normal for drivers to experience anger behind the wheel,” said Jake Nelson, AAA’s Director of Traffic Safety Advocacy and Research in a press release. “But we must not let our emotions lead to destructive choices.” The most common behaviors:
– 50% have purposely tailgated, yelled at another driver and honked the horn to show anger or annoyance
– 30% have made an angry gesture
– 25% have purposely blocked another driver from changing lanes
– 12% have cut off another vehicle on purpose
– 3.7% have exited the vehicle to confront another driver
– 2.8% have bumped or rammed another car on purpose
(full report here: http://newsroom.aaa.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Aggressive-Driving-REPORT.pdf)
* I did all that just this morning. What else ya got?
* Hey, they forgot cursing at the top of your lungs.
* Just curious – who would actually admit to this stuff in a survey?
* Uh-oh, that means the real numbers are even higher.
* Sometimes you think the whole world is full of jerks, and sometimes you get proof.
* Wait – AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety? Oh, I see … the AAA is tired of having to tow so many cars afterwards.
* “We must not let our emotions lead to destructive behavior”? Just give us the numbers and skip the lecture.
* You want to know why there’s so much rage? Pompous people who say stuff like this. That’s why.
* Expressing anger is one thing, but if you are deliberately ramming another car, then you’ve got a serious problem.
* Uh-oh, now I’m giving the lecture.