Road rage is a serious problem on Texas roads that only seems to increase. When a motorist is filled with fury and focuses their aggression on another driver, it puts everyone around them at risk. Road rage has become an epidemic that sees no end; these are some sobering facts about it.
Understanding road rage
Road rage is a series of aggressive driving behaviors drivers engage in when they become angry. The term originated in the 1990s when more drivers began to become irate, taking out their frustrations on other drivers and their passengers. It is a serious problem and sometimes can be a criminal offense depending on the circumstances and outcome.
Road rage behaviors
Aggressive driving is not necessarily road rage, but all motorists who exhibit road rage behaviors are aggressive at that moment in time. Driving aggressively involves traffic violations that put people and property in danger, but road rage takes things further; it often crosses over to the point of putting people at serious risk of physical violence.
Drivers in the midst of road rage often tailgate the vehicle of the driver they’re angry with; they might even speed up and cut off other vehicles to directly follow the driver in question. A road rage driver might go even further and try to sideswipe the other driver or ram them from behind while attempting to force them off the road.
Yelling, cursing and making offensive gestures are common during acts of road rage. A driver often incessantly honks their horn and might even flash their high beams deliberately to intimidate the driver. In many cases, angry drivers can cause motor vehicle accidents or confront the target of their ire. Sometimes, this leads to dire consequences; some road rage drivers brandish weapons and some even use them.
Road rage can leave people seriously injured or even dead. It’s never worth engaging an angry driver.