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It’s Time to End Road Rage
Oct 09 2007 by Emily Hansen
10/9/2007
Angry Drivers Need to Take a Step Back
Being a pretty casual person, I have a relaxed driving attitude. I figure there’s nothing so urgent or important in my life that I need to make a total ass out of myself on the road. One look at road-rage statistics, though, and it’s clear not everyone feels this way.
What’s happened to us? Have we become so stressed as a society that the occasional “jerk” my mother muttered under her breath when someone cut her off has escalated into vigilante suburbanites just waiting for someone to “make their day”?
A friend of mine couldn’t help herself and yelled out some choice words one day when she had to slam on her brakes because of a distracted driver drifting into her lane. Her 2-year-old son, in the car with her, then began instantly, innocently, repeating her. That incident got me thinking about the prevalence of road rage and how it can affect my kids and me.
The horror stories are simply awful. People have been shot, stabbed and run off the road, and as a woman these stories really concern me. While many women are victims of road rage, there are also plenty of female perpetrators as well. With that in mind, here’s some advice for whichever woman you are on any given day.
If you’re the one who is enraged:
• Don’t assume that someone is trying to tick you off. We all have bad days, and maybe that guy who just cut you off was simply distracted by something. We’re never distracted, are we?
• Remember that driving is not a race.
• Find your happy place. Get more massages, treat yourself to that new pair of shoes, anything — just chill out while driving.
• Just like you taught your kids about bullies, you can’t control someone else’s behavior, so the best thing to do is just let it go.
If you’re the victim of rage:
• Don’t retaliate; keep your emotions in check. Be nice as pie, and don’t forget the a la mode.
• Don’t drive home if the aggressor is following you.
• Don’t pull over and get out of your car. If you absolutely must pull over, look for somewhere with lots of witnesses or, even better, a bunch of police or firemen. No silly, not to flirt with the boys in uniform.
Be conscious about your own driving:
• Limit distractions in the car and concentrate on your driving. I know we’re all supreme multitaskers, but c’mon ladies, we‘re not invincible.
• Use your turn signal and try your best to avoid cutting anybody off. If you do, send them a smile-o-gram and an apologetic wave.
• Don’t tailgate or weave in and out of traffic, even if you’re 10 minutes late because you couldn’t find your son’s soccer ball.
• Don’t flip the bird or honk your horn, that’s just plain rude.
Finally, there are plenty of tools to help report aggressive driving. Check with your state or local police to find out if they have a road rage hotline for reporting incidents, or use an online venting site like roadragers.com to share information about a car whose driver is displaying behavior you wouldn’t tolerate from your 2-year-old on the playground.
Remember: Keep your cool and save a life — maybe even your own.
User Comments
It is not because they mean to tick you off, it is simply because how they were taught to drive is the main point.
If someone in front of you is slow, you don’t need to tailgate him/her close enough that he/she can’t even see your headlights in his/her mirror, and then cut him/her off like right where your rear bumper will hit his/her car’s front or even worse, the side. They simply take the road as race circuits.
Seriously, I think they were simply not taught right when they learn how to drive.
I’ve even tried it once, have an aggressive driving buddy of mine to test it out together. He was only 15 seconds faster than me to arrive, but I, at the back, always see him running yellow lights, cutting someone off, constantly braking. Does it worth that 15 seconds difference, by wearing the drivetrain, the brakes, burning more gas, risking to crash, and having all the adrenline pumped up?
I have a friend who is a much better driver now than when this incident took place. I wasn’t there, but have other friends as witnesses. They were going skiing and she was driving way too fast and was too close to the person in front of her. Our friend told her she needed to stop tailgating and she said, “I’m not tailgating, I’m not mad!” She thought the mood she was in determined whether or not she was tailgating.
Thanks for all the comments. I have high hopes that road rage can be reduced by making more people aware of it’s extreme danger, and also it’s definition (thanks Sara). I think education is the key.
Here’s some protection from tailgaters, distracted drivers, bumper to bumper traffic, inattentive drivers, text messengers, drivers with poor judgment and lousy, stinking parallel parkers.
“Don’t let these drivers ruin your day, cripple your family, wreck your vehicle, steal your deductible or jeopardize your insurance.”
Great article Emily. The advice sounds so simple yet everyday I read about more and more road rage incidents in the news. Too bad everyone couldn’t follow your advice. Following someone home or getting out of your car is the worst thing to do… you are right, keep your cool and save a life!