If you have ever found yourself getting irritated or becoming enraged while attempting to navigate the Washington roadways, you are not alone. According to AAA, at least 80% of drivers say they have angry while driving at some point within the last year. The problem comes when feelings of frustration and anger turn into road rage and lead to dangerous driving behaviors. Aggressive driving not only puts the driver at risk of becoming involved in a deadly car accident, it endangers the lives of everyone else on the road. Knowing how to spot the signs of road rage may help you minimize your risk of getting into a deadly car accident.
Aggressive driving includes a wide-range of hazardous driving behaviors, from speeding to ramming other vehicles and initiating physical altercations with other motorists. Other dangerous driving behaviors include the following:
- Switching lanes erratically and cutting off or blocking other vehicles
- Yelling obscenities or giving inappropriate hand gestures
- Following too closely or tailgating
- Passing another vehicle where prohibited, such as on the shoulder of the road
- Failure to yield to other drivers’ right of way
- Failure to adhere to traffic signals, pedestrian crosswalks or stop signs
In some cases, people can become so enraged that they hit another vehicle or cause a car accident on purpose. If you should come into contact with an aggressive driver or see one on the road, it is important to avoid becoming involved. Instead, alert law enforcement officers to the situation and allow them to handle it properly
This information is intended to educate and should not be taken as legal advice.