KEY POINTS:
Road rage is a term often used to refer to violent behaviour by a driver of an automobile or other motor vehicle, which causes collisions or incidents on roadways.
I think it's more a case of aggressive driving gone wrong. It's as if one alpha male tries to intimidate another alpha male both of whom are encased in a tonne of steel and throw common sense out the window.
I have never understood why one person driving like a complete madman makes a previously sane driver act like said madman.
The origins of the phrase road rage goes back as far as 1984, when it appeared in an article in the Los Angeles Times. Florida's St. Petersburg Times said in 1988, "A fit of road rage has landed a man in jail, accused of shooting a woman passenger who's [sic] car had 'cut him off' on the highway."
Thankfully serious road rage has yet to hit the roads of New Zealand. But it's getting there.
I commute in and out of Auckland from the northern provinces everyday and in the past two years have noticed an increased amount of aggression on the roads. All of which achieves nothing.
If New Zealanders were to take the Florida example to heart, the streets would be, to hijack an Enoch Powell quote, "running in rivers of blood". It's amazing the poor driving standards exhibited by the majority of people living in this country haven't resulted in major incidents.
What is noticeable is many drivers on our roads are not giving their full attention to the task at hand; that is, driving the car. Mobile phones are chief among distractions that cause sudden changes in driving patterns when the distracted driver realises he or she has wondered off line.
Also, driving is not a competition. If you want to race, take it to a track day at a circuit. There at least everyone is going the same way.
You must also be very aware you cannot control the drivers around you; you can only control the way you react to others.
The following are signs of bad driving.
* Aggressive driving, including sudden acceleration, braking, and close tailgating.
* Cutting others off, or deliberately preventing someone from merging.
* Sounding the car's horn or flashing the headlights excessively.
* Rude gestures such as raising the middle finger or showing the reversed peace sign.
* Shouting verbal abuse, obscenities or threats.
* Deliberately ploughing into another car.
* Getting out of the car and running over to another car and attacking it with some sort of implement.
* God forbid, aiming a firearm let alone discharging it, in the direction of another car.
* Throwing an item from a moving vehicle with the intent of hitting another vehicle.
There are many different views on whether road rage is a mental issue or not. I think it's a simple lack of breathing deeply and counting it away.
Ten Useful Tips from roadragers.com:
1. Don't retaliate. Never take the other driver personally; he/she is only reacting on a road rage instinct.
2. Don't make eye contact with an angry driver.
3. Before you react to anything that is done to you please ask yourself, "Is getting back at that the fool worth personal harm?"
4. Be polite and courteous, even when others are not.
5. Always ask yourself: "Could the other driver have possibly made a mistake?"
6. If you are harassed by another driver and being followed do not go home. Go to the nearest police station or public place.
7. Slow down and relax.
8. Never underestimate other drivers' capacity for mayhem.
9. Reduce your driving stress by allowing enough time to get where you are going. Know where there are road works and listen to reports that may cause traffic delays.
10. Remember, you can't control other drivers, only the way they affect your wellbeing. Be patient, stay calm and drive safely.
