All of civility depends on being able to contain the rage of individuals. –Joshua Lederberg
Road rage is an oddity. It can come from out of nowhere and at any point or time. There may not be rhyme or reason as to why a certain drivers actions set you off, but those moments are relatively rare. More often than not, you know exactly why your vision went red and sent you flying off the handle. The problem is, most of the same things upset everyone, which makes it strange that certain actions are still done when people know very well that they are upsetting to those around them. So here is a list of things that drivers do who are the architects of annoyance and the antipathy of aggravation. Remember them, and remember to avoid them. Otherwise… you’re a hypocrite and no better than them.
Honking Right When The Light Changes Green
Reaction times for people are not the same, and at times when at a red light some people tend to check their phones or do things they shouldn’t be doing while in motion. This is actually a good thing and should not be punished. Either way, a little leeway should be given to people at red lights before leaning in on the horn. Just because the lights been green for a second and a half does not give you the right to let the horn rip. Calm down, be patient, if only for another second or two, then perhaps a little beep will suffice.
Flipping The Bird
My worst scenario for being enraged on the road was when a sweet old woman, who looked like she couldn’t hurt a fly, flipped me the bird when I accidently tried to make a turn at a four way stop before her. We both went, and it was my mistake, she had the right away, and rather than take it as a mistake, the old crotchety woman flipped me the most arthritic bird I’d ever witnessed. I was struck with both anger and confusion as to what to do. Im certainly not going to reply in the same manner out of respect for my elders. But I mean really!? Really!? At that age shouldn’t you be beyond insulting people with vulgar gestures? Needless to say I couldn’t help but yell at her something to the affect of “You old Cur!” Though cur might not have been the exact word chosen in my state of unexpected and heightened rage.
Speeding Up So A Driver Can’t Get In Front Of You
More accidents occur do to people not wanting to let drivers get in front of them than many may expect. Merging is a big one, where you’re coming from an off ramp to merge onto the highway, and Jeff Gordon over here doesn’t want to be put one car length further back on the road, so they speed up, tailgating the car ahead of them while not really giving you proper room to merge. You’re not getting anywhere faster, and the whole time now you know there is someone behind you who thinks you to be an impatient and inconsiderate idiot. It’s one car, if you get in front of them and stay in their line of site, you’re not getting anywhere any faster.
Driving Erratically Just To Get One Car Ahead
This goes along the same lines as not allowing others to merge. But you see this all the time, where drivers will be switching from one lane to the other and essentially go car hoping. Not only is it dangerous to other drivers on the road, you’re not saving that much time. Everyone is moving as fast as safely possible and no one wants to take forever to get to where they are going. Wait in line, and wait your turn. Don’t risk causing an accident to arrive at your destination 2 minutes earlier.
Riding Your Tail
There is a reason the rule of 1 car length given for every 10mph you are traveling is in place. And that is so you have enough time and space to stop in case something happens to the vehicles in front of you. Also, it’s very nerve racking when someone rides close to your tail, making it more likely to cause an accident because you are no longer concerned with what’s in front of you, but behind you. Just be considerate and give people some space, it’s not asking too much. And for god’s sake don’t ride someone’s tail to make them go faster. If I notice this and am being ridden closely, I merely slow down to really upset them. Oh, what’s that, you got somewhere to be? That’s funny, me too. Well now we’re both going to be late since I have to teach you this quick lesson.
Not Being Aware
Now it’s one thing when the light is green for a few seconds and you haven’t noticed. But if you are so oblivious that you were first in line at a light to turn and when you look up it’s turning yellow… well at that point you had better expect a few horns to go off. People should be patient enough up to a point, and that point is when your being oblivious is causing a hold up.
Stop And Go Drivers
Stop and go drivers upset a lot of people, and is even considerably dangerous when weather conditions are not optimal. If you’re not comfortable driving at certain speeds, than don’t get up to those speeds forcing you to slow down. Most would rather know you’re a slow driver and have the option to consider passing. But when it’s a stop and go driver, you can never get the timing right, or momentum if driving at faster speeds needed to pass safely. Also it causes tremendous wear and tear on the brakes, and forcing someone behind you to brake every 100 yards because you’re afraid or uncomfortable just adds another reason for people to become upset.
Not Staying In Your Lane
Swerving out of your lane because you are looking in the mirror, checking emails or text messages, or any other number of distracting actions is downright stupid. When you swerve out of your lane, and into another, that can well cause another person to swerve as a result, thus putting them in danger. It shouldn’t be very hard to stay within the lines of your lane; I mean you couldn’t have passed your driving test unless you could at least do that. So just keep your phone away, wait to fix your hair until you stop, and concentrate on the only thing that matter when you’re driving… that being driving.
Driving Slow In The Left Hand Lane
There is a good reason that the left lane moves faster than the right one. That being people in the left lane want to move faster. With that being said and known, if you look ahead of you and there is plenty of room, and then you look behind you to see a long line of cars, you should probably move over to the right side to let them by. It courteous, considerate, and will ensure you don’t cause other drivers to try and pass you from the right lane and will also keep them off your tail end as they try to make you go faster. If you’re slow, get out of the way.
Rubber Necking
This is perhaps the most perverted of all actions people take while driving. If there is an accident, and traffic is building up due to it, why is that when you pass by people tend to slow down to catch a glimpse? A glimpse of what? What is there that you could possibly want to see or witness? If anything, hope and or pray that no one got hurt, and drive past without slowing down. It does nothing more than slow traffic more, and add the potential for another accident to occur because you are not paying attention to the road. It’s a disgusting trait that many drivers sadly have, and is one that ought to be abhorred.
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The author of this article is Damien S. Wilhelmi. If you enjoyed this piece you can follow me on Twitter @JakabokBotch. Your car needs to get you to where you need to be and safely. If you need an auto repair, maintenance, or even an Auto Transmission Repair, be sure to visit AAMCOColorado.com to see store locations nearest you.
