What To Do In A Road Rage Situation

[Diane Lane]

We've discussed road rage here in the forum, so I wanted to share this video. It was created by MSR Houston and a Texas state trooper, and it consists of common road rage scenarios, as well as ways to respond to them, to decrease the chances of injury: What to do in a road rage situation | abc13.com

 

[bala]

Just go the other way - some people are completely out of control,a number of drivers have guns,and it really isn't worth the confrontation.Also Don't make eye contact.
I deal with a road rager by just smiling at them. It really annoys them.

 

[thegrey1]

Probably the best way to diffuse the situation would be to look at them, and mouth the word, "sorry," but I probably wouldn't do that. I'd probably get shot. I don't take kindly to having random loony strangers yell at me.

 

[lushlala]

I don't drive, but want to get lessons soon and get back on the road. I honestly would be very petrified if a fellow driver turned on me and started hurling abuse at me. But rather than have a showdown, I'd rather rise above it and drive in the opposite direction, or away from wherever that person was. I'd be like thegrey1, and probably get shot in the whole thing!

 

[Gabe]

Road rage has been on the increase, but it's down to people to stop expecting too much and to control their tempers. It's like when there is traffic, one has to be patient. The worst thing is someone taking a parking space, but that is about etiquette and morals and people respecting one another.

 

[bala]

Road rage has been on the increase, but it's down to people to stop expecting too much and to control their tempers. It's like when there is traffic, one has to be patient. The worst thing is someone taking a parking space, but that is about etiquette and morals and people respecting one another.

Completely second that.Patience is the key,always.We should just give a wry smile and back off from there.Responding only calls for more attention,without one too work surely can happen,right ?
I had to learn it the hard way -_-..

 

[Diane Lane]

I actually do that when I'm at fault, and have done something stupid, such as if I did't let someone merge into traffic because I didn't see him/her in time. I've had it happen where both of us have done the palms in the air and shaking our heads while mouthing sorry a few times, which was nice. I can't count the number of times I've had crazy drivers around me, trying to instigate something. I actually had one of those huge long wreckers do it before, which was really scary. I'm thankful that I no longer have to drive to/from/in Houston daily, but even here where I live, people exhibit road rage frequently.

 

[Josie]

Oh gawd.. fearing a gun being pulled??? I couldn't imagine living like that. We have some pretty angry drivers where we moved to, but no guns being pulled lol.. just a bunch of yelling and honking. At worst, I can see a confrontation.. maybe a fight.. but I haven't witnessed that yet either. Where I'm from, it's unheard of. So a gun is super extreme and again, I'm happy to live where I live.

 

[DancingLady]

Don't respond with anger, that's probably the most important thing. I would just get out of their way and mind my own business, never make any gestures or indications that it was bothering me. If someone has such an anger issue that they are taking it out that way, I would just let them blow off their steam without giving them any fuel for the fire.

 

[Diane Lane]

I agree with @DancingLady and others who've stated the best thing to do is let it go. Unfortunately, in the heat of the moment, that's sometimes difficult to do. Everyone responds differently when threatened. Some tend to run in the other direction, while others strike back out of instinct. Road rage incidents and other types of potentially negative interactions, appear to be increasing, so it might be a good idea to become familiar with your coping style. Knowing how you've responded to negativity or threats in the past can give you a good idea of future behavior, and awareness can help you determine a plan for how you can better handle situations in the future.

 

[katherine25]

I had something happen last summer with another driver. He was so mad that I didn't slam on the gas as soon as the light went green and in turned into some serious road rage. He started yelling gout of his window at myself and my husband and I had my two year old in the car. He started throwing threats out and I was scared that when we got to a red light he was going to get out and do something or worse follow me to where I was going. I decided to take us out of the situation by turning off the road we were on to go a different route away from this guy.

 

[dyanmarie25]

The truth is that you can never settle any dispute if two of you are mad as hell. And yes, the best thing to do is to apologize. In a situation like that, there's no room for pride and anger.

 

[Diane Lane]

I used to find myself (and still do, on occasion) responding to the other person's anger by becoming angry myself, which would escalate the situation. What I've learned to do, when cut off in traffic, or yelled at by someone in a rage, is to take a few deep breaths, and tell myself that they must be under a lot of stress, they're rushing someone ill to the hospital, etc. It seems to tick a box in my head that enables me to feel sorry for the person, rather than irritated, so I'm able to move along and get past the incident. I do recommend calling the police and reporting the vehicle and driver, though, if the person presents an obvious continued problem, such as weaving in and out of traffic excessively, cutting people off, etc.