Road Rage

[moogling]

Right, so, searching for an older thread on this was a horrible experience... but if anyone comes across it, feel free to merge.

I recently had a funny experience with road rage, but I've also seen some pretty terrible things happen when someone gets angry as well.

I was in the car with my mom, and this woman decides to cut us off. My mom was already quite angry, because someone had just done this right before. It probably wasn't the most intelligent thing to do, but she flipped off the woman who had cut her off. Of course, at that moment, the light turned green, so she was speeding to catch up to us with this furious look on her face. She gets up to the side of our car and rolls down her window, and screams: "You're UGLY!" to my mom. We both just laughed and brushed it off.

Apparently, that made her extremely angry, and she got into an accident with another car, but by that time we were already up ahead and glancing behind to see it.

Another time, was quite a long time ago with my dad. A woman in her truck got so angry at the red light not changing, she decided to smash into the back of someone else's car. She was going absolutely nuts because no one would move.

Eventually the police arrived, since another person was smart enough to call them. Thankfully the person in the car and the woman herself weren't hurt very badly, but it could have been much worse.

How about everyone else? Have you ever had an experience like mine? A frightening one, or a funny one? Do you find yourself getting angry at other drivers, or notice that other drivers get angry with you?

 

[niesl2]

I'm a quite relaxed driver, so it is quite often I don't drive at exactly the maximum speed but a few kilometers/hour less, which seems to anger other drivers It is funny to see other people driving really close behind you while frantically looking for an opportunity to get past you. It is even more funny when you catch up to the same cars who passed you at the traffic lights. Why bother driving 2 kms/hour faster?

 

[DeadFantasy]

It probably wasn't the most intelligent thing to do, but she flipped off the woman who had cut her off.

^^ That's exactly what my dad did. The funny thing was that his mom was in the car with us and she was like: "Jared Timothy Parker!" It was hilarous watching my grandma yell at my dad. My dad gets so angry when someone cuts him off.
My dad was like "mom I HAD to that old hag cut me off so, I had to flick her off." Then my dad cut the old hag after turning into another lane and again, flicked the finger in the car mirror. Eventually my grandma told him to stop but then the old hag cut US after we cut her and stopped I was like "Wtf lady you want us to crash into you on purpose?" Stupid drivers. Luckily my dad didn't crash into her because he didn't want to pay for the damages.(quickly switched lanes) Then we were like racing. It was crazy! She went so out of control that she went out of the lanes(street) and into the grass almost hitting a tree. I remember thinking "wow i'm surprised there isn't any cops around."

Another time was when I went to go christmas shopping with my dad for his girlfriend (since guys don't know what to get) and there was a two lanes but one was blocked off with cones. The light wouldn't change green and there was always traffic so my dad got tired of waiting he went through the cones! (he didn't run them over or anything) and it was funny because people behind us followed XD. It was so much fun I was laughing so hard xD. Ahhh, good times on the road.

 

[Gingerbread Lesbian]

I don't drive so I can't say I personally have road rage but some of things people do are just stupid, you've got the old people who just drive everywhere slowly even on a motorway which is annoying as hell then you've got all the 17-19 year olds who think they're all amazing but are actually quite clueless when it comes to the common sense part of driving.

I do remember once when my dad overtook someone then he came flying up behind us and followed us to the shop then went got out the car "Sorry. I've had a bad day", I was sat there like hahaha, you tit.

 

[Abstract Debauchery]

We get road rage alot. Probably because we're impatient as hell and it seems that 99% of the Houston population CAN'T FUCKING DRIVE!

For example, down here, you have every other moron that seems to not know what a "blinker" is, because they never use them. Then you have morons that, FOR NO APPARENT REASON will slow down. The speed limit is 60 asshole, not 40.

Then you have jackasses that can't park... At all. If your car is small, and it's taking up two spaces, YOU'VE DONE SOMETHING WRONG! GO BACK AND TRY AGAIN!

 

[Not of Rust]

I'm pretty forgiving. I'm easily distracted and can let things get in my head that take my focus off the road - so I don't tend to be too harsh on people.

I will get shitty with people on phones.

Also, people who don't understand that the volume of traffic puts constraints on the speed you can drive - i.e. it's bumper to bumper and some dicknose is swerving back and forth between lanes and after 10 minutes of this they've managed to nudge a whole 2 car-lengths in front of you. I think it's actually kind of fun to speed up and slow down and box these doucheniozzles in and watch them go back in forth in vain.

 

[Kandy-Sugar]

Yeah whenever I get into the car with Steve there always seems to be a bit of road rage happening. >.<

Usually some dick always cuts us off or goes FAR too slow in the fast lane and then merges without looking etc. Steve flipped off about five people yesterday. It was insane the amount of losers on the road yesterday.

I suppose we were driving in a really dodgy area though, where most people probably drove unregistered cars without a licence. <_<

But whenever I drive there isn't that much road rage. I avoid giving people the finger and such.

I remember one day with Steve we were driving up to these lights and this Kiwi/Maui guy had rolled up to the lights sitting in both lanes and we just squeezed past and Steve said to him, 'You know this is two lanes hey?' in the nicest way.

And he just went ape shit and was getting offended and trying to get Steve out of the car to fight. He was a fucking retard acting like that. Theres something with Kiwi's on the road in my area. They always think they own the damn road.

 

[Shu]

I assume people think just because it is there car it is there world mostly. Driving to me is more than just getting from point a to point b.. but is actually an art which most will never master, due to the fact it is "their road". People are never courteous around my parts, not even the older folks. 1st of all people beyond the age of 70 should have their licenses re-evaluated, just to make sure they are physically able to drive anymore. It is not cruel considering I've seen the amount of wrecks caused by slow elderly people without the use of turn signals.

I get bouts of road rage every here and again but I'll never tail someone, nor threaten them.. I'll just use my horn when they are out of line.For instance if the high way 7 turn off has no yield sign on my side and yet has a yield sign for the folks coming towards me, it is not cool to run the yield sign trying to beat me past. It means you stop and I don't, simple as that. I can't tell you the amount of drivers that speed up and have ran folks off the road. In my opinion there should always be a cop at that intersection, but hey, best I can do is give them the finger or beep. My road rage though is never comparable to most folks, I'm purely verbal in my own car. Although I tweak basically if someone comes to a sudden stop in the middle of a 55 mile per hour high way without the use of a turn signal.

The physical types of road rage people have amuse me. I've never been presented with the fool who has literally rolled down their window at me, I drive very considerately for others.

 

[Talbain]

Living in Maryland, road rage is an accepted reality of the driving experience. More than once have I broken the 100 MPH barrier while trying to get around another maniac on the road who is bent on forcing me off into a barrier near an exit ramp. The most dangerous scenarios are when I'm a pedestrian and aren't able to suitably dodge incoming drivers in time. Most notably I remember an angry looking man hopping into his massive pickup truck, speeding into a busy intersection, and doing a couple 360s in the middle of traffic before flooring it down a the highway to who knows where.

 

[Daenerys]

I have awful road rage, but only when I know that it genuinely isn't my fault and that the other driver is the one at fault, not me. If I make a mistake, I don't get angry, I get very meek and slow down xD If someone else is at fault, I lay on my horn and start to yell

My driving instructor had loads of road rage though, he shouted at other drivers at least three times a lesson, even if they were ages away and doing something stupid

My friend Natalie has the most hilarious road rage ever. She's only like 4 foot, so it's hilarious to see her yelling at those "gegwins" who cross her. Like my ex-Girlfriend who tried to kill us by breaking too late

 

[Coco]

Generally, I'm patient when it comes to driving. I don't beat the red light, I stop for stop signs, drive slower in places with kids playing outside. And I don't get at all frustrated.

What really gets to me is the motorcycles. Lately motorcycle sales have peaked around here and more people have been using them. It really frustrates me how they have no regard whatsoever about the rules that apply to cars. They oppose the one-way streets, they just zoom in from nowhere and drive closely beside your car, and most of all, their direction is very unpredictable.

I think I feel a little rage bubbling whenever I see them zooming around. A lot of accidents have happened here because of them--and ultimately, no matter what really happened, the one with the car is still the one at fault.

 

[blakstang98]

Right, so, searching for an older thread on this was a horrible experience... but if anyone comes across it, feel free to merge.

I know I had made a thread about how bad drivers can be and asking how drivers were in the area they lived in. Truth be told though, I think I put that thread in The Sleeping Forest, but it is sort of a different subject matter, even though I'll be saying the same similar things.

I get very annoyed behind the wheel. People in my area drive like total assholes, and it drives me crazy at times. I mean, why do people drive so aggressively anyways? When I'm driving 70 mph on the highway, do you really need to drive 2 inches away from my bumper? Nothing makes me more angry than aggressive driving, especially tailgating.

The thing that pisses me off more than anything is how much people take driving for granted. People quickly forget that when driving, they are possibly putting their life in danger everyday, and when they drive aggressively, they're putting other lives in danger, innocent lives. People quickly forget that driving is not a right, it's a privilege, so don't be an ass and respect the road and the other drivers.

Now I'll make similar comments to another thread I created (that was then merged) about what law enforcement sees on the roads. In my first 9 years of driving, I had 1 speeding ticket, and admittidly, I was making a pass on someone and sped up to get past them and there was a cop around the corner, it was just bad timing on my part. But do cops really pay attention to bad drivers? I mean I understand tailgating isn't a law, but it does display aggressive driving, why shouldn't they be fined for that? I feel much more safe behind the wheel when a person does not drive on top of my bumper on the highway. Why is it that I've gotten 2 seatbelt tickets when I see some chucklehead in my neighborhood drive his car around with a missing headlight (no, I don't mean the bulb is not working, I mean the whole assembly is gone, it's a hole in the hood)? Does this make sense? The only person I'm endangering when driving without a seatbelt is me, which is my choice. This guy endangers all drivers around him on the road when he drives at night. I thought the law was the protect the citizens. My crime seems like a much smaller one, but I have 2 $37 seatbelt violations on my record and this guy hasn't even gotten a 5-day tag to get his headlight changed. God forbid I make a choice of what to do inside my car in my personal domain with what I believe is the better choice (of not wearing a seatbelt), but I am to be punished for it when I could drive like an asshole and either not change my headlights or drive as aggressively as possible. There is a severe disconnect in driving laws that really need to be addressed, but it will never happen.

/super long rant that was off topic
I won't go off topic in such a severe way again, promise.

 

[The Illusive Man]

I'll honestly admit that I tend to suffer a little bit from road rage at times, but this is usually caused by careless or idiotic drivers that force me to take defensive action to compensate for there poor driving.

I'm not the kind that goes right up there tail and starts blasting the horn like a raging lunatic, I usually just sit and cuss profanties and sound the horn if they did something particulary dangerous which could have caused an accident had I not taken defensive action.

Despite that nothing gets on my nerves quicker than some old dodderer that clearly is beyond driving age and capabilties that is plodding along 20mph below the speed limit in a 60mph zone causing traffic to build up heavily behind them, yet they still happen to keep straddling the centre line or swaying over it, and to top it off....THEY SPEED UP when you go to overtake them!

Personally I feel that people should be retested in the UK like they do in the US, because the current UK driving licence can last upwards of 60 years, being retested often is a good way to keep people sensible, and at the same time keep people that should not be driving off the roads.

 

[Dee]

I've had some pretty frightening and, on my part, stupid experiences with road rage.

The first one was probably 6 or 7 years ago when I was driving home from snowboarding with my brother, someone else and my boyfriend. We were driving along, minding our own business when this jerk pulls up behind me, literally like a foot behind me. I couldn't see his lights and barely the hood of his car (I'm in a Pathfinder back then). So I ease off the gas and slow down a bit in hopes that he'll go around me since the left lane was wide open. The jack off decides to keep tailing me, so then I speed up as we're coming to a truck that's going slower.

Once I get in the left hand lane to pass this truck in front of me, the guy who was behind me starts to follow. I get leveled with the truck on my right just to piss this guy off and mess with him for a mile or two. Then, when I get tired of doing that, I get in the right hand lane to let him pass by me, but apparently he doesn't want to just keep going. He gets right back behind me, really, really close, at which point I'm kind of frightened and decide to just pull off the road.

You may think it's a bad idea as the guy also pulls off the road and gets out of his car. He comes up to my window (I'm still in the car with it on) and starts banging on it, screaming at me. Now, I am not as stupid as most 17 year old's would be in such a situation and I zoom out of there, leaving him standing outside a few feet away from his car. He runs back to try and catch me but I'm already well ahead of him.

At that point, I've called the police and notified them of the situation, but there isn't much they can do at the moment since there aren't any troopers in the area, so I decide to take some evasive action. Seeing as how I am ahead of the guy (who is still chasing after me), I come up to this 3-laned highway in town, zoom over from the right hand lane, which he is still in, and immediately get in the left hand turning lane to head West back home.

This boxes him in traffic, making it impossible for the crazy guy to catch up with me because I had a green light and he was still in the right lane which is, at that point, stopped for a red light.

This was probably the most frightening experience, although I have definitely learned from it. I try not to piss people off like that anymore because you never really know how someone is going to react.

Other than that, I really, really hate it when people tailgate me. I don't slam on my brakes anymore, but I do let off the gas and try to take things easy. After a while, you learn to suppress that rage and it has helped me to realize that it's just not worth it to get mad (for the most part).

 

[Valvalis]

The ones I can't stand are the lizards--people who wait until the last minute and then pull out in front of you, knowing that you will have to slow down to avoid hitting them, like lizards when you're walking down a sidewalk. It's rude to expect that of people, and I know they must because most of the people in my area are middle-aged, not old. If their reflexes are failing it's only because they're texting or reaching behind them to beat their kids, and not because they're old. The other thing I love to see is people driving perpendicular to the lanes to get into the turn lane that they've somehow missed when they come up to a traffic light. I've seen people cut across no less than 6 of them. I don't think I've ever had anyone scream obscenities at me personally, but when I was in the car as a kid one time, for whatever reason this guy hung out the passenger window of the car window and screamed, "YOU DRIVE LIKE AN ASS!" to my mom's friend who was driving our car. The ferocity of it was kind of amusing.