Aggressive Driving? Cut It Out!

Aggressive driving is one of the most dangerous things that happens on the road. Whether or not you’re guilty of it is irrelevant – no matter where it’s coming from, it’s putting you in danger. To make sure that you’re not guilty of driving aggressively, here are some tips for driving safely and tamping down the road rage that night come from traffic, other drivers, or even just your own mood.

Move over if someone is tailgating you. This applies to you as well – don’t tailgate! If someone else is tailgating you, just make sure that you move aside if you can so that the person who is tailgating you can move ahead of you and no longer be your problem.

Use an “I’m sorry” gesture (e.g. wave) to attempt to defuse the situation. If you don’t have to engage with aggressive drivers, don’t! But if you feel like you need to, you should make a calm gesture that communicates apology, like a wave. Never do a gesture like “flipping the bird” or an angry gesture.

Plan ahead; allow time for delays during your journey. Traffic happens. You can rarely avoid it. Being late is a big factor in road rage and aggressive driving, so make sure that you don’t have to worry about that.

Consider whether you’ve done something to annoy the other driver and adjust your driving accordingly. Are you driving well? Are you following the rules of the road? If you’re driving inappropriately or without thinking about other drivers, think about why you are doing this and try to fix it if you can.

Listen to music you enjoy, or music that’s calming, like classical music. However, you should never sacrifice attentiveness to the road for attentiveness to your music. If listening to music means that you’ll be paying more attention to your phone than the road, then drive in silence. It’ll be worth it when you get to your destination safely.

Use your horn sparingly, or never at all. This is super irritating if you’re already angry, so only use your horn gently if you feel like someone else isn’t paying attention or could use a wake-up.

Avoid eye contact with angry drivers and give them plenty of room. Leave well enough alone, and let angry drivers get past you so they are no longer your problem!

We hope these tips have helped you – aggressive driving is a problem and if you can help that problem go away, we salute you!