Austin was the only Texas city that placed in the top 10 of a ranking of United States cities with the most aggressive drivers, but Texas road rage was well-represented in the list with Dallas-Fort Worth at 15, San Antonio at 21 and Houston at 22.
Topping the rankings about aggressive driving and road rage compiled by GasBuddy, was Los Angeles, California.
Here’s the full top 10 list of aggressive driving and road rage ranked by GasBuddy and posted on ABC13 Houston:
- Los Angeles, California
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Sacramento, California
- Atlanta, Georgia
- San Francisco, California
- San Diego, California
- Orlando, Florida
- Detroit, Michigan
- Austin, Texas
- Las Vegas, Nevada
GasBuddy reviewed the top 30 metropolitan areas by population as defined by the United States Census Bureau from November 2018 to February 2019. A post on the company’s website said the review examined the frequency of an aggressive event while driving, whether it be speeding, hard braking or accelerating.
What is aggressive driving?
Drivers’ stress can soar in traffic filled with honking, squeaking brakes and a flow that is only stop-and-go.
The most frequent aggressive driving habit was hard braking, followed by rapid acceleration and speeding.
“Road Rage” is the label that emerged to describe the violent behaviors at the extreme end of the act of aggressive driving, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
NHTSA defines aggressive driving as, “The operation of a motor vehicle in a manner that endangers or is likely to endanger persons or property.”
An important distinction is that aggressive driving is a traffic violation, while road rage, aside from yelling and gesticulating, is a criminal offense, the NHTSA said.
Road rage displays have included, the NHTSA said:
- A Massachusetts bookkeeper murdering another motorist with a single shot from a crossbow
- A soccer mom running another woman off the road, and to her death, in Mississippi
- Two Virginia men crashing into oncoming traffic, killing three drivers, as the final act of an angry, on-the-road duel
- A Maryland lawyer punching a pregnant woman after a fender-bender
- A North Carolina driving instructor telling his student to chase a vehicle that cut them off, and then punching the offending driver
SafeMotorist.com offered this quiz to help drivers determine whether they are susceptible to road rage:
- Do you regularly drive over the speed limit, or try to "beat" red lights because you are in a hurry?
- Do you tailgate or flash your headlights at a driver in front of you that you believe is driving too slowly?
- Do you honk the horn often?
- Do you ever use obscene gestures or otherwise communicate angrily at another driver?
- Do you frequently use your phone while driving, or otherwise drive while distracted?
- Do you keep your high beams on, regardless of oncoming traffic?
- Do you switch lanes or make turns without using your turn signal?
- Do you fail to check your blind spot before switching lanes to make sure you aren’t cutting someone off?
Always being aware of other drivers and driving cautiously can help in reducing road rage.
Contact the Law Offices Of Gene S. Hagood today for help with crashes related to aggressive driving and road rage.