How to Avoid Aggressive Drivers

It’s a story every driver can tell. With traffic at a crawl, someone else’s bad day is about to become your bad day. Aggressive driving has plagued our roadways for decades, but with increased stressors such as traffic congestion, cell phone use while driving, and ever more hectic lives, the problem seems to be growing worse. While it’s often hard to pinpoint the exact cause of automobile crashes, almost two-thirds of all fatal crashes point to aggressive driving as a possible culprit.

What Is Aggressive Driving?

Not to be confused with road rage (a criminal offense in Texas), aggressive driving is defined by the Texas Department of Public Safety as occurring when a driver endangers other motorists or property through any combination of offenses, such as speeding, tailgating, running red lights or stop signs, passing on the right of a vehicle, or making inappropriate hand and facial gestures.

One of the worst side effects of aggressive driving is that, in about half of cases, the drivers on the receiving end of the bullying behavior respond in an aggressive way themselves, perpetuating the problem.

What to Do When You See Aggressive Driving

You can’t control other motorists, but you can control how you respond to them. Here are six ways to diffuse aggressive driving.

1. Keep your hands on the wheel. The best way to avoid using offensive gestures when another driver is behaving badly (e.g., cutting you off, tailgating, etc.) is to keep your hands on the wheel at all times. A single hand raise could be the ignition that takes another driver from zero to aggravated.

2. Move aside. No matter the size of your car, it’s important to be the bigger driver when it comes to passing. Keep the left lane open on highways to allow for passing, and when a driver approaches quickly behind you, put on your signal to let them know you intend to let them pass as soon as it’s safe for you to move aside. Don’t be that guy. Nothing good has ever come from tailgating. At worst, it causes accidents; at best, it annoys other motorists. Keeping a safe distance behind the driver in front of you (at least two seconds) will give you time to stop in an emergency and will help you avoid making enemies on the freeway.

3. Avoid eye contact. Just like in the animal kingdom, eye contact on the road can often be taken as a sign of aggression. To avoid encouraging beastly behavior, play ignorant to angry drivers and turn a blind eye to traffic tantrums.

4. Enjoy the drive. Speeding doesn’t save time, but it is one of the leading causes of crashes. It’s also a sure way to enrage other drivers. Allow yourself plenty of time to get to your destination, and, if you’re going to be late … be late. Going 20 mph over a 55 mph speed limit will only cut the average commute by less than three minutes under ideal conditions.

5. Be a role model. Set a good example on the road by avoiding common annoyances for other drivers. These include not using your phone while driving, turning off your high beams for oncoming traffic, using your turn signal when changing lanes, and checking your blind spot so you don’t cut anyone off.

6. Being considerate and conscientious on the road is the best way to steer clear of aggressive drivers. And remember, getting home safely is always the most important thing.