Transcript Road Rage
Your Agency ROAD RAGE ARE YOU GUILTY? HAVE YOU EVER: TAILGATED ANOTHER DRIVER? “GESTURED” TOWARD ANOTHER DRIVER IN ANGER? LEANED ON YOUR HORN? YELLED AT OTHER DRIVERS? IF YOU ANSWERED “YES” TO ANY OF THESE YOU COULD BE LABELED AN AGGRESSIVE DRIVER ROAD RAGE DEFINITION THE EXPRESSION "ROAD RAGE" WAS INTRODUCED INTO THE PUBLIC VOCABULARY BY THE POPULAR MEDIA. THOUGH THERE HAS BEEN NO AGREED-UPON DEFINITION, PEOPLE USE THE PHRASE TO REFER TO AN EXTREME STATE OF ANGER THAT OFTEN PRECIPITATES AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, SOMETIMES RESTRICTED TO WORDS AND GESTURES, SOMETIMES AS ASSAULT AND BATTERY. ROAD RAGE RECENT EXAMPLES A 41 year-old truck driver was shot and killed by another motorist at a toll booth because the trucker pulled into an exact change lane and held up traffic when he had no change.Witnesses told authorities that a motorist in a latemodel black Chevy Blazer honked at the trucker. The trucker exited his vehicle to try and explain his situation, when the motorist shot and killed him. The Blazer sped away and the driver has not been identified. Orlando ROAD RAGE RECENT EXAMPLES Brian Jenkins, 35, of Tampa, told police he became irate when he was cut off in traffic at Henderson and Nebraska Avenue at 3:45 P.M. by an unidentified driver. After a brief argument, he chased the driver west on Henderson towards Florida Avenue. As he approached the intersection he lost control of his truck and plowed into four homeless men standing in the Salvation Army parking lot. One man was killed instantly and the other three men were taken to Tampa General Hospital. Jenkins was charged with vehicular homicide, DUI manslaughter and three counts of DUI causing injury. Tampa ROAD RAGE RECENT EXAMPLES Late for work, a Hillsborough County employee crossing the Courtney Campbell Causeway became outraged at two cars in front of him who were traveling “too slowly” for him. The 45 year-old father of two pulled out a .38-caliber semiautomatic handgun and fired into both of the vehicles, just missing the drivers. He was tracked down and arrested after his tag was jotted down by a witness at the scene. He is being charged with two counts of attempted murder. Clearwater ROAD RAGE STATISTICS OVER 40,000 TRAFFIC DEATHS OCCUR IN THE UNITED STATES EVERY YEAR – Two-thirds were attributed to aggressive driving THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 17.6 MILLION TRAFFIC CRASHES IN THE UNITED STATES EVERY YEAR – One-third of those, 5.8 million, are attributed to aggressive driving AGGRESSIVE DRIVERS KILL APPROXIMATELY 120 PEOPLE EVERY DAY – They injure approximately 6,300 people every day Road Rage LIKELY CAUSES INCREASED CONGESTION ON THE ROADS DISTRACTED DRIVERS- USE OF CELL PHONES, READING THE PAPER STRESSED OUT DRIVERS- NOT LEAVING ENOUGH TIME TO GET WHERE THEIR GOING PERSONAL PROBLEMS- BAD DAY AT WORK OR HOME Road Rage FORMS OF ROAD RAGE AGGRESSIVE TAILGATING HEADLIGHT FLASHING OBSCENE GESTURES DELIBERATELY OBSTRUCTING OTHER VEHICLES VERBAL ABUSE PHYSICAL ASSAULT Road Rage WHAT YOU CAN DO DO NOT TAILGATE ALLOW ADEQUATE TIME TO REACH DESTINATIONS Road Rage WHAT YOU CAN DO AVOID EYE CONTACT WITH OTHER DRIVERS AVOID USING HIGH BEAMS Road Rage WHAT YOU CAN DO DON’T ENGAGE OTHER DRIVERS IF BEING HASSLED OR FOLLOWED, DO NOT REACT, DRIVE TO THE NEAREST PUBLIC PLACE OR POLICE STATION THANK YOU AND DRIVE SAFELY