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Sometimes it can feel like driving is an extreme sport nowadays. If it's not Karen cutting in front of you, then Jack is jumping a red light, or Delores is driving Miss Daisy on the interstate. Add increasing traffic and collective elevated stress levels to that, and it's enough to leave many drivers wanting to blow a gasket.
Some of us turn up Beethoven and breathe through the chaos on the roads, while others go to war in the worst possible way. According to CNN, there's been a whopping 500% increase in reported cases of road rage over the last 10 years. And a 2024 poll by The Zebra revealed that 96% of respondents had witnessed an act of road rage in the past six months.
People have been sharing their worst road rage experiences, and many are proof that driving is not for the faint of heart. From the mildly annoying to the utterly heartbreaking, Bored Panda has put together a list of the most shocking. We also take a look at some road rage statistics and explore the root cause of aggression behind the wheel. You'll find that info between the individual stories.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
As a female, weirdly, I've never minded a little confrontation. I was going to make a right turn on red ( perfectly legal). I look on the left and see it's clear and go. Apparently the jerk going well over 20 miles the limit and came right up behind me afterwards didn't feel the same. He flailed his arms and mouthed a ton of profanity that I chuckled at while looking in the rear view mirror. I pulled into the grocery store where I was headed and he followed closely behind. I parked as did he and got out. When I got out he called me every name in the book. While normally I would have returned the favor I noticed two cops with lights on pull up behind his car blocking him in. They witnessed everything. He was Arrested right there. That's what happens when you go 25 over the limit here. They added a disorderly conduct charge on for going off on me :-).
People are peeved... And instead of using their daily commute to relax and let off some steam, many drivers are taking out their anger on other road users. The stats are sobering. It's no longer a case of irate motorists muttering profanities under their breath, or "flipping the bird" in the fast lane.
According to the Siegfried & Jensen law firm, road rage shootings rose by more than 400% between 2014 and 2023. 116 people lost their lives as a direct result of road rage in 2024, while 362 were injured. Another scary reality: 65% of drivers admit to carrying at least one weapon in their vehicle.
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#2
I used to be a ragaholic on the roads until I almost caused a large accident on I-95 near Fredericksburg, VA. I was in the left lane of 95 going about 75 mph, sitting behind a group of cars. I see a red pick-up coming up fast behind me and he proceeds to tailgate me for a few miles. I couldn't speed up due to people in front of me and due to his bad driving, I sure wasn't going to get right to let him pass. I finally get so pissed, that I slam on my breaks and go from 75-50 in about 2 seconds, then punch the gas. I look in my rearview mirror and see this jerk fishtailing on the left shoulder and struggling to regain control of his truck. He eventually catches back up and starts flashing his lights, while I flick him off and proceed to tap my brakes every so often. He eventually gets right and moves on. I get home and fully grasp what i had done and how I could have impacted more lives than just his with my poor driving. Ever since, I've learned to let stuff roll off my back when it comes to other drivers.
Colleen Glim 12 hours ago
Why?! People d*e from this. Glad it was understood afterward but should not have happened in the first place. Engaging with stupid is pointless and dangerous
#3
This woman who was offended that I had my right turn signal on but wasn't turning at a red light (no turn on red). It's a dumb sign since it's an easy turn to make on red, but I happened to know a cop camps that light in a blind spot and had busted 2 of my friends for running it. She gets out of her car and is calling me names and I look back and she's driving a Jeep with the windows down, her car has her 3 young kids in it looking at her in horror. I just said "lady, I hope you get some help" and drove off as the light turned.
Ugh, some people...
"Although guns don’t directly cause violence, they dramatically increase the likelihood that any situation involving conflict will be lethal,” says Brad Bushman, an Ohio State University communications professor who researches aggression and violence. “Imagine you’re in a car and somebody cuts you off. If there’s no gun in your car, maybe you flip them off. And if there’s a gun in your car, maybe you shoot them.”
According to data from the non-profit Gun Violence Archive, angry drivers in the U.S. shot 3,095 people between 2014 and 2023. 777 of the victims didn't survive.
#4
I used to drive semi-trucks 10+ years ago, and I had plenty of experiences with road rage. I am mainly on the receiving end because people seem to thing that a 40 ton 60-70 foot long vehicle can perform like a car. I was going through an interchange and the merge ramp was 2 lanes wide. I was in the left lane because the right one goes away rather quickly. A beat-up pickup is driving right next to me the entire time. I keep wondering where he is going since the lane goes away. I am not even going fast, maybe 50 mph since it is a transition ramp, and you have to initally slow down, so he could have easily passed me, semis aren't really known for their acceleration. I figured I would slow down if he signalled, but he never did. Finally his lane starts pinching out and he is still about 10 ft behind the nose of my truck. He slams on his brakes and drops behind me. Once behind me he whips over, comes up on my left side, pulls in front of me and pulls a brake check. I don't hit him, but I sorta smirk at the stupidity. A semi can't stop very fast, and in a situation like this, the semi can ride up and over a standard car. While I would survive fine, the guy brake checking me could have not. You see a lot of stupid stuff when you drive big rig.
tl;dr: Don't brake check a tractor-trailer.
Colleen Glim 12 hours ago
A fully loaded semi takes a lot longer to stop than a car. They will squish you. The space they leave in front of them is intended to give them room to stop
#5
My friend and I were cruising in his Audi when a couple of guys decided they wanted to race us. This happens often, so we just ignored it. They kept it up for 10 minutes, we were side by side synchronized like the Rockettes. If we sped up, they sped up; if we slowed down, they slowed down. After a long stretch of road, we finally came to a stop light. They motioned for us to put the window down. My friend put it in park, I popped in a CD, and we both put on sunglasses. I played A Fifth of Beethoven at full volume, while the guys looked back at us in shock. When the light turned green, we sped off in to the night.
#6
So we're 18 and we'd just done the paintball thing (it was the early 90s, OK?) and then run to the paintball shop for supplies. We are on our way home, the 4 of us having had a nice summer weekend afternoon shooting our friends with little exploding red, blue and green blobs.
The route home is along this 2 lane highway from the nearest paintball shop to my friend's folk's place in a very affluent suburb. Traffic was pretty heavy as it was evening and people were going out for dinner and all the other things people do on weekends. We'd past a few intersections when this dude pulled out behind us.
Keep in mind this is a 2 lane highway in bumper to bumper traffic going, at most 20 mph.
Dude that got behind us is flipping the hell out. I'm in the back and I turn around to insure he's not escorting his pregnant wife to the hospital (seriously - I was in HS, I watched a lot of TV, cut me some slack). He's not. We ignore him and drive another minute or two.
He's still flipping out. Honking, flashing the lights. There's no place for us to go other than pull off into the ditch or rear-end the car in front of us. So my friend, Skippy (yeah, that's what we called him - not his real name. You guessed, did you? Good job) has had enough. Next time we're at a full stop, he sticks his head out the window and shouts, "Where exactly do you want me to go?!"
This guy loses it. He's not a big guy, but he gets out of the car and starts ... yes, chasing us on foot. Mind you, we're still IN the car. Light turns green, we creep ahead, but in one of those moments of realization we come to understand that "crawling" in a car is still pretty much top speed in a foot race. So this deranged jerk is chasing after us. We turn on to Skippy's road. Still back there. Still running (queue Cake - 'he's going the distance ... ')
Skippy slams on the brakes. Our pursuer face plants into the back of the car (which is a hatchback - so we get the full affect) and falls to the pavement.
At which point we speed home uphill on the side street, never to see Mr. Road Rage ever again.
While drivers can see red at any time of day or night, experts say the most dangerous times for road rage incidents are between 5 PM and 7 PM, particularly on Fridays and Mondays. "The summer months—July, August, and September—see the highest rates of road rage due to increased travel and road congestion," notes Siegfried & Jensen's site.
According to the legal experts, one of the most common triggers of road rage is being on the receiving end of an obscene gesture.
"Neurologists explain that when a driver sees an offensive gesture, it activates the amygdala—the part of the brain that processes threats and emotional responses. This triggers the fight-or-flight response, leading to impulsive and aggressive reactions rather than rational decision-making," they explain.
#7
I chased someone down out of pure anger for cutting me off. I followed them for miles. I’m glad they didn’t stop cause idk what I was thinking would happen. Pretty sure it was going to be physical.
#8
If by worst you mean most hilarious, here goes. My friend and I were driving to Foxwoods (casino in CT) and we missed the turn to get onto a road, so he cut in front of this guy who was in the turning lane at the light. It was nothing outrageous and the road wasn't too busy; he just kind of eased in. Mind you, we're in his car, which has a Mass plate. Everyone hates Mass drivers. So the light turns green, we turn onto the road, and this guy starts tailgating us. My friend drops it down to 20 in a 40 because this was some egregious tailgating. We get up to another light to go straight, and this guy's turning right. He rolls down the window of his *Volvo* and starts screaming at us, saying my friend needs to "learn how to drive." For some reason, anger did not prevail on our side. I just turned my head, cupped my hands together, and put them over my mouth. I then proceeded to blow air and make an obnoxious fart noise, all while staring at the guy. He sped off in his little Volvo and we laughed at how sometimes road rage can be fun if you're not the one raging.
#9
On my old commute, there used to be traffic light at the bottom of a steep hill that I often had to stop at. People in my area are pretty ballsy with yellow lights, and usually so am I. However, on this particular morning, the roads were very icy and poorly plowed, so I decided to actually stop at the yellow light, because I could, and because I wasn't sure I'd make it through the left turn and wind up where I expected to go if I hit the gas.
There was an older guy in a pickup behind me. He slammed on his horn, and then proceeded to punch it to keep beeping at me (while the light was red). Through my rearview mirror, I saw him pick up a stack of papers from his passenger seat, and throw them at his windshield, and shake his fists and basically throw a nutty tantrum.
He then followed me into my office park, where I drove around the different buildings so that he couldn't see which one I worked at. He followed me OUT of the office park, where I then drove into the parking lot of the nearby police station, and he did not follow me into there. At that point, I went to work.
Andrew Keir 2 hours ago
Did anybody go back to pick up the teddy he threw out of his pram? Nice move with the police station parking btw.
The road rage crisis isn't only rearing its ugly head in the United States... Violence and aggression on the roads is making headlines in South Africa too.
In April, a 48-year-old husband and father lost his life after being shot in a road rage incident in the country's Gauteng province. His wife was critically injured. Faisel Ul Rhehman was described as "a very good man" by those who knew him. Witnesses say the shooting happened after a small fender bender, which escalated into a full-on gun battle.
#10
I was in an exit-only lane on the freeway. A car swerved into my lane and then back to theirs, causing me to hit my brakes and drop to about 50mph. A man behind me FLEW past me in the emergency lane flipping me off. We met again at the red light at the offramp. I looked over at his car and he was screaming at me through my window flipping me off and stuff.
He chased me off the offramp for a couple miles to a friend's house and blocked my car in screaming for me to get out and fight him. Turns out he was probably 55 years old, 6'3" and easily over 250lbs, driving a 3500 Dualie truck with Arizona plates. So I slowly get out of my car and he starts rushing over to me when he realizes my friend just came outside to greet me with a pleasant aluminum baseball bat.
A lot of yelling occurred and he eventually calmed down and left. We went inside and smoked our faces off :D.
Andrew Keir 2 hours ago
A pleasant example of how violence makes facts - and legality - un-necessary. If the gentleman in the truck had had a gun with him, you wouldn't be telling this story with such aplomb. You were in the right but the winning point is that you are not currently in the casket.
#11
I was driving home from a meeting on an old winding highway. The speed limit was 35, but being an 18 year old in a car with a lower center of gravity I had little interest in adhering to the limit. In front of me was a car driving 25. No problem, I can deal with that for a minute as I knew there was an opportunity to pass them coming up. A minute later the median line lets me know passing is legal and moderately safe (I never pass illegally on this highway, I'm not that stupid) so I downshift and pull into the other lane. The other driver started accelerating too. This I never understood, why do you now have to speed up when you didn't mind driving under the limit for who knows how long before you knew I was going to share the road? We both got up to 75 MPH before I decided my pride wasn't worth a head on collision in my tin can car and I pull in behind the other car. At first all was well, the other driver was keeping up a decent clip and I figured I'd be able to get home at satiate my powerful desire to eat. Then the other guy decided to brake check me. Thankfully we had just crested a hill and I had looked to see no opposing traffic. I swung rather haphazardly into the other lane and flew by the guy.
tl;dr someone decided to be a jerk with no cause leading to high speeds on windy roads.
#12
I live in Alaska and sometimes we get these weird warm winds in the middle of winter called Chinooks. The temperature can be 20-30 below when you go to bed and 40 above when you wake up. This creates water on top of ice on the road and driving can be pretty treacherous.
One morning commute during a Chinook, this guy merges behind me and traffic is crawling at 5mph for 15 miles. He was tailgating so close I couldn't see his headlights and he kept tapping his horn. I was driving even slower since I didn't want to get rear-ended by him if the traffic in front of us stopped suddenly.
I changed lanes when I could, just before a stop light and this guy gets out of his truck and walks to my passenger door and just before he opened it I leaned over and locked it. He yells at me and punches my window. I was on a beer league softball team at the time and I grabbed my bat from the back seat and opened my door and he turned and skitter-ran over the ice back to his car.
I was just so WTH over the whole thing. I don't even know what I did XD.
Andrew Keir 2 hours ago
I do remember in the UK one harsh winter we had snow and ice on our road, I was doing maybe 20 mph (~32 kph) in my four-wheel-drive, and the guy behind took this personally. He pulled out into the other lane (no oncoming traffic) and whizzed past. At the next corner we watched him lose traction, spin, and go off into the hedge. I had to use cadence braking to avoid him. Everyone in the line of cars got out, we towed him out, and left - without a word spoken. I didn't trust myself to speak ...
"After failing to resolve their argument allegedly through swearing and a fist fight, they escalated the dispute to the use of guns, sadly, in the presence of children who had to witness their father [passing away] right in front of their eyes, and their mom getting serious injuries during it," reports South Africa's Mail & Guardian.
The country's National Prosecuting Authority later announced that it would not be charging the man who took Ul Rhehman's life, as he had acted in self-defense.
#13
A guy was tailgating hard and pointing to the shoulder, trying to get me to pull over so we can fight. I didn't know what upset him so much. Regardless, I brake checked him a few times, gave him the finger and then slammed on the gas pedal.
My Toyota Echo blasted off at a porcupine's nonplussed pace, engine roaring like a schoolgirl. I tried to pass the car in front of me on a curve, but soon realized an oncoming SUV was going to head-on my economy-sized grocery getter.
I swerved and braked, leading to some fancy fishtailing straight into the guard rail. I spun across the road, my car totaled. Luckily, no one got hurt. Well, except my pride.
As the dust settled around me, I looked up and the tailgator was at a complete stop, pointing and laughing.
#14
I used to ride motorcycles. One day a dude who was texting while driving decided to change lanes without using a blinker or even checking his mirrors. His driver side door bumped into my leg and almost sent me over the bars. We pull up the the next stop light and he rolls his window down. I don't let him say a word. I just yank his mirror off and threw it in his face and said, "Use this!!" I hate myself for that.
#15
Too many, i live in lebanon.
lastest one was a Hyundai van driving very slowly flirting with a girl on the sidewalk. an M5 and a black e30 comes behind him like a rocket, and almost hits the van, it gets better. after 2 minutes of honking the perv in the van is still driving really slow. the M5 squeezes around and blocks the van, 2 guys come out of the m and beat the van owner and trash the van.
Andrew Keir 2 hours ago
Violence solves everything - to the total satisfaction of the victor. The others, not so much.
At the heart of road rage, say some experts, is frustration.
“Frustration means somebody blocks your goal,” explains Bushman. “When you’re in a car, you have a definite goal — to get from point A to point B as fast as you can. Anything that interferes or blocks that goal can increase the likelihood that you’ll behave aggressively.”
But when you feel your blood start boiling after yet another loser cuts you off in traffic, you have to ask yourself, "Is it really worth it?" What to do instead: turn on some calming music and take a few deep breaths.
Remember, your ultimate goal is to arrive wherever you're going, alive and in one piece.
#16
Was once pulling up to a light that was red and was pulling onto a two lane highway, the other direction of highway is allowed to make a U-turn at the light when the arrow is green (It is normally a turn lane but u-turns are allowed). I figured that I can make a right on red into one lane while anyone making the u-turn would have the other lane. As I make the turn someone was also making a U-turn and went wide enough to go into my lane and almost hit me. After we both hit the brakes he was livid, I was a little shaken but continued on and pulled into where I work right up the road. He chased after me and pulled up right behind me so I had no where to go and I am not even processing what is going on. He comes up to my window and starts screaming at me as if I just attempted to k**l him. He goes on for about 30 seconds and is mad that I am not yelling back so he spits into my window and races off. I was only 18 at the time so I was kind of scared as I only weighed 130lbs soaking wet, luckily a coworker saw it happening and called the cops, nothing came from it though.
#17
Driving through Michigan, there was construction on the interstate and the left lane was ending. The right lane was backed up a long way, so me and a few other cars were staying in the left lane. I know a lot of people would consider that to be a jerk move, but the left lane was open for literally 2 or 3 *miles* from the point where the "Lane Ending" signs started.
Anyway, this one guy was trying to get over to the right, but since it was so backed up, he was stopped halfway into the lane. And because he was stopped, and the left lane was wide open ahead of him, the rest of us just went around. He had his window rolled down and was leaning out shouting and waving his fist at everyone passing him.
A little farther on, two cars pulled partway out of the right lane when they saw us coming, and straddled the line so that no one could pass in the left lane. The car ahead of me actually had to swerve onto the shoulder to avoid hitting them from behind.
Andrew Keir 1 hour ago
... or the car ahead of you could have just slowed down and fit in with everyone else. But, nooooo...
#18
Had my first road rage experience today. I guess it was my fault as I was a new driver.
So I'm behind one car at 4 way stop, and opposite there are 2 cars. The car in front of me has right of way, so he goes, I then stop at the stop line and let the car opposite go, he goes, and then I go slowly after him, but the car behind the opposite car decides to take his chance and go in front of me, I slammed on my brakes which led me in the center of the road open to oncoming traffic. There was oncoming traffic, and they could have easily passed me and technically they had right of way but I just thought let me go since I'm in the middle of the road, so I go safely THEN SUDDENLY this guy who had right of way comes infront of my vehicle at the next robot, GETS OUT of his car and tries to open my door saying something in a mad voice, the drivers behind me was telling this angry man to leave, he then shouts at all of them saying something like "People drive the way they feel, I wont take this", he then sped off and left.
If i hadn't experienced this, I wouldn't have learnt. I guess everyone has a road rage experience, I was scared cos I'm skinny and 19 years old.
Andrew Keir 1 hour ago
'People drive the way they feel, I won't take this' - words from the heart, but not necessarily from the brain.
#19
So this person was tail gating me while there was people in front of me. What do you want me to do? PHASE THROUGH THE CARS?!?!!?
Anyways when traffic did speed up it turned to a one lane. And I intentionally went real slow just to annoy the tail gater. I was only gonna do it for like.... 20 seconds.
Dude gunned it and went on the shoulder to pass me illegally. He hit the curb and wrecked his front right wheel.
Then I drove off and flipped him off.
I could not imagine just how pissed off he would've been after that.
What I did was fairly mild until I flipped him off after he wrecked his car. That was probably a tad much. Won't lie tho I had the biggest grin on my face when I flipped him off.
#20
Okay, so this story takes place on my first time ever driving on the highway. It also was my 5th day ever behind the wheel. I was also piloting my first car: a ML500 V8 with AMG exhaust, styling, intake and slight tune making over 300 horsepower along with AWD. Great combo.
So, I was going across the border because Jersey gas is dirt cheap, and afterwards go on to merge onto the highway. I get up to speed, get in the right lane, and go 65. Then my dad showed me cruise control, etc. But eventually made me just get used to maintaining speed with just my foot and all that. So not too bad.
Cue the massive 18-wheeler coming up from behind. There was a guy in the left lane not actively passing me, so we were at a standstill. The 18-wheeler flashed his brights at me ( wut ) so my dad told me to brake a little so the left lane guy could get over and the 18-wheeler could continue. I do that, but sadly, my dad hadn't driven that car often, and I was a new driver. Those brakes were **touchy**.
So instead of dropping from 65, to 63ish to let this guy pass. I slammed down to 55. This tractor trailer whips to the left and starts to pass. My dad said it was fine and just keep going, but I felt really bad. I opened the window and waved my hand attempting to say sorry. This guy just stares at me and gives us the finger. Okay, I probably deserved it.
So now he gets in the right lane and starts to go 55 - 60 uphill. My dad tells me to check and pull to the left lane and calmly go by him. ( Fun Fact: The ML500 never did anything 'calmly' it always sounded like someone was sprinting from hell when you got anywhere near the throttle ).
So I start to pass and this guy puts on his left blinker. I kind of froze up and he started to merge over. I didn't want to get hit so I started hugging the right shoulder. He pushed me so more than 50% of my car was dragging in the median. My dad grabbed the wheel and told me to brake. The guy tried to run us up the road.
I wish I could say it ended right there, and in retrospect, it would've been better. But my dad was never a very polite person when it comes to being ran off the road. He told me to catch up. It wasn't hard to do in that car. We caught up and passed him. He told me to merge over to the right. Our exit was coming up. This guy was beeping and flipping us off.
My dad calmly reaches in the back seat and picks up something. Opens up the sunroof. Without a word throws it up. I just saw in my rear view mirror 3 golf balls fly backwards into this guys windshield.
Then we got off the exit.
disclaimer: I'm not saying my dad was right, but it was scary to be ran off the road, so it's whatever. Happened a year ago, and it was quite the introduction to the driving world.
#21
I personally didn't witness this, but it was in the local newspaper. Two drivers, a man and an old lady, pulled over to the side of the freeway after some traffic problem. The man went to the lady who is still in her car, picked up the dog in her lap, and threw it onto oncoming traffic.
Heather Menard 12 hours ago
Okay if this happened to me. I would have had the momma strength and picked him up and th re ew him into traffic
#22
A couple stories:
1. One guy (in a small cargo van) was stopped at an intersection with a minivan behind him. Light turns green. He doesn't move. The minivan honks. The guy throws it in reverse and *smacks his car into the minivan behind him,* then takes off. Left his bumper (and plates) lodged in the minivan though, so he's most certainly cooked legally.
2. Trying to merge onto a highway. Guy isn't going fast enough. So I speed up to merge ahead of him. He sees me, and speeds up. Whatever. I slow down and try to merge behind him.
He slows down to meet my speed. I can't get on the road, and I was almost out of ramp.
I floored it (thank the automotive gods for the V8) and I ended up cutting him off at 100km/h. In hindsight I could have slammed the brakes and got in behind him, but oh well. It's over.
Or so I think. Now he's pissed. I can see his face now; he's a middle-aged dude wearing a suit. His face is redder than his tailights. He swerves towards me.
For reference, I was driving a 2003 Silverado Z71 Offroad. He was driving a Euro sedan that I could have knocked around like a hockey puck. He swerves so much my side ends up in the gravel. I was (somehow) able to keep my truck strait. That's when I decided I've had enough.
We swerves again. I don't move. His tired squealed as he jerked his wheel back to his lane. He tries it again, I stand my ground, and almost loses control trying to avoid me.
I had half a notion to swerve back, but seeing how this was going, I had a feeling the cops would get involved, so I kept driving clean. Good thing I did. He swerved in front of me and slammed on the brakes. I smack into his bumper. He spins out and ends up facing the wrong way. OnStar detects a collision, and police are immediately dispatched.
He storms out of his car and walks right up to my window, slamming on it with his fist. I keep the doors locked, tell the nice OnStar lady what's happening, then turn up my radio to tune out the rabid businessman.
The police arrive and begin taking statements. At first it looked like I was going to get charged (because from the bumper damage it looked like I was following him too closely and failed to brake), but when I gave my story in collaboration with how livid the dude was, they held off charging either of us.
My truck's bumper was dented, but this guy's back bumper was squish, squashed, and almost ripped off. I did my thing with insurance. I drive my truck away; his has to get towed.
I get a call from the police the next day.
They've decided not to charge me because the genuis had a dash cam recording his own incriminating actions. They also dropped the ticket for driving recklessly merging because he "forced me into driving as such in that situation," but I think he was just a jerk and the cops wanted to spite him.
Andrew Keir 1 hour ago
I don't take sides at a rat-fight. The idiot-counter is currently at 2 ...
#23
I was a passenger in my friend’s car.
She was in the clear and so she went to pull out of the car park, however, suddenly and unexpectedly, a black Holden Commodore Ute (a notorious car here in Australia renowned for being owned by reckless drivers/hoons) zoomed around a corner and down the road resulting in her unwittingly cutting the other driver off. We were on a 60 km/h road but that car was easily going 90. The driver was not happy, he tailgated us the entire length of road, blaring his horn and flashing his lights, as I glanced into the side mirror I could see how red he was in the face, he was screaming and yelling and honestly just making a complete and utter fool of himself.
Eventually we pulled up to a red light and this bloke took it upon himself to pull up beside us and approach the vehicle. She quickly locked the doors and sat still facing forward, paying no attention to the manic lunatic who was now at her window tapping furiously. He began kicking at the door and attempting to open the door from the outside, needless to say, we were both terrified for our lives. Thankfully, the lights weren’t red for too long and so as soon as they turned green she sped off, never looking back. He wasn’t fast enough to get back into his car to follow us and so that was the last we saw of him.
We didn’t leave that situation without a small victory. While this psychopath was busy throwing a tantrum at the driver’s side window, I peered at his vehicle and noticed it was a company car, I took note of both the name of the company and of the vehicle registration and googled the business on my phone. As soon as we were back at my friend’s house she called the business and asked to speak to the manager directly, she described in great detail her ordeal and the manager assured her disciplinary measures would be taken. We never followed it up, but, our hope was that the company car was confiscated off of that loon who shouldn’t have been on the road in the first place.
Honestly, road rage is not worth it and the fact that it’s as prevalent in our society as it is terrifies me.
#24
Me and my girlfriend were leaving her house in separate cars. At the stop sign, she and a van arrive at about the same time. She's to the right of him (thus having the right of way) and goes first. Though her wheels already crossed the line and she was in motion, the guy in the van floors it and nearly hits her. She keeps going, he stops and honks at her. I was behind her, saw this, thought it was dumb but whatever.
She's at a light waiting to turn left when the guy flips a wild (and wildly illegal) U-turn. He pulls up next to her, window down, and starts yelling at her. She doesn't care and keeps her window up. I pull in behind her and get out of my car and basically tell the guy to shut up and find something better to do than yell at a girl less than half his age. He tells me hecan see in my eyes I was "scared". He eventually drove off, never getting out of his car.
#25
I live off this busy road with a blind curve which everybody speeds around making it hard to judge where to pull out. I got half my nose out in traffic and this idiot comes barreling around the bend and shoots into my lane. He was coming straight at me. I had to jam the brake and nearly spilled coffee over myself. Worse yet is, this guy was in front of me all the way into work.
You know when people weave in and out of lanes like they're Dale Earnhardt, but they only end up slowing traffic down because they can't drive. He kept getting stuck at the same lights I was stopping at. Then he's start weaving again. I kept seeing his grin peer over his seat and leer at me. I don't like driving behind people like this so I pass in front of him. Of course this gives him permission to think it's a race and he starts cutting me off. I finally decide to call 911 and get this maniac off the road. I lost my concentration and backended an old lady pretty hard.
She had a granddaughter with her who wasn't wearing a child seat. She didn't survive her injuries today because I hit her grandmother's truck.
*I'm sorry*.
#26
Normally I never have anything to share in threads like this because I can never remember a specific example but this just happened to me yesterday.
It's night and I'm on my way to my friends house. There's an on-ramp coming up so I change to the middle lane of the 3 lane road to let the other cars in. As soon as I'm in the other lane I get hit with those new HID lights from the car behind me.
Now I know that he doesn't have his brights on but it's still bright so I reach up to flip the rear view into the dark mode and as I bring my hand down I turn it around and give him the finger for a second. I know he will see it because his lights are bright and traffic is tight so he's not far from my bumper.
Not 5 seconds later he zooms up right behind me so close I can't see his headlights anymore, then falls back, does it again a few times. Finally the traffic clears up enough that I can change lanes and leave this guy to his rage but he doesn't give up, he stays right behind me flashing his lights and trying to intimidate me or something.
Just as we're leaving the construction zone he pulls past me and abruptly does a fake lane change trying to get me to flinch or react, then immediately cuts the other way across now two lanes of traffic to make his exit.
This was one of the worst road rages acted towards me and it was amazing how simple it was to set it off. Just a middle finger for a second or so. I imagine he gets that all the time which is why he was so touchy.
Randomosity 11 hours ago
Those lights should be banned. There have been times where I literally couldn't see when a car came from the other way and all I could do was hope the person in front of me didn't hit their brakes.
#27
I brake checked a car who was inches from my bumper tailgating me while I was driving through Connecticut. This was a 3 lane highway and there was no one in the left lane so I lost my cool. They (obviously) had to slam on their brakes and lost control, spun 360 degrees around and (luckily) didn't hit anyone before pulling off to the shoulder.
I've chilled out a bit since then and I feel a little bad about it.
#28
The usual, flipping off, yelling, swearing. Someone threw something hard at my window on the highway once, I was so pissed, I almost called the cops to report them for reckless driving, but I couldn't get their license plate.
#29
I broke a person's nose after he punched me and gave me a black eye first.
My gf heard it the break with the window rolled up.
I punched it twice. It was all in slow motion. I saw his eyes roll to the back of his head the first time. Them I'm like, hey, I can do it again. so I did. And I punched him in the back of his head and that's when his gf said he's had enough. And I was gonna punch her too cause she grabbed my by my collar and it was my favorite shirt.
During this time i was in my way to a midterm and when I got there I was a mess. But I aced it while the adrenaline was still rushing through me.
The next day, I went to San Francisco and had a black eye in all my pictures.
#30
I'm not saying I nonchalantly followed them for approximately 3 miles to their destination, a mall as it turned out, and let the air out of all their tires.
Again, I'm not saying this happened.
#31
At a light, two lanes turning left, I'm in the right one. A lady in the left lane goes to cut around the person in front of her, effectively almost broadsided me and almost pushing me into a barrier (had I not slammed on the brakes). I *raged* out.
Chased her down and got beside her at the next light. She casually gave me the finger as I pulled up, but as I got closer to coming level with her, her daughter's terrified face came into view in the passenger window. I never felt so bad in my life - she didn't have anything to do with what was happening. From then on, I promised myself to try and chill on the highway more.
Can't remember where I heard it, but we're all on the highway together. I try to be quick to forgive, wave/apologize when I mess up, and assume anyone driving crazy *really* has to take a poop.
#32
The other day I watched a corolla swerve into a semi truck after passing on the shoulder because it was blocking the left lane. The truck kept swerving to avoid him and looked like it was about to tip over. I almost wanted the truck driver to just let the Corolla hit him and let Darwin have his way...
#33
Driving about 140km/h as i was late picking up my gf at the time i slow down for the guy in front of me as he was passing another car. The guy goes slowly and eventually clears the car. I wait behind him or him to pull back on the right, but he never does. He keeps his pace on the passing lane. As i start to get impatient, i flash my brights quickly for him to pass. He then slams on his brakes and i swerve to the right to narrowly miss him. I then pull up beside him and make eye contact. He is furious. He starts flipping me the bird and saying stuff im glad i couldnt hear. He was getting so mad that i started to laugh. This gets him even angrier and makes me laugh harder. He then swerves his vehicle at mine while going about 120 km/h! His car was literally a centimeter away from hitting mine! So i slow down and get his plate number and report him to the RCMP. I don't what happened to him, but my only hope is that his stupid silver prius is rotting away in some junkyard with this jerk walking to places now.
Andrew Keir 1 hour ago
Don't rely on that. Most police are uninterested in 'he said, she said' traffic cases. They have more to do than referee squabbles.
#34
A taxi driver lost it because I wouldn't pile into a blocked intersection trickling through a construction zone. It was literally blocked solid with cars.
He said (more like exploded) things to me with a thick South Asian accent. I shrugged and drove off.
#35
I can admit I’m reall petty when it comes to certain situations on the road. For example when I’m going 80 in the fast lane (witch is technically illegal in California) and the person gets on my tail wanting me to go faster. So I slow down to 65…. But anyways this day I wasn’t having the best day. I was in the car with my friend and I was in the left turn lane to turn into a street. I proceed to turn as I didn’t see no cars coming. All of a sudden a car is coming down the street going maybe 55–60 mph down a 40 mph street. The car was going so fast it had caught up to me when I was turning and had to brake. And guess what? This car had the nerve to honk at me. So I got triggered and as soon as I completed the turn, I flipped a u-turn and followed the car. Caught up to the car at the next stop light and rolled down my window and started yelling “what? You were honking at me. Your the one who was speeding down the road. Wanna day something to me now?” Person just kept looking straight and ignoring me. When the light turned green the car went straight and I turned right. Not one of my best moments and I told my friend in the car with me I’d refrain from doing that again because it could’ve been much worse if it escalated.
#36
It wasn't really a road rage incident, it was a pedestrian rage incident at an intersection.
The light was green for me and as I was about to cross the street I noticed that the car to my left was in position to make a right turn.
The driver appeared to be distracted because he was talking to his friend in the passenger seat.
As I crossed halfway past him, he immediately stepped on the gas and nearly ran me over.
I leaped onto the side of his front hood and rolled off to the side to avoid getting hit, while yelling at him to stop.
He refused to make eye contact and drove away as quick as he could.
#37
Screamed "I HATE EVERYBODY" as loudly as I could. Kinda made me feel better.
#38
I always speed up when a charger or mustang rev their engines beside me and if they're trying to pass me I make sure they can't.
Loosey Goosey 7 hours ago (edited)
If someone wants to overtake you, just let them. Getting into a pissing contest just creates more problems. Speeding up to stop someone overtaking you is very dangerous. It's not your job to enforce the laws of the road.
#39
Swerved aggressively at a poor Chinese woman on the freeway. I could see her screaming as I passed. That was when I was 18. I've calmed down a lot. Nothing is worth the hurry and stress.
#40
Got cut off by someone not signaling going through and intersection, got in the other lane, put my foot down just so I could fly up next to them at the light and flip them the bird. I still feel extremely bad about it to this day, if you're on here I apologize.
#41
I flipped someone off, it made it worse lol.
#42
Some dude once followed me home, I didn't even do anything! I stopped at the beginning of my (fairly long) driveway, opened my door, and just stared at him, and after a minute or two he drove off. Looking back on it, really sad I didn't let him follow me off-road somewhere. Would've been hilarious.
Loosey Goosey 7 hours ago
Op is clearly not a woman. No woman would have found it "hilarious" if a stranger started following them.
#43
I generally don't get into any sort of road rage to be honest, the most I ever get is pedestrians shouting or gesturing at me because my cars are loud and they think I'm speeding. Although I can remember these pretty light incidents happening recently:
The most recent and one I can remember is probably a woman in a Range Rover getting angry because she thought I cut her up, so she was flashing lights at me and gesticulating madly that I was a jerk etc, so I literally just stopped my car and stared at her in the rear mirror. After about 30 seconds she looked on the verge of tears and just mouthed the word 'sorry', so I drove off.
Another was some guy in a van thinking I was some jerk with a loud Merc, so he got out of his van at some lights and asked me to fight him (WTH right?). At the time I had 3 friends in the car with me that he couldn't see because of tinted windows. I'm 6'3, two of my friends are 6'5 and 6'6 and the other is about 5'9, all built. I rolled down all 4 windows and he got straight back in his van and looked straight ahead.
#44
18 year old goes fast to try and leave a gas station before an old man in a mini-van. Kid hits the passenger side door of said mini-van. Old man gets out of car to check the damage as the young punk turns off his van and gets out screaming and ready to swing. Idiot forgets to put car in park, and car rolls backwards and smashes the headlight of someone who is getting gas.
30 seconds, two accidents, lots of money. Stupid hot head.
#45
It was a two-lane road, late in the afternoon. My car was trailing behind a small compact vehicle.
She was going about 30 mph in a 40 zone.
I got to the side of her and start passing her in the passing lane.
A lifted pickup truck came barreling out of nowhere he must have been doing 70+ and slammed his brakes just short of my bumper and laid on the horn for a solid 3 seconds.
He really had somewhere to be apparently.
I held my middle finger up behind me and started waving it side to side. (Shame on me I know - I hate aggressive drivers though.)
As we passed the lady on the right, the guy immediately cut to the right lane, accelerated and pulled up right next to me going 40ish also, I looked right and he was waving a pistol in his window while mouthing something to me, and then accelerated forward.
After that, I thought, I should probably stop escalating these situations. It could be bad.
Hopefully mom doesn’t read this answer.
#46
You can cut me off when changing lanes. You can pull out in front of me. You can speed past me. None of these things bother me because I can see them and I have a break pedal and accelerator. I can react to what I see.
But I am extremely freaked out and my adreniline shoots sky high when the driver behind me honks their horn at me. When my emotions are raging, I feel like I am not in control of my actions.
Here is an example. I am sitting at a red light, the first in line in my lane waiting on the light. There is a second lane next to me and both are designated right turn only lanes. The light is still red as I reach for my radio dial to change stations. I no sooner touch the dial and the guy in back of me is laying on his horn. I look up and see the light is green, but the car in the lane next to me has just started to move and the horn of the guy in back of me is still blaring !
Without even knowing what I am going to do, I turn off the ignition, remove the keys, and turn my hazard lights on flashing. I get out of my car and go raise the hood. I see the second lane moving, but there is a line of about 5 cars behind me. I tinker around under the hood for a few seconds, pretend to be wiggling the battery cables and stick my head out from under the hood and wave my arms foreard and back indicating with my flashing lights for traffic to go around. I look at the guy who had been honking the horn and he sees me and throws his hands in the air in disgust. I shrug my shoulders at him and start smiling inside as I see the moving lane almost empty out and watch gleefully as the cars from the back of my and Mr. Impatients lane start changing into the lane that is moving. I keep waving traffic on. The light remains green and at last, Mr. Impatient finally as the last car, pulls around me and goes through the intersection, glaring at me as he passes by.
My job is done here. I close my hood, enter my car and start it up and proceed through the intersection, totally relaxed now, giggling under my breath and completely satisfied.
#47
I was driving through London late on a Sunday night, heading west. There was a car which was swerving across the lane towards me, and I blew the horn and managed to get past as I thought it would be best to be in front than behind it. This car chased me through the very busy traffic, and I was hoping that the lights wouldn’t turn red as I wasn’t quite sure what was happen if he caught up with me.
Anyway the lights did turn red, he stopped behind me, got out, walked to my car and yelled at me through the window and then hit the roof of my car, leaving a dent in it. I decided to hightail it out there when the lights went green, and lost him.
The next day I was doing a course which included a section on anger management. I thought it might be an ideal experience to bring up as it was still raw in my mind. You can probably guess what happens next. The lecturer walked in, and yes – it was my man. I was too cowardly to say anything, and if he recognised me, he kept quiet about it.
#48
I lived in Albuquerque, where there was a lot of drive by shooting and crime in general, so I was always a little on my guard there.
One morning I was driving on a 35 mph 4 lane city street. I cruised through a green light without any yellow. Just as I was in the intersection a man came barreling through his red light, turning right in front of me. On two wheels, I swear.
I have never stomped on my brakes so hard, and braced for a collision. Luckily my brakes were up to it, and I stopped about two inches from his car.
With all the adrenaline in me, from both my anger at the driver and relief I wasn't hurt, I laid on the horn. For ten or twenty seconds. I might have mouthed a few bad words and waved my middle finger, I don't recall exactly.
Next thing I know the guy is getting out of his car, coming over to mine, and then putting his hands on the hood and rocking my car with all his might.
I came to my senses, put my Chevette in gear, and backed away from him, then drove away as fast as I could. He followed me at first, so I drove to the police station, scared that he might find out where I work or live. Also, if he shot me I figured there would be reliable witnesses there :p
I'm still here, so it worked out OK.
#49
This road rage story is so absurd-I still can’t believe it happened. I’m a huge car fanatic so when I saw this lime green Dodge Charger in my rear view mirror, I was pretty much in awe. The car had racing stripes and black detailing, alongside a custom license plate (EZ LIME). The road I was on was about to merge the two lanes into one but it redivided in about 50 feet, after the light. It was no big deal.
The lime green charger tried to pass me but didn’t make it. I didn’t change my speed (actually I think I dropped it a little because I wanted to make sure there were no cars in my blind spot). The adolescent behind the wheel did not approve of me not paving a clear path for him so he made an obscene gesture with his middle finger.
The lane redivided and he turned straight into a neighborhood (all that fuss to go home?). I was so confused and still am about this little act. It’s absolutely absurd to get road rage over something so small. It makes me fear how he must act on the freeway, where changing lanes and passing is so much worse.
It just goes to show you can drive any car and still have no class.
#50
I'm sitting in the fast lane in the Sepulveda Pass on the 405 freeway in Los Angeles, a notoriously busy stretch of road, in bumper to bumper traffic. The guy behind me honks, gesturing to get out of his way. Now I generally follow the rule not to drive faster than the car in front of me; physics and all. I'm not quite sure what he expects to achieve unless he expects every car to move out of the way so he alone can travel unabated. This continues for a couple of miles until I allow a car to make a lane change in front of me. Well, for him this was the last straw; now he's really gonna be late. He honked and pounded his steering wheel until we went our separate ways when the freeway split.
#51
I got one! This one’s a gem! Me and my parents decide to go to our family in California for Christmas. Mom had shoulder surgery before we left and it’s illegal in our state to drive wearing a sling. We assume it would be a law going through Arizona and Nevada and Cali. So I helped dad drive, just taking turns every 4 hours or so we’d switch drivers. Not a bad drive just 2 days, 1 stop in flagstaff. Now I love California, and I know it’s notorious for crazy traffic, but we were like in Needles. A small small town like 3ish hours away from San Bernadino. So the traffic is light and we’re on a four lane road. Two coming, two going. The speed limit is 75, we had a giant pick up truck with Texas license plates (gag) pass us. Well he didn’t pass us, he tailgated until he was fed up, but he wanted to chat, and I was driving, and I had no intention of giving him that satisfaction. He’s keeping even with me, honking his horn, rolling his window down screaming, trying everything to get my attention. Dad’s had it with this jerk, but I told him to calm down, that I had it under control. I slow down. He slows down, desperate to talk. So I give it to him. I pull over. He pulls over!!!!!! Now Dad has his cell phone out, ready with 911. I told him don’t call unless he had too. I got out. Now i’m 4′9. I’m short. I’m a girl. So when I got out he was shocked at the height I was at, and i’m 21. So he begins to accuse me of driving under age?! I asked him to please stop trying to cause an argument and leave our car alone. He calls the cops lol. two state troopers pull over and find out this guy is wanted for theft in arizona lol. Best story ever
Andrew Keir 1 hour ago
I think you won this one. You stayed calm and didn't retaliate. Yu have my respect.
#52
I have lots of road rage episodes since there's ALWAYS BAD TRAFFIC JAM in Jakarta.
The worst was when I stuck for an hour and only went as far as 500 meters. I took my gym clothes out of my bag and just shoved my mouth with it then scream as loud as possible. Then I broke down into tears cause I was so tired, and reached a point where I didn't know what to think, say, nor feel. After that I laughed out loud like I just heard the most hilarious joke in my life ever.
I almost left my car in the middle of the road, but when I realized there were no public transports around, and it was far from my destination (like still 20km away) and there's no pedestrian walk either, I decided to just karaoke in the car and planning some excuse for not going to work the next day cause I was so tired.
#53
I was literally less than a mile from home. I pulled out of a store lot safely, but there was a guy behind me speeding, 50+ on a 40 road. So he either had to slow a bit or switch lanes. Instead he crawled onto my bumper and blew his horn. I ignored that so he does around me, cut back and tried to brake check me.
I saw what he was doing even as he was passing me so i had slowed and then merged into the left lane. Passed him safely.
He wasn't done. He then sped up cut me off and again brake checked me. Missed this maneuver because he was In a blind spot. I was barely able to brake and miss him. Few feet ahead I moved into a left turn lane and lost him.
He has some tiny subcompact car. I was in a Ford 150 lifted on oversized tires. I wouldn't so much have rear ended him as I would have rolled over him.
#54
I used to be quite the rageoholic in my youth. Not that the people I would rage at didn't deserve scorn, but perhaps not quite so much as I gave it. Mostly I kept it tempered to screaming at them when there's no way though could hear me (windows up, etc, etc.)
The one thing that REALLY cured (or at least tempered) my road rage was going from being strapped inside a two ton vehicle with airbags to riding *on* a quarter ton with nothing but a helmet and some leather protecting me.
Learn to let things go really fast once you realize that if you rage you'll be a dent in someone else's vehicle.
Okay, so I've finally given up on the rage thing. I'm on a bike, and I'm just trying to keep safe from cagers. I'm headed to work and some dumb female in a large SUV comes into my lane with no signal. I bang on my horn, swerve close to the shoulder straighten up, and brake and manage to avoid becoming a smear on the highway.
When I recover I'm right behind this particular woman. She happens to get off at my exit. So I'm still behind her. She happens to take my next turn, so I'm still behind her. So from her point of view she had just cut off a large biker in black leather who was now following her.
I was cracking up to myself 'cause I'm just glad I'm alive and just heading to my parking deck to go to work. But I can see her staring at me in the review mirror and decided I just had to mess with her. The next section of road is terribly timed and you end up from red light to red light, never more than a block or two at a time. So I start revving my engine really loud right before the light turns green, and each time she shoots forward to the next light. Just before my parking deck I gunned my engine about two seconds before the light was going to change and like pavlov's dog she goes shooting through the light only to get pulled over.
#55
This was about 30 years ago when I was 25.
I had a 1963 Plymouth Valiant. It had buttons on the dashboard to change gears. Pretty cool.
But even though it was old the sucker would just keep running.
Except for the car had a problem with the rotors on the engine. If the car began to idle, it would shut down. So I had to keep revving the engine while at a stop light.
So one fine day I drove up to a red stop light. Revving the engine as usual, a little old lady, must have been a good 80 years old, pulled up beside me, also waiting for the light to change. I was lost in my own little world. When I finally looked over to her. She was giving me a glaring stare. Flames coming out of her eyes to sear my flesh. I had no idea what I had done to upset her so much.
Suddenly, the light changed to green. I watched as the little old lady GUNNED her engine and peeled out of there, leaving me eating her dust.
It wasn’t until afterwards that it dawned on me that she thought I was trying to drag race with her.
My one thought was, “Right on! You GO Grandma!!!”
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GalPalAl 4 minutes ago
I remember seeing a young man maybe in his twenties talking about a road rage incident. He had his gf in his car and got mad at someone driving near him. He has a gun with him. Decided that he is going to shoot at the car for being angry. The woman driving had a child in the backseat. The bullet hit him and he died from the injuries. The young man felt bad after the fact. What part of carrying a gun around to go anywhere seems like the best idea to handle your inability to keep your cool? So stupid and unnecessary to take someone's life for something trivial. I hope he gets molested and tortured every day of his life in jail for that.
GalPalAl 4 minutes ago
I remember seeing a young man maybe in his twenties talking about a road rage incident. He had his gf in his car and got mad at someone driving near him. He has a gun with him. Decided that he is going to shoot at the car for being angry. The woman driving had a child in the backseat. The bullet hit him and he died from the injuries. The young man felt bad after the fact. What part of carrying a gun around to go anywhere seems like the best idea to handle your inability to keep your cool? So stupid and unnecessary to take someone's life for something trivial. I hope he gets molested and tortured every day of his life in jail for that.
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