Here's What to do if You're a Target of Road Rage

With more vehicles on the road since 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic led to stay-at-home orders and closures nationwide, experts and police believe road rage is at an all-time high.

Call the police if you see an aggressive driver putting others in danger, and give yourself time to reach your destination so you’re not rushing on the road. People should avoid changing lanes at the last minute and should always use a turn signal to avoid involvement in road rage, according to Dallas police.

Here’s what police and Art Markman, a psychology professor at the University of Texas at Austin, says people should do if they encounter an aggressive driver or road-rage incident:

Don’t escalate the problem

Oftentimes in road rage incidents, there’s an escalation, Markman said. One driver does something, which prompts the other to respond, and it escalates from there, he said.

Dallas police said people should “never tailgate” and should avoid honking their horns when possible. People should refrain from making an obscene gestures or acting angrily on the road, Markman said.

“It’s hard to calm somebody else,” he added. “The behavior you can control is your own.”

Try to get out of the situation

If the situation escalates, Markman said people should try to get away from the aggressive driver. People can slow their car or turn on a side street or into a crowded parking lot to distance themselves, he said.

“Do as much as possible to signal that you’re not interested in engaging,” Markman said. “You’re not trying to do something that’s turning this into a race — that’s turning this into something dangerous.”

For more, visit our partners at the Dallas Morning News.