Aug 9, 2008 11:53 pm US/Eastern
Understanding Road Rage Not As Easy As Solving It
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
Road rage. It's a term we hear more and more often and now it's blamed for the recent high profile death of a federal agent allegedly at the hands of a 65 year old man in Pembroke Pines.
Investigators blame road rage for the murder of federal agent Donald Pettit. A police report says Pettit and James Wonder were acting aggressively towards each other on the road. The argument ended when the two pulled into a parking lot and police say Wonder shot Pettit.
What would cause a federal agent to fuel the fight in front of his 12 year old daughter in the car? And what would cause a 65 year old man who had never been in trouble with the law to shoot someone?
Road rage, a term used to refer to violent behavior by a driver of an automobile, which thus causes collisions or incidents on roadways. It also causes death.
Road rage was to blame in a Fort Lauderdale case nearly a year ago, when Broward Sheriff's officials said Abdelaziz Hamze allegedly smashed his minivan into Sandra Hall, trapped her body underneath and dragged her for miles to her death. At the time, former BSO Sheriff Ken Jenne called it, "the most outrageous act of road rage," he ever came across.
According to WebMD, one study suggests 50 percent of all drivers have gotten caught up in a road rage episode. Another article on geocities.com says, "80 percent of drivers are angry all or most of the time while driving. When people get angry, they lose their sense of judgment and values and let their instincts take control."
Research shows the increase in congestion on our roadways is a contributing factor to rising frustrations as many of us sit in traffic. Noise is also said to affect the way we react to tense situations. The music drivers listen to in their cars and outside noise can escalate the intensity of someone's aggression. The weather is also to blame. When it is extremely hot, as it is quite often here in South Florida, tempers also heat up. Finally, sometimes road rage ignites over race. According to geocities.com, "an average of 38 road rage incidents each year are a result of racist hate." Some mental health experts have even gone so far as to create a diagnosis for the road rage problem called "intermittent explosive disorder" or IED.
But understanding the problem doesn't solve it. The Automobile Association Group Public Policy Road Safety Unit says there are some things drivers can do to put the brakes on road rage.
First and foremost is to have an awareness of the issue, recognize the signs before they escalate and stay out of trouble. Try not to drive if you are angry. Make your car as comfortable as possible. Use the air conditioning when it is hot and listen to soothing music rather than aggressive beats.
The Automobile Association Group also says it's a good idea to avoid making eye contact with a problem driver. If that person continues to bother you or follows you, call 911 and drive to the nearest police station for help.
The group says you should lock your car doors and keep windows and the sunroof only partly open. If another person tries to enter your car, honk your horn to get others' attention.
Miami tops a recent study that named it the number one city for road rage.
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