ABINGDON, Md. — One of of ten drivers admits they’ve exhibited road rage and nine out of ten say they’re guilty of aggressive driving.
“Our Foundation for Traffic Safety looked at these numbers very similarly in 2016 and, unfortunately, we’ve seen an increase in most of the behaviors that we looked at so cutting people off? I want to say that number is up by about 67 percent. Honking your horn at other people is up by about 47 percent,” said Ragina Ali of AAA Club Alliance.
WATCH: AAA study on aggressive driving shows road rage is more common than you think
The results of the study come as no surprise to Maryland State Police, which recognized that aggressive driving was skyrocketing during the pandemic.
Following three road rage killings, which remain unsolved today, it formed a highway gun violence task force, which has tracked well over 200 incidents resulting in the seizure of 91 guns.
The breakdown includes 184 cases for people brandishing guns, 39 involving shots fired and a total of 79 firearm-related arrests.
“If you are ever involved in something like this, getting an accurate description of the vehicle make and model or their unique bumper stickers… even a partial tag can be helpful for investigators in tracking down people involved in these incidents,” advised Ashley Millner of the Maryland State Police.
Of course, experts say avoiding conflict is the best course of action, and if you think about trying to make better time on the road by taking chances, you should think again.
“I believe there was a study done by this police department, I want to say in Texas, and you literally save no time,” said Ali, “so as you’re racing and cutting in and out of traffic and cutting people off, you’re really not saving any time.”
