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Back to Basics on the Road 

is an interesting and relevant article by Keith Howes for the Cyprus Mail; reproduced at DSA by their kind permission.

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According to a report sponsored by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, an average of at least 1,500 men, women, and children are injured or killed each year in the United States as a result of "aggressive driving".  As might be expected, the majority of aggressive drivers are relatively young, relatively poorly educated males who have criminal records, histories of violence, and drug or alcohol problems. Many of these individuals have recently suffered an emotional or professional setback, such as losing a job or a girlfriend, going through a divorce, or having suffered an injury or an accident. It is not unusual for friends and relatives to describe these individuals as "odd," "disenfranchised," or "a loner". 

Monash University (MUARC) produced a contract report for the Australian Federal Office of Road Safety, titled 'Driver Aggression: The role of personality, social characteristics, risk and motivation.' View the full report as a PDF.

An article on the FiA website shows the European view of aggressive driving in the USA. Click here to view it. 

Cheryl Jensen wrote an interesting article on Road Rage for the American Woman Road and Travel website. Read it here.

'A Line on Life' is an online article, about Road Rage, by David A. Gershaw, Ph.D.

'Road Rage -- A Deadly Threat,' by Bob Van Elsberg.

At another extreme, whenever people wish to learn about advanced driving, the misconception exists among potential trainees and many so-called instructors that this should consist of track sessions to learn high-speed driving and evasive maneuvers, but people who think in this way are totally missing the point. Truly good driving -- in the context of safe driving on public roads -- is almost entirely about having the correct attitude, not about having an array of racetrack tactics at one's disposal. Racing drivers are brilliant on racetracks but that is where many of their skills should remain. Some of those skills are positively dangerous if used on public roads.

At a more basic level, but still linked to this vital aspect of attitude, the majority of drivers have several bad habits and this is best illustrated by an opinion poll carried out by the 'Drive for Life' campaign. You may read either our summary of the figures or the full report.