Is New York City’s Road Rage as Bad as Everyone Thinks it is? New Yorkers have a reputation for being confrontational, and the traffic in New York City is notorious. Most New Yorkers do not drive if there is a subway station near their destination, and tourists are astounded at the tenacity of the taxi drivers. In fact, the inspiration for Oscar the Grouch, one of the most famous ill-tempered characters in pop culture, came from a taxi ride in the late 1960s where Carroll Spinney, Oscar’s original puppeteer and voice actor, sat quietly in the back seat while a misanthropic New York cabbie kvetched about anything and everything in a gruff, whiny tone that generations would come to associate with the world’s grumpiest Muppet.
Do New Yorkers really have more road rage than everyone else, or does it just seem that way because New Yorkers are more outspoken? Road rage and confrontational driving are dangerous, just like drunk driving and distracted driving are. If you got injured in a car accident because the at-fault driver was too busy being angry to avoid a collision, contact a New York Car Accident Lawyer.
What Constitutes Road Rage?
Forbes Adviser recently released the results of a survey about road rage in all 50 states. There is no precise legal definition of road rage, but it encompasses many different dangerous and counterproductive driving behaviors motivated by anger and frustration. These are some common manifestations of road rage:
Cutting off drivers by quickly and merging into their lane in front of them, knowing that it will require them to slow down
Honking your horn out of impatience and frustration to distract other drivers instead of warning them of your presence or of another hazard
Intentionally making it difficult for other drivers to merge into your lane when they are trying to do so
Making obscene gestures or yelling at other drivers from within your vehicle
Getting out of your vehicle to verbally confront another driver
The most extreme manifestations of road rage are much less common. These include intentionally hitting another car or getting out of your vehicle and physically assaulting another driver.
New York Road Rage Statistics
Although this may surprise the mild-mannered folks who are visiting New York City for the first time, New York does not crack the top 10 states for the frequency of road rage incidents. In fact, it is number 12. 24% of New York drivers said that they frequently witness road rage, and just over 16 percent said that another driver has gotten out of a car to confront them about their driving. The top ten states are Arizona, Rhode Island, Virginia, West Virginia, and Oklahoma; in terms of general aggression, New York can eat all of these states for breakfast.
Contact A Local New York Car Accident Lawyer About Your Accident Case
A motor vehicle accident lawyer can help you if you are seriously injured in an accident caused by road rage. Contact Leitner Varughese Warywoda PLLC in Brooklyn, New York, or call (212)671-1110 to discuss your case.
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