Aggressive driving is an event that in recent years we see quite often on the U.S roads. We've all experienced it in different forms. This driving behavior is not expected to be absent from the roads any time soon.

An Aggressive driver present on the road can increase the number of waccidents. Aggressive driving behavior is especially dangerous when truck drivers are on the road . Accidents involving trucks are more deadly.

Aggressive driving plays a major role when it comes to an accident event on the road. Not only in publicized incidents of road rage but in a large number of fatal highway collisions.

The definition of aggressive driving according to The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NTHSA) is - "an individual commits a combination of moving traffic offenses so as to endanger other persons or property."

But is there a difference between road rage and aggressive driving?

Yes! There is:

Aggressive driving is a behavior that is dangerous for every participant on the road.

Road rage is most of the time an emotional reaction at the moment. You can prevent it by following these simple tips.

Who exactly can we qualify as an aggressive driver?

Most of the time men between the ages of 18 and 26 are showing aggressive behavior on the road. Also, the number of aggressive women drivers is also increasing. There is also a general increase in women on the roadways when the traffic is high at a rush-hour time.

How big is the aggressive driving problem?

State Farm and KRC Research conducted an online survey of 1,000 U.S. drivers. According to the survey, 2/3 of the (64 percent) U.S. drivers have experienced an act of aggressive driving.

Affected by aggressive driving already, a large number of drivers say their likelihood to engage in reckless driving increases during the winter holidays.

Survey Key Findings

43 percent of drivers reported that they have engaged in aggressive driving in the past three months.

32 percent of younger drivers (ages 18-29), 28 percent of middle-aged drivers (ages 30-49), and parents (30 percent) were significantly more likely to report being provoked to engage in aggressive driving around the major winter holidays compared to only 9 percent of older drivers (ages 50 and older) and non-parents (15 percent).

About half of survey respondents perceive men and women to be equally courteous when driving. When it comes to aggressive driving, however, the majority (54 percent) of drivers cite men as the most likely culprits of aggressive driving. Only one in 10 women are more likely to engage in aggressive driving. The remaining 37 percent of drivers reported men and women to be equal when it comes to aggressive driving.

The top situations most likely to make drivers aggressive are:

Traffic jams (63 percent)

Running late (55 percent)

Road closures or construction (47 percent)

Examples of aggressive driving?

• Оperating the vehicle in an erratic, reckless, careless, or negligent manner or suddenly changing speeds

• Speeding in heavy traffic

• Not using the turn signal properly

• Tailgating

• Driving above the maximum speed limit

• Cutting in front of another driver and then slowing down

• Running red lights

• Weaving in and out of traffic

• Changing lanes without signaling

• Passing where prohibited

• Illegal driving on road shoulders, in a ditch, or on sidewalks

• Failure to observe warnings or instructions on vehicles displaying them

• Blocking cars attempting to pass or change lanes

• Using headlights or brakes to "punish" other drivers

• Taking frustrations out on а motorist

• Failure to yield the right of way

Let us take speeding as one of the major aggressive driving behaviors

According to the National highway traffic safety administration speeding is one of the main factors for aggressive driving accidents.

For every third car accident speeding is the main reason behind it. In 2017, speeding was a contributing factor in 26% of all traffic fatalities.

Speed-related crashes cost the tax payer an estimated $40 billion per year.

Speed is a factor in many crashes because of the physical forces at work. It takes longer to stop a speeding vehicle. Speed prevents the driver's ability to detect dangerous situations.

The IIHS reports that crash severity is directly related to speed. If the speed of the vehicle increases by 50 percent the crash damage will be double. The increased force is the reason for severe injuries and fatalities. Seat belts, airbags, and child safety seats are less effective at high rates of speed.

Speed limits are being used for the safety of every participant on the road. You need to always take into consideration the weather conditions and adjust your speed. By doing so you prevent accidents from happening and you keep every driver around you safe.

NHTSA created guides and toolkits to help spread the message about safe driving. Tips on what you can do if you encounter an aggressive driver on the road are also included.

But how exactly are all these behaviors are affecting the other drivers on the road?

According to another research conducted by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, millions of drivers engaged in the following angry and aggressive behaviors during the previous year, including:

Purposefully tailgating: 51 percent (104 million drivers)

Yelling at another driver: 47 percent (95 million drivers)

Honking to show annoyance or anger: 45 percent (91 million drivers)

Making angry gestures: 33 percent (67 million drivers)

Trying to block another vehicle from changing lanes: 24 percent (49 million drivers)

Cutting off another vehicle on purpose: 12 percent (24 million drivers)

Getting out of the vehicle to confront another driver: 4 percent (8 million drivers)

Bumping or ramming another vehicle on purpose: 3 percent (6 million drivers)

What's Causing the Increase in Aggressive Driving?

Dangerous driving is on the rise-as you as any driver has noticed in the last years. The factors that are contributing are:

Longer commute times,

Increase in congested roads

General decrease cultural empathy.

According to the NHTSA, traffic fatalities and injuries due to road rage incident could increase by 50% between 1996 and 2020. There are a lot of accidents that are not reported. This brings us to the conclusion that aggression is even higher.

This increase in aggressive driving is no more just data from a statistics report. It's deadly. The American Automobile Association (AAA) estimates that 56% of accidents involve aggressive driving. One study found more than half of all fatal crashes involved unsafe driving behaviors.

Don't be a Victim of Aggressive Driving

Cutting-off. When you are going to merge, make sure that you leave a lot of room. Do not forget to use turn signals before making your move. In case someone cuts you off, give them the appropriate space to merge.

Driving slowly in the left lane. In some cases, you will be driving at the speed limit in the left lane. There will be vehicles that will want to pass you. Make a maneuver to the right lane and let them by.

Tailgating. Make sure that you have at least two seconds between you and the car ahead. If you see that the car in front of you is driving slowly and you can't pass, try to leave more space between the two vehicles. The headlights of the car behind you should be always visible in your rear-view mirror.

Gestures. If you see a reckless driver avoid gestures as much as possible. Keep your hands on the steering wheel and drive calmly.

Be cautious and courteous. Try to avoid using your horn. Always use your turn signals and allow drivers to merge.

Don't engage. Do not let the anger of the other driver affect you. Try to stay calm and assess the situation and act accordingly.

Steer clear. If you see an angry driver on the road make sure you leave them plenty of room. If the other driver tries to intimidate you try to make the distance between you as big as possible. Do not follow them or try to engage in a physical brawl.

Avoid eye contact. Eye contact can be a trigger for the angry driver on the road. Avoid it as much as possible. If they start to follow you try to call the police and drive to a place where there are plenty of people. Do not get out of your car and do not drive home!

Adjust your attitude and slow down. Always take a deep breath and try to adjust your attitude when you are behind the wheel. Always be positive while on the road and give yourself extra time to get to your destination.

How to put a stop to aggressive driving?

Being the fleet manager you have to pay close attention to how aggressive driving is influencing your drivers. Observing how the drivers' behavior is changing when they are exposed to road aggression and how they are reacting. You need to intervene in a timely matter to prevent the deadly consequences of aggressive driving.

What can you do?

• You need to pay close attention to the drivers' stress levels. If their stress levels are high it is more likely that they will drive aggressively.

• Make sure that there are no scheduling issues that can put extra pressure on drivers.

• You need to be the person who will show your drivers how to handle their aggressive driving behavior. Educate them that they need to learn how to dial it back. Take a deep breath and relax.

• Motivate your drivers to slow down. After all, speed is the main reason for road accidents. When you drive fast your reaction time is more limited. Your drivers shouldn't be speeding and driving at the maximum speed limit.

• Driver fatigue can be the reason behind poor decision making. As a fleet manager, you need to pay close attention to this.

We can't stop aggressive driving as a whole. But we need to learn how to raise awareness among drivers. encourage them to prevent aggressive driving as much as possible. Helping our drivers while they are on the road should be a top priority.

You have seen the bad driving habits so many times if you stay on the road for a longer period.

The truck industry is like a living organism that keeps the USA economy on the move. You always think that while you are on the road most professional drivers will know what they are doing. Some of them have bad driving habits that we will explore.

So what exactly are these bad driving habits that we find amongst the truck drivers? Where do they come from, and how we can prevent them?

What are the bad driving habits that we see most often?

Fatigue and being alert on the road

• Being fatigued is one of the most dangerous events that can happen while driving your truck. According to federal statistics, driving fatigue is responsible for 13 percent of large truck accidents in the USA. Drowsy driving can impact your driving performance and sometimes end up in a fatal crash.

• Thanks to modern technology our ways to communicate had increased tenfold. Being a truck driver safe driving is your top priority. Driving and texting/talking on the phone is also one of the most common accident reasons. Every fleet manager should recognize the danger of using cell phones while driving. Implementing procedures for safer communication is a must to ensure the driver's safety.

• Never assume an uninterrupted right of way at an intersection.

• Unsure driving is also a bad driving habit. Pretty often experienced among the younger drivers, it is something to be wary about. 

• Steering with one hand.

Non-Defensive Driving Habits

• You can see bad defensive driving skills on every road. Truck drivers should always be aware, because of the sheer size of their truck and their exposure.

• Lazy driving styles - impacts response times in the event of emergencies. Also, invite complacency into the truck cab.

• If your style of driving is lazy it can harm your response time. Always make sure that you are aware of your surroundings and be alert.

• Speeding is also a pretty common bad driving habit. In their attempt to earn more, drivers do not pay attention to the speed limit signs. Pretty often go over the limit.

• Always plan - assess the situation on the road and be ready to react. If your driving skills are solid, always pay attention to the other participants on the road. You never know in what condition are the drivers on the road.

• Poor observation - always be aware of your surroundings. There can be a driver on the road under the influence of alcohol or a hazard on the road. 

• Blind spots - always make sure that you know where they are and are aware of them

• Indicators, hazards, flashlights, hooter - communicate on the road to alert other drivers.
• Aggression - related most of the time to tight working schedules and stress. 

Inappropriate driving attitude 

• Truck drivers' attitude towards the other drivers on the road needs to be appropriate. Every driver needs to take each trip seriously always making sure that they deliver goods in a safe matter.

• A pre-trip inspection is something that a lot of drivers are failing to do. 

• Inability to focus on the task ahead, because of distractions or some other reason.

Behind the steering wheel behavior 

• Seatbelts fastened behind the drivers back to switch off the warning buzzer.

• The hand resting on the gear lever.

• Re-setting on-board display messages while moving off.

• Pinching the steering wheel between your legs to set your hands free.

• Driving while crossing arms

Other bad driving behaviors:

• Rapid acceleration - doing this will put tension on the engine and will you will waste a lot of fuel. Because of their size trucks need to speed up slow and build up speed.

• Truck idling - according to Argonne National Laboratory the trucking industry loses around $3 billion from fuel consumption while the trucks are being idle. 

• Hard braking - The drivers need to practice defense driving and they have to avoid hard braking.

• Using brakes when going downhill - Applying the brakes when going downhill increases the temperature of the brakes. If they are applied for longer periods friction is created. The performance of the brakes is reduced. Useful advice here is to downshift let the engine braking take over.

• Improperly warming the vehicle - If the temperature outside is lower than 32°F you need to warm up the engine for 3 to 5 minutes. By doing so you prevent unnecessary strain and tension.

• Underinflated tires - the reason for flats or blowouts, decrease the lifespan of the tires, fuel waste, and increase the risk of an accident. Always check the tire pressure and inflate tires to the standard. 

What are the reasons for the bad driving habits in the first place?

• The main reasons behind bad driving habits? Drivers never go through defensive training. Most companies cut the training budget. 

• Driving coaches do not have the appropriate skill level. They do not teach the new drivers the required skills.

• Overconfidence is part of poor driving habits. The driver thinks that he/she knows all the roads and they pay less attention to their surroundings.

• Drivers' behavior changes if they see that another driver on the road is driving recklessly. Companies can counter this by showing the drivers what is the correct attitude when they are driving. That will tempt them less to follow a bad driving pattern. Appropriate training in this area that would impact safety on our roads. We need the culture to be adopted holistically.

• Adopting bad driving practices from peers and little or no consequences for poor driving performance.

• Humans test their limits by nature - so do truck drivers.

• Common ailments and illnesses contribute to bad driving.

Truck size is also a formal reason for bad driving habits

The actual truck size is not the problem. It is the driver that did not get their license properly and they did not receive adequate training. A truck driver needs to pay more attention when they are driving a bigger vehicle. If they did not get the proper defensive driving skills the vehicle size will play little to no role if an accident happens. The younger drivers start with smaller size trucks. Once they become confided in their driving ability and they later move on to bigger size vehicle.

How can the trucking industry change improve and detect bad driving habits?

Defensive driver training - should be a prerequisite before receiving a Code EC or C1 license. Drivers should pass the existing K53 first. After that, they need to drive a Code B for at least 3 years crash-free. Next is to undergo Defensive driver training before issuing their heavy-duty driver's license. Companies need to set in place effective testing to determine driver skills. If needed assigning improvement courses is the proper course of action. They should include - Provide embedded knowledge training and effective Defensive Driver Training. The first one improves understanding of the truck. The second one improves understanding of the road.