Truck drivers make their living by being on the road. However, this exposes them to enraged drivers more often than the average motorist. Drivers who make decisions while in a rage are dangerous to themselves and the drivers around them. Truck drivers who prepare themselves for these challenging situations can protect themselves and their cargo.
Avoid the Situation
It’s not always possible to avoid a raging driver; however, truckers should do everything in their power to not be the person who sets the rage in motion. Adhering to basic courtesies can help achieve this. For example:
- Maintain safe following distance
- Use turn signals
- Don’t cut off drivers
- Don’t use the horn unless it’s crucial to maintain safety
Do Not Engage
It’s easy to react with anger toward an individual who is behaving aggressively on the road. However, this can only escalate the situation. Avoid shouting, gesturing, or making direct eye contact with the other driver to stay safe.
Get Away from the Rage
Aggressive driving and road rage are easy to spot. If a driver sees someone speeding up, tailgating, or brake checking other motorists, that truck driver should back off as much as possible. Brake checking in particular is one of the more dangerous road rage behaviors commercial vehicles can encounter.
A brake check involves the raging driver slamming on his or her brakes in front of another vehicle they feel slighted him or her in some way. It forces the targeted driver to slam on his or her brakes as well. This is a dangerous enough activity for passenger vehicles but even more so for large trucks. It’s much harder to stop a commercial vehicle, which can cause accidents, injuries, and even fatalities.
Brake checking also puts truck drivers in a difficult position. When rear-ended, most assume the vehicle in the back is at fault. However, with a brake check, this isn’t the case. Most also tend to blame large commercial vehicles for accidents so truck drivers need to take great care to avoid motorists in a fit of road rage.
In-cab cameras can help exonerate drivers in the event of a brake check-related accident, but avoiding the situation altogether is preferable. Training drivers on best practices for roadway safety can help them avoid these dangerous situations. If safety issues plague your fleet, DriverCheck can help. Our How’s My Driving? Program can provide training to modify driver behaviors to keep them safe while on the road. Contact us to learn more.
