FAST AND FURIOUS: ‘TRIGGERING’ ROAD RAGE

By Praveen Kumar | NT

In a recent incident, an ambulance driver on his way  home on a bike found himself staring down the barrel  of a gun. The victim, Anil, reportedly failed to make way for  an Audi behind him to speed off.  Enraged, the driver of the car  pulled out a firearm and shot at  the biker from a moving car.  Fortunately for Anil, the man  didn’t aim right and he escaped  unhurt.

Road rage can result in dangerous consequences and while  firing a gun in Bengaluru is  unusual, it has proved fatal in  some cases. A couple of years  ago, for instance, a 32-year-old  man was stabbed to death as his  son watched, all for brushing a  couple of bikes with his vehicle  by accident. Back in 2015, the  son of film producer Lokesh  Reddy was so enraged when a  cab rear-ended his BMW that he  got into the man’s car (with him  in it) and crashed it.

As the city emerges from the  pandemic and the enforced placidity of the lockdown, it seems  road rage is worse than ever.  Bad roads, traffic jams, overtaking, drivers who refuse to stick  to their lanes, people chatting  away on their phones, driving  too slow or too fast or using high  beams at night - the reasons are  many. The failure to manage anger while driving or riding vehicles has resulted in injuries and  lives being lost. In 2017, two lives  were lost in a matter of ten days.  The son of a reputed Sandalwood star was also a victim.  Even traffic police aren’t spared,  often being attacked by motorists pulled over for traffic violations. “Driving on city roads can  be very frustrating. Especially  when you’re stuck in traffic  jams for ages,” says a commuter,  who travels long distances to  and from work. “There are drivers who go too fast, others who  go too slow because they’re talking on their phones - and aggression all around. It’s easy for that  anger to spiral out of control,”  he adds.

“Sudden provocation between two motorists results in  road rage,” says S.K. Umesh,  retired Superintendent of Police. “Such cases tend to happen  when motorists are in a hurry to  reach their destinations. It is  always advisable to use public  transport. Following traffic  rules can also help prevent such  incidents.”