Sheffield 'road rage' capital of UK according to new survey
‘The figures are a real wake-up call to the scale of the issue’
They have published figures claiming 39 per cent of motorists from the city who responded to a survey had experienced road rage in the past 12 months, the highest proportion recorded among the UK cities included in the research.
Halfords also claim the findings reveal the wider scale of anger on Britain’s roads, with almost two thirds (63 per cent) of British drivers saying they have been victims of road rage in the past 12 months and more than a quarter (27 per cent) experiencing it in the past month alone.
Liverpool (37 per cent), Leeds (36 per cent) and Southampton (35per cent) followed Sheffield among the UK cities with the highest reported levels of road rage.
The new research from Halfords is based on a survey of 2,000 UK motorists.
Tailgating– where someone drives dangerously close to the rear of another vehicle – emerged as the most widespread form of road rage, experienced by almost half (48 per cent) of road rage victims.
This was followed by dangerous overtaking (47 per cent) and shouting, swearing or threatening gestures (43 per cent).
Around one in six (16 per cent) said they had been brake-checked, while 10 per cent had been followed or chased and 10 per cent had experienced another driver getting out of their vehicle to confront them. A further 8 per cent said someone had attempted to force them off the road.
Despite the prevalence of road rage, the vast majority of victims have never reported an incident to the police, their survey found. They stated 89 per cent of road rage victims said they had never reported an incident, with the most common reason being that they did not think the police would be able to do anything (40 per cent).
A quarter (25 per cent) said they did not have enough evidence to report an incident. but 70 per cent agreed that having dashcam footage could make them more likely to report an incident to the police.
Halfords spokesperson Andy Turbefield said: “The figures are a real wake-up call to the scale of the issue. As there is no specific criminal offence for road rage, and most incidents go unreported, these new figures lay bare just how common it is on our roads.
“However, offences that we would classify as road rage are often prosecutable – especially if they involve dangerous driving or physical confrontation. The best advice is to stay calm and remain in your vehicle.”