Welcome to The Jungle -

How to hen if You're a Road Warrior ~ by Julie VEINOT

The stereotypical. Canadian is

nice, polite, and always ready to help.

Except for when they've got . 3,000-pounds of steel at their beck- and-call.

Recent polls iazout road rage isn't limited to other provinces;

Maritimers are just as apt to engage in *

territorial acts on the road as someone

from bigger provinces and cities, mak- ing University Avenue (or the parking

lots at UPEI) a likely place to witness

or deliver some form of road rage.

Not everyone can dismiss road rage as being something that only hap- pens to other people; 84 per cent admitted to one act of aggressive driv- ing in the year before a Canada Safety Council survey in the summer of 1999. of 1,022 drivers. Another poll, this time by Leger Marketing, found one in five Canadian adults have been on the receiving side of road rage.

There are 20 million licensed drivers in the country.

And they share 900,000 kilo- metres of roadway. | "The costs of aggressive driv- ing are staggering," says the Canadian Health Network. "Transport Canada reports that 227,000 people were injured in collisions and 2,900 were killed in 2002. Road collisions account for more than 90 per cent of all transportation-related deaths."

The release says there are three stages of road rage.

— Quiet nae rage involves rac- ing, competing, following too close, unsafe-lane changés and muttering to yourself.

Verbal road rage includes yelling insults, swearing, rude gestur- ing, fist shaking, horn honking and light flashing.

Epic road rage is comprised of verbal confrontations that can lead to assault, use of weapons and bodily harm or death. This, says the network, is uncommon on Canadian roads, but is most often a resort of young males and Type A personalities.

A typical road warrior feels territorial and competitive, rationalizes their own aggressive behaviour, and

- has self-righteous indignation for being wronged.

Are you likely to be a Mad rager? Answer yes or no to the follow- ing 20 questions from the Transportation Health and Safety. Association of Ontario. The more yes

_ answers you rack up, the more poten- tial you have of getting into a fight on the road. Do you:

1. Mentally condemn other drivers? 2. Verbally abuse other drivers to another passenger in your vehicle?

3. Close ranks on a highway to deny another driver access to your lane?

4. Give another driver non-verbal sig- nals (i.e. glare at them) to show them how upset you are?

5. Speed past another car or rev your . engine as a sign of frustration?

you because*you're mad? > Be 7. Tailgate a driver to pressure him/her to go faster or get out of the way?

8. Imagine physical violence against . another driver?

9. Honk or yell at someone i chro the window to indicate displeasure?

10. Make an obscene Bere at anoth- er driver?

11. Use your vehicle to retaliate by | making sudden, threatening manoeu- vre?

12. Pursue another car by chasing it because of a perceived provocation or insult? :

13. Get out of your vehicle and engage in a verbal dispute?

14. Carry a weapon in the vehicle in case you decide to use it in a driving altercation?

15. Deliberately bump or ram another vehicle in anger?

16. Try to run another car off the road to punish them? .

17. Get out of the car and ascaiil someone as a result of a driving inci- dent?

18. Try to run down someone whose actions angered you?

19. Shooting at another car?

20. Kill someone?

If any of these apply to you - especial-

ly those from numbers 17 and up - you

should seek professional help and/or

- . consider using one or more of the fol- 6. Prevent another driver from passing :

lowing tips the Canadian Health Network suggests.

- Plan your driving route in advance of hitting the road; poor driving can occur among lost motorists.

.- Keep personal or work-related prob-

lems out of the car.

- Drive with your windows up and play relaxing music in the background. (Think Solitudes over Born to be Wild unless you can control yourself.)

- Make your vehicle as comfortable as possible.

_ - Avoid eye contact with out drivers.

- If steam begins escaping from your ears, get fresh air and breath slowly.

- Keep.a safe space around your vehi- cle.

- Don't tail-gate, cut people off or com- pete with them for the road. - Give-angry drivers lots of room.

- Drive in a courteous manner: yield the right of way and give the benefit of the doubt.

- Don't take bad driving behaviour per- sonally.

- Avoid honking your horn unless nec- essary and then, only tap it lightly - no laying on it for two minutes. Ditto for the middle finger.

- If you are being threatened, don't drive home but to a public place or police station. If you have a cell phone, call for help.