New Yorkers are known for their impatience, but nowhere is their aggression more prevalent than on the road.
The city’s reputation of having the angriest drivers in the country has just been backed by the findings of a recent poll.
New York took the first spot for the first time, unseating the four-year reigning worst road rage city of Miami. The poll surveyed 25 metropolitan areas. After the Big Apple, came Dallas/Fort Worth, Detroit, Atlanta, and Minneapolis/St. Paul, respectively. Miami ranked seventh.
Why all the hostility behind the wheel? This remains unclear.
“The real surprise to me is that there is no geographic way to break down road rage. It is very much on a city-by-city basis, as opposed to geographic area.” Michael Bush, of the marketing and consulting company Affinion Group, which conducted the survey, told Reuters.
However, eating, texting, speeding, and tailgating by other drivers are all factors that contribute to an increased stress level behind the wheel. People who are angry, stressed or running late are more likely to take out their frustration on other drivers.
In return, everyone gets more aggressive. As a reaction to rude or bad driving by others, people surveyed admit they flail their arms, cut people off, curse and hold down the horn for an extended period of time just to name a few behaviors. Only 7 percent of people say they call the police to report the driver and even fewer — 1 percent — admit to slamming the car in front of them (fortunately).
On a friendlier note, Portland and Cleveland (YWN shoutout to “Steinway”) were both listed as having the most pleasant drivers.
(Source: NBC New York)
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8 Responses
Would that be Portland, Maine, or Portland, Oregon?
Is that why so cab drivers try to run me off the road?
There are just TOO MANY PEOPLE in NY! Not to justify uncivilized behavior, but when it takes 3 or 4 or 5 changes of a traffic light to get through an intersection, people ARE going to get frustrated.
come on, this article i feel is mostly exaggerated! not all NY drivers are angry! most aren’t, just some get a little impatient, which i don’t blame them for! There is a lot of traffic and hazardous justifications
I moved from the midwest to NJ in the fall, and these people are maniacs! What I like even less is that defensive driving means driving like THEM. But I’m not convinced NY/NJ drivers are worse than Boston drivers…
mushka perel yenty – If you can justify road rage, then you have been in NY too long. Didn’t some Rav recently say that Brooklyn is no place for a Jew?
Thanks for the recognition there YWN! Just so you should know – it took my wife and I a few years to make the transition to being more ‘pleasant’ on the road! Coming from NY, its difficult to adapt to the ‘out of town’ mentality behind the wheel. Definitely more relaxed, but frustrating at times, especially when in a rush to get somewhere. Editor, next time in I’m in the neighborhood I’ll stop by and honk – if I can remember where the horn is!!
~Steinway
I’m surprised Lakewood isn’t on the list!