How to stay safe in a road rage incident, according to experts

Everytown for Gun Safety researched road rage incidents involving guns using data from Gun Violence Archive and found that road rage shootings are more frequent now than before the pandemic. In 2023 in Georgia, 2.16 people per 1 million residents were shot in road rage incidents, according to Everytown’s website.

Giving people grace and understanding while on the road, instead of assuming they intentionally endangered or inconvenienced you, can help prevent road rage disputes from beginning, according to Dwight Hennessy, a psychologist who has studied road rage and traffic stress.

“We should be thinking about this thing more as a social interaction, and recognizing that in this context, people make mistakes — including us," Hennessy said.

Here’s what police say you should do if you are caught in a road rage incident.

Do not engage with the other motorist

If you’re involved with an incident with another driver, stay calm and avoid engaging further to prevent escalation, especially if shots have been fired.

“Don’t attempt to follow the other person,” Winderweedle said. “Avoid that person. Get away from them.”

Call 911

Don’t take the situation into your own hands. Call the authorities and let them handle the dispute.

“The best thing to do is just call 911 immediately,” Winderweedle said. “Find a public place to go to wait on the police.”

Get a description of the other vehicle and driver

Any details you can provide the police about the other vehicle and its driver will help the investigation. Make a note of the make, model and color of the car.

“If you can see the driver, that’s going to help officers to identify the actual suspect in the incident,” Winderweedle said. “Just because you have a tag of a vehicle, that means we can locate the vehicle but doesn’t mean the officers know who exactly was driving.”