Road rage

The Advertiser: The fear stalking our drivers :

"More than half of the 9775 respondents to the survey, published in The Advertiser in June, said they had experienced road-rage in the past six months.

While 51 per cent – 4985 people – said they had been subjected to road-rage in that time, the rate was highest among the 18 to 24-year-old age bracket."

I am not in the 18-24 age group and I feel really sorry for anyone who is harrassed or threatened on our roads because it's horrible and it does stick with you and it does frighten you. A while back I was harrassed by "Maniac Man". He used to sit on my tail , yell abuse, wave his fist and then scream past me and then get REALLY angry if at any time I needed to overtake him. I got to the stage where I didn't and my adrenalin was pumping so much I was becoming a driver who couldn't concentrate. One morning I arrived at work so shaken I decided I'd ring the police the next day if he did that to me again. His age? About 60 something. He was a maniac. As it turned out I didn't see him for a week and then he drove in the sedate manner of a 60 plus person and I figure they had sorted his medication out. Then there was "Metro Man". He used to wear a trilby hat and drive a Metro. He too used to sit on your tail and beep if you didn't go as fast as he wanted you to. I ain't going over the speed limit and there is another lane. Why do they not use that? The next one was "She Woman" in the brand new red ute and the trendy sunnies. She'd roar out of nowhere, face chiselled out of concrete, flashing her lights and carrying on and pushing you along. I have worked out that if you wiggle a tad on the road and slow down , they roar past you yelling abuse and that's it at least for that day. Now, I haven't had drivers of that ilk for months. I still hear them down this street when it rains and I am not going out in the pouring rain to see who. Always late at night. On the freeways I use they are heaps better and have been downright courteous and we have got that nice manner of South Australian drivers back who look at things logically on the road and use their manners. So I am really sorry to hear that this road rage stuff is still occurring and it is severe. I do lock my car doors though now and I didn't used to. You just don't know. So I laugh when people talk about losing my civil liberties. I have already lost them. I lock my door, I lock my car door and I cannot freely walk in my own area. Put me in other places and I can do all of those things and more.