ARSF supports a new law, similar to that which is imposed on hooning, one that categorises the severity of the incidents and dictates levels of penalties.
ARSF founder and CEO Russell White said that we should treat those who commit road rage with the same contempt that we do with any form of violence, be it in a bar or on the street.
“The shocking reality is that simple acts of violence can have tragic consequences, particularly when these melees play out on busy streets and put themselves and other road users at risk,” Mr White said.
“Currently road rage falls within various parts of different laws, but setting out a clear statutory expectation of behaviour and consequences would help improve the statistics,”
“The Hoon Laws, in Queensland and New South Wales for example, are very effective in making it clear what isn’t acceptable and what the penalties for unsafe behaviour are,” he said.
The ARSF is also encouraging the public to report incidents to the police.
“It’s okay to upload to social media, but if anyone captures an incident on their phone or dashcam, it’s important to also report the crime to the police immediately so that they can take steps to protect the public.”
ARSF research released earlier this year revealed that the top three frustrations for drivers were tailgating (32%), failing to indicate (19%) and drivers going slowly in the right lane (14%).
Mr White encouraged drivers to limit behaviour that may spark frustrations in others but said that violence was never an appropriate response.
“It’s also highly likely that these day-to-day frustrations are the tipping point for some road rage incidents, so we as individuals need to consider this whenever we’re on the road and we should do our part to be courteous to other road users,” he said.
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