July 24th 2024.
Next on the agenda, we have a rather startling incident that occurred on the M58 near Wigan on July 5th. It all began when a white van seemed to make a wrong turn and ended up in the wrong lane. As it attempted to switch lanes to avoid re-joining the motorway, a nearby white car also swerved to maintain its position in the lane, resulting in both vehicles veering onto a grassy verge. Little did they know, this would not be the end of their encounter.
Behind these two vehicles was Darren Waite, who was driving his HGV at the time and had a dashcam that captured the whole incident. As he watched, he saw the driver of the white car lose his cool and start throwing punches through the van's window. But to his surprise, when the van door flung open, the driver who stepped out was a man twice the size of the angry driver. The larger man then proceeded to deal three powerful punches, knocking the other man to the ground before grabbing his legs and kicking him.
Darren, who was in no mood to deal with a brawl, attempted to calm the two men down and even gave them his number in hopes of settling the matter peacefully. Amid the shouting, he noticed a young child, no more than 10 years old, crying loudly in the white car's passenger seat. This seemed to cool off the larger man, who drove off, but not before the other driver took one final swing at him through the open window.
As a father of five, all Darren wanted was to get home and see his children. He was shocked to witness such a scene, as he had only seen such incidents online before. Road rage, defined as aggressive or violent behavior exhibited by a driver in response to a traffic altercation, is unfortunately on the rise. According to a survey by the road safety charity Brake, more than four in 10 drivers have experienced road rage in some form, be it verbal or physical.
In fact, in 2022, there were 3,208 reported incidents of road rage to the police, a 40% increase from the previous year. The county of Lancashire saw the biggest spike in aggressive driving, with a staggering 198% increase, followed by West Mercia with a 56% increase. While the exact reason for this rise is unclear, psychologists suggest that high stress levels outside the car could be a contributing factor.
But most of the time, it all boils down to bad driving etiquette. Tailgating, or driving too closely behind another vehicle, is the top cause of road rage, making up more than a quarter of reported incidents. Other triggers include being cut off, someone driving slowly, braking suddenly, honking, not using turn signals, or not allowing emergency vehicles to pass.
As for the incident on the M58, Darren recalls how the driver of the white car immediately launched himself at the van driver, throwing punches through the window. The van driver then stepped out, and the two began fighting, eventually rolling around on the ground. Not wanting to get caught up in the mess, Darren decided to intervene and break up the fight. The driver of the white car was in for a surprise when he saw the size of the van driver, who clearly emerged as the winner of the scuffle.
Darren did not report the incident to the police, and neither of the two men reached out to him afterward. But he couldn't help but think how things could have escalated and someone could have gotten seriously hurt or even run over. It's a scary thought, and it's important for drivers to remember to keep their cool and practice safe and courteous driving to avoid such situations.
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
