Road rage ensues after angry woman makes improper left turn then gets hostile

Driving a care requires many things, including an understanding of the law in that jurisdiction. It also requires patience and maturity. Unfortunately many drivers lack one, or all three of these things. Mistakes are bound to happen, and few of us are perfect drivers, but occasionally, drivers who are unskilled and lack knowledge create dangerous situations. Things are made worse when these drivers are overcome with anger and they aggravate the situation.

Cars were approaching a 4 way stop from three directions in this video. This is a small city in Ontario, Canada, and the law is clear at intersections controlled by stop signs in all directions. Cars approaching and completing a stop may continue as long as it is safe to do so. But they are required to yield to any vehicles already in the intersection. When stopping simultaneously, they are required to yield to vehicles on the right. Left turning vehicles are also further obligated to yield that are going straight. These rules are set out in the Ontario Highway Traffic Act and the rules of the road as published by The Ministry of Transportation Ontario. The driver's handbook also provides ample instruction on this for people who are studying for their driving licence.

There should be no misunderstanding when approaching an intersection like this one.

The white van is heading south and he reaches the stop line slightly ahead of the red car to his left. Both make a stop at almost the same time, although he has a slight lead. The northbound pickup truck is ahead of both and he properly proceeds straight through. The white van properly moves forward and crosses the stop line, then brakes slightly as if he is hesitant. He continues though and he has stopped first, entered first, and is to the right of the red car. He is also going straight while the red car is turning left. The left turn places further obligations on the red car to yield for safety.

But as the white van is in the middle of the intersection, the driver of the red car seems to notice him and she brakes and lays on the horn angrily. The white van reacts by swerving and then returns to the roadway and heads south. It appears as if the red car could easily have slowed momentarily to avoid any risk of collision. But instead, she drives forward as if to make things more dramatic.

The driver of the red car should have realized at this time that she is actually the one to blame for this "near collision". Instead, she accelerates to catch up with the white van. The next vehicle going south has a dash cam and the driver sees the beginning of a minor road rage incident. He can hear the horn blaring as the red car runs right up on the van's tail. She is determined to make her point by creating noise and following unsafely.

As the two vehicles stop for a red light, the car with the dash cam pulls up alongside the red car. Wanting to shed some light on her error, this witness politely points out that the van had the right of way. The woman beside disagrees and holds up her middle finger while making faces. The witness points out one of the applicable sections of the Highway Traffic Act and begins to drive away. The woman in the red car can't be seen on camera but she is now very enthusiastic with her finger and her facial expressions. The witness can't believe her attitude and driving, along with her eagerness to antagonize the other driver. He tells her she looks like an idiot. Getting in the last word, she yells something quite impolite at the helpful witness.

When things like this happen on the road, it is made much worse by an aggressive driver making unsafe and angry movements to intimidate the driver perceived to be at fault. But, when the aggressive and angry driver is actually the offender, it is downright embarrassing. Road rage is never acceptable and it is never helpful.