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General Knowledge · Aggressive Drivers/Road Rage

You are being tailgated by a driver who appears to be aggressively frustrated with your speed. What is the recommended response?

1.Make every effort to get out of their way, avoid eye contact and gestures, and report the driver's description to authorities if safe to do soCorrect answer
2.Speed up to match the traffic flow ahead so the tailgating driver has no further reason to feel frustrated, even if it exceeds a safe following distance for you
3.Tap your brakes rapidly several times in a row to clearly warn them that they are following far too closely right behind you today
4.Hold your position firmly in the lane itself so the other driver eventually learns once and for all not to tailgate anyone else ever again

Explanation

The recommended response to an aggressive or tailgating driver is to get out of their way, avoid eye contact and gestures, and report the driver's description, location, and direction of travel to the appropriate authorities if you can safely do so. Awareness of how to respond to hazards created by other drivers is part of the required knowledge CDL applicants must have under 49 CFR 383.111(a)(1)(ii), but that paragraph only points broadly at "procedures for safe vehicle operations"; it does not itself specify this response, which is standard driver-safety training content rather than a codified federal rule. The other options fail for a shared reason: each escalates the confrontation instead of avoiding it, speeding beyond a safe following distance, brake-checking, or holding your ground, when the safer strategy is to disengage entirely.

Source: 49 CFR 383.111(a)(1)(ii)

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