Drivers talking on a mobile phone is the number one cause of road rage in Essex and across the rest of Britain, according to new research.
Over three quarters (76%) of British motorists said seeing drivers using a phone whilst at the wheel was the most annoying sight on the roads. It also puts motorists at greater risk, with one in four car crashes linked to drivers using a phone1.
Also making the top 10 were being tailgated (74%) and road users not indicating (70%). Potholes - of which there are over 2 million on British roads2 - and bad parking also appear on the list compiled by used car supermarket Carcraft.
The UK's top 10 causes of road rage
- Drivers on their mobile phones
- Being tailgated
- Road users not indicating
- Potholes
- Slow drivers
- Traffic jams
- Bad parking
- Middle lane drivers
- Roadworks
- Cyclists
The findings are the result of a poll, using the UK's first road rage gauge, an online test which asked 2,000 drivers from across the UK to rate how different events made them feel while driving3.
The Road Rage Gauge also identified that drivers in Leicester are the angriest in the country, with a 25% higher anger rating than the rest of the country. Brighton and Bristol residents came in second and third.
The UK's 10 angriest cities to drive in
- Leicester
- Brighton
- Bristol
- Cardiff
- Stoke on Trent
- Coventry
- Preston
- Norwich
- Liverpool
- Nottingham
Colin Houlihan, CEO of Carcraft, said: "Driving for many is no longer an enjoyable experience and is now just a means of getting from A to B.
"It's particularly interesting that the typical causes of road rage such as roadworks and middle lane driving are lower down the list. However we're sure the growing menace of potholes will only infuriate more motorists as we approach winter and the conditions of British roads continue to worsen."