Over a third of British motorists shout obscenities behind the wheel

There’s no doubting most of us will experience road rage at some point in our time behind the wheel of a car — but a new survey suggests over a third of us resort to expletives when angry on the road.

When quizzed by automotive data specialists Cap HPI, 38 per cent of 1,002 drivers admitted to a potty-mouth after getting angry while in their cars. Other ways for motorists to express their fume included gestures, which 21 per cent said they commonly do, thumping the dashboard for five per cent and even increasing their speed for four per cent of respondents.

Some take a seemingly more productive and safe approach to road rage, though. Six per cent of respondents said they pull over in an effort to calm down, while three per cent also get out of their cars for a bit to cool off.

When it comes to regions, it’s drivers in Glasgow that are apparently most prone to shouting obscenities behind the wheel, with 53 per cent of respondents from the Scottish city admitting to ‘turning the air blue’. Following that, 44 per cent of Bristolians also confessed to swearing, with drivers from Birmingham closely following at 43 per cent.

Fernando Garcia, consumer director at Cap HPI, said: “It’s important not to over-react when behind the wheel of a vehicle. Many drivers resort to swearing, shouting or gesturing at others on the road but all this does is lead to greater anger and frustration.

“It’s best to remain calm and to concentrate on what is happening on the road rather than getting one over on another motorist or road user who has done something to cause a reaction. It can take a great amount of self-control to do this, but safety behind the wheel is of paramount importance.”