Drivers Are Angry That New Jersey Didn’t Make the Top 10 on This List
Angry driver - 10.09.2007 (Photo by Wodicka/ullstein bild via Getty Images)
17th? Is that all? If I had to guess where we would fall on this list, I would have predicted at least the top 5. But no, according to Forbes Advisor’s Most Confrontational Drivers survey we landed at 17th on the list.
According to the survey, more than 20% of “drivers have seen someone cause an accident due to road rage.”
The survey asked for the reason the last time respondents “exhibited what might be called road rage.” The most common answer was “the other driver was driving inappropriately.” Next was “I was stressed,” followed by “there was a lot of traffic” and “I was running late.” Many blamed other drivers, but 28% said that they “never exhibit road rage.”
Which state is number one according to the new survey? Even with its beautiful views and landscapes, of all the states, Utah was found to have the most road rage.
Drivers in the Beehive State topped all others in the Union in Forbes Advisor’s Most Confrontational Drivers survey.
According to the survey, more than one in five Utahns have witnessed someone causing an accident while acting on road rage, and 23% said they knew of someone there who’d been injured in such a crash.
Seventy-six percent said they’ve been honked at by an irate driver, almost the same percentage who’ve been tailgated — and nearly 60% have gotten flipped off by other motorists.
Missouri ranked a close second on the list, with 54% saying they’ve been cut off by an angry driver. Eight percent in the state say another driver has shown them the barrel of their gun.
Colorado may have legal weed, but its drivers are anything but chilled out, as the state ranked third on Forbes’ list. Fourteen percent of drivers there say they’ve been followed by an angry motorist who’s given them a tongue lashing or a proper thrashing. Nearly half of the drivers in Colorado say they’ve been insulted or threatened by other motorists, and 52% have witnessed other drivers making obscene gestures in their fits of pique.
Oklahoma ranked fourth on the list, with 43% admitting they’ve been blocked from changing lanes. Oklahomans also tied with Alabama and Delaware as the drivers most likely to be forced off the road by another person.
Rounding out the top five on the list was New Mexico. Fifteen percent of drivers there have been followed by another driver who’s verbally or physically confronted them. Thirty-two percent of drivers there say they knew of someone who was injured by a confrontational driver.
This N.J. Downtown Is In The Running To Be Named The Best In The U.S.
New Jersey has a plethora of booming downtown areas like Jersey City, Hoboken, Cranford, Asbury Park, and many more. However, only one is currently in the running to be named the best in the U.S. and it’s one of the more low-key cities in the Garden State.
The Metuchen Downtown Alliance has been selected as one of Main Street America’s eight semifinalists for the 2023 Great American Main Street Award.
“The significance of this moment cannot be overstated as Westfield and Montclair are the only other previous winners in the state of New Jersey,” Mayor Jonathan Busch said on Facebook.
Metuchen and the seven other cities who have made the semifinals have been “recognized for their exemplary use of the Main Street Approach™ to transform their downtowns and neighborhood business districts.”
The New Jersey downtown was specifically chosen for uplifting their local business owners. “From painting the words ‘Shop Small, Shop Local’ on the railroad bridge that crosses over the town’s Main Street to using Small Business Saturday as a springboard for an entire month of promotional activities, Metuchen Downtown Alliance truly walks the walk when it comes to creating a culture of supporting small businesses.”
The site added, “The organization hosted their first retail promotion activity in 2016 with Small Business Saturday deals and prizes. The success of this event spurred the organization to expand programming to include multi-cultural celebrations, holiday contests, a winter market, and themed promotional days to appeal to early bird and last-minute shoppers alike.”
The city has also continuously supported its entrepreneurs’ growth not only during the holiday season. “Metuchen Downtown Alliance fosters goodwill and transformative placemaking activities year-round as well with quarterly member meetings, inclusive pop-up input sessions that encourage residents of all ages and backgrounds to envision enhancements to alleys and facades, and matching grant programs to assist merchants with improving their storefronts, accessing technology, and enhancing marketing efforts.”
The winning downtown areas will be announced in March during the Main Street Now Conference held in Boston, Mass.
Take a look at what other downtowns across the country are competing against Downtown Metuchen:
Joel Katz is the Morning Show Personality, Assistant Program Director, Podcast Host, Voiceover artist, audio producer, and Digital Content Writer for Magic 98.3. Joel has been working in New Jersey radio since college and started at Magic in 2002 as the Morning Show Host, “I can’t think of another place where I’d fit more perfectly; it’s just a great company with awesome people.” Joel is married to Kathleen, his elementary school sweetheart (they were each other’s first dates at age 9), shares a birthday with his oldest son, Ty, and has twins, Kiera and Liam. Joel runs at least 3.1 miles every day and enjoys playing basketball, doing laundry, saving his turn signal for when he really needs it, kissing dogs through a fence, using coasters, making that cool noise by rubbing his fingers on balloons, and chasing after ping pong balls on a windy cruise ship.
