Worsening road rage cases

While the riding public had been advised to watch out for abusive taxi drivers who either overcharge or choose to ignore them in favor of other commuters who can pay higher or whom they can victimize, caution should also be observed by the taxi drivers who are also vulnerable to abuse.

There’s a viral video that popped up on social media about a female employee who castigated middle-aged taxi driver, Virgilio Doctor, in the middle of the road at Congressional Avenue, Quezon City. Apparently, the taxi and the car ridden by the female employee bumped into each other, causing no damage but was enough to set off said female employee’s temper.

With a man in tow, said to be her husband, the female employee got outside of the car and began berating the taxi driver and even gave him a resounding slap in the face.

The taxi driver claimed that his blood pressure went up after the slapped, and he was seen on the video to have staggered out of his taxi and sat on the road while still being berated by the woman.

The woman, after getting heavy criticism on social media, went on Facebook to apologize to Doctor.

This latest road rage incident mirrors a similar case involving Edward Erasmo, who stopped and slammed a taxi driver’s window after the driver identified as Christopher Labor supposedly swerved into his vehicle, nearly hurting him and his wife at Mabolo Avenue, Cebu City, last October 17.

His wife also went to social media to apologize for her husband’s road rage. And just last Nov. 25, a Saturday, a civilian volunteer named Inocencio Roa was caught on a cellphone video banging onto the window of a taxi driver after the driver nearly hit him and his sister on board his motorcycle at Manuel L. Quezon highway heading to Lapu-Lapu City.

Even during the holiday season, it’s quite hard to be charitable and forgiving especially when one party had been aggrieved. And taxi drivers are by no stretch of the imagination exempt from culpability especially if there are grounds and evidence to prove that they committed a traffic infraction or had nearly hurt others with their driving.

And as warned by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) there are taxi drivers who will use the holiday season to exploit unwitting commuters into paying more or worse, bring them to some isolated areas where they can molest their passengers.

But there are those whom we believe to be honest who are sometimes taking chances with their driving and thus figure in near accidents with motorists resulting in these road rage incidents. In cases like these, it’s difficult to control’s one rage and avoid lashing out at the errant taxi/public utility vehicle (PUV) driver.

Thanks to technology and proactive social media users, these outbursts and road rage behavior can be recorded and broadcast on social media inviting outright condemnation from netizens who usually see only the results and not the cause behind these altercations.

Taking into account the possibility that their behavior can be recorded and shown to the rest of the world, both motorists and PUV drivers should keep their tempers in check and confront the offender with evidence of his/her wrongdoing rather than resort to violence.

It’s difficult to do so but it’s better to elevate their grievances to the right government agency rather than be exposed to unforgiving and relentless public ridicule and condemnation.