Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Curtis Blair, who patrols Summit and Wasatch counties, said the legislation was an effort to curb the aggressive behavior.
“The road rage, in and of itself, is actually not an offense,” he said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” Friday. “What it is is an enhancement to other bad behaviors, such as reckless driving or things that escalate into assault or aggravated offenses.”
He said the road rage law enhances the penalties for road rage offenses.
“The statute kind of defines it as it's an offense that's in response to any incident that occurs or is escalated on a roadway,” he said. “And the components to it are that offense has to be done with the intent to endanger or to intimidate the other individual involved.”
But, Blair said it typically takes two people to escalate a situation to the point of road rage.
He said the best way to avoid a road rage incident is to create distance between yourself and the other party.
“Whether that means pulling off an exit to try to create space, or even pulling over to the shoulder to just see if that other party can continue down the roadway and get away,” he said.
If drivers can’t avoid a dangerous situation, Blair said to call 911 and report the reckless behavior.
Blair also reminds drivers to slow down and give as much space as possible when an emergency vehicle is on the side of the road.
“In addition to that, if the lane adjacent to you is free, you're also required, with due safety of the traffic conditions, to move over a lane and create a lane of space,” he said.
The reminder comes after a trooper’s body camera caught a near-miss on US 40 between Park City and Heber.
Curtis said if there is a vehicle on the side of the road and has flashing lights, drivers must pull over and give that car space.
