Aussie drivers say Australian roads have never been more dangerous

I drive for a living, but lately, being on Australian roads feels more dangerous than ever - and I’m not the only one noticing.

OPINION: I don’t know what’s going on at the moment, but it seems like half of Australia has forgotten how to drive, or maybe they never learnt.

Every week, I’m in a different cars for work, from American muscle vehicles like the Silverado to a cute Corolla Cross. But lately, it feels like no matter what I’m behind the wheel of, I’m a moving target for bad behaviour, road rage and a total disregard for basic driving etiquette.

On a typical day this week, I saw a Jeep mounted on a concrete highway divider. You read that right, not next to it, not against it, on top of it while leaning against a car, it was like an off-road adventure gone wrong. A few days before that? A truck collided with a school bus. The same week, a car flew across three lanes and T-boned someone trying to merge.

You might think I’m exaggerating, but I’m not.

Australia’s national road toll is the highest it’s been in years.

Aussie drivers are fed up with reckless driving on Australian roads. Picture: Supplied

As of this month, 1,329 people have died on our roads in the past year, a 3.3 per cent increase compared to the same period last year.

These numbers are no surprise when you witness what is happening on Australian streets.

This morning, for instance, I was in a Toyota Corolla Cross, cruising along the freeway at 99 in a 100 zone, in the middle lane, just listening to good music. That was apparently too much for the truckie behind me, who decided that tailgating me within an inch of my rear bumper was the best way to say hello. He sat there flashing his lights. I think that’s the polite way to tell me to get the f*** out of his way, I didn’t.

He then sped up in the left lane, overtook me and slammed on his brakes. Nice one, mate. You won what? An extra five metres? A false sense of masculinity?

More than 1300 lives have been lost this year on Australian roads. Picture: NewsWire/ Gaye Gerard

Five minutes later, I’ve got a P-plater in a ‘90s LandCruiser crawling up my tail.

Here we go again. I move over this time, because clearly today I’m a rolling doormat, and as he speeds past, he gives me the finger like I just insulted his beautiful, beaten-up LandCruiser.

Let me write this again …he gave me the finger for doing the speed limit in the middle lane.

I’m sorry, when did being a decent human on the road become something to be punished for?

I began my research, I called a few friends and started scrolling through chat groups.

I’m not the only one fed up. Drivers are saying they’re too anxious to drive at night, or the moment they see a truck with a semi trailer, they pull right over into the left lane, and some even avoid the freeway altogether.

Reddit threads on Australian driving have exploded lately with fed-up drivers venting.

For instance, Thomwas1111, who recently moved back to Australia from Denmark, said, “The absolute state of some of the drivers here is impressively shit compared to there. Zero patience. All rage.”

Knewell82 lost it over bad merging:

“The one that shits me the most is people doing 60km/h on a ramp and only speeding up to 100 once they’re actually on the freeway. It’s so much more dangerous trying to merge with a 40km/h speed difference.”

It’s getting so bad that some drivers admit they’ve changed how they drive.

Reddit threads on Australian driving have exploded lately with fed-up drivers venting. Picture Emma Brasier

MiserablePiano5211 wrote:

“I leave a huge gap in front of me for trucks and psychos, because if they don’t see me, I’m the one who’s f*****.”

Others go even further, SkelerAries admitted they park far away from the shopping centre just to avoid the “shit driver who can’t reverse without hitting something”.

Then my favourite, Rodza81, who dropped this iconic summary of Australian roads:

“Rule 1: Assume everyone is trying to kill you. Rule 2: Speed cameras aren’t for safety. Rule 3: Most drivers never bothered to actually learn the road rules.”

He’s not wrong, some Aussie drivers don’t signal anymore, they cut across lanes, they tailgate, speed, swerve and treat road rules like they don’t even exist.

When something goes wrong? “It’s the other guy’s fault”. Of course it is.

Also, why are these people on the road? How do they have a license?

I don’t mean to generalise, but I’m going to, because it is always the same people. It’s the lifted ute with a massive bullbar, the 4WDs, it’s the grey HiLux with one headlight and zero care. It’s the P-plater doing 140 down the Monash, or the truck driver who just loves being a bully.

Just last year, my colleague David McCowen wrote a piece similar to this topic it was about how drivers in compact cars are treated with less respect on the road. How he was bullied driving a MG 3 hatch.

So question for all you bullies - where the hell are you all going in such a rush?

If you’re consistently risking your life, and mine, to shave two minutes off your trip, maybe the issue isn’t traffic, maybe you’re the issue, poor time management or perhaps poor manners?

As of this month, 1,329 people have died on our roads in the past year, a 3.3 per cent increase compared to the same period last year. Picture, John Gass

As someone who drives for a living, can we all calm down?

Being a “good driver” isn’t about speed or confidence, or owning the road. It’s about not being a jerk.

This isn’t the Grand Prix track. If you want that, then go book a driving day with Audi or Mercedes, and go let off some steam in a controlled space.

I’m fed up, and I know I’m not the only one.

So where to from here - do we need tougher penalties, refresher driving lessons, stricter testing or just a serious wake-up call?

Originally published as Aussie drivers say Australian roads have never been more dangerous