Study puts Georgia in top 10 for deadly road rage shootings

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - A new report ranks Georgia at No. 7 in fatal road-rage shootings.

The study is part of the “State of the American Driver” report put together by the makers of Jerry, an app that compares car insurance prices. The report analyzes all types of numbers related to driving, ranging from car purchasing to car crime.

The information was gathered in a survey of Americans that also found 25% of Georgia drivers report that they carry a gun in their own car and 32% know someone else who does.

On a national level, the stats also showed:

• The number of road rage shootings has doubled in recent years, and 35 states now allow residents to carry loaded handguns in their cars without any special permit or formal training. The study found 14% of motorists in those 35 states said they do so at least occasionally. That includes 20% of men and nearly one in 10 women. For Gen Z, 41% of whom said driving has become more dangerous since the height of COVID, that number was 25%.
• In the past 12 months, many Americans witnessed vehicle chases (18%), a driver leaving their car to confront someone (17%), a vehicle trying to stop another (10%), an altercation involving a weapon (7%), a confrontation involving a gun (4%) and someone firing a gun (4%). On the other hand, 30% of drivers didn’t see or get involved in a road rage incident of any kind during that period.
• More drivers from low-income ZIP codes witness acts of road rage. Only 14% of low-income Americans said they saw none, compared to 34% of high-income, 29% of high- to middle-income and 32% of low- to middle-income drivers.

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