Some Czech drivers will have to undergo therapy for road rage
Anyone who has driven on Czech roads knows that tempers can flare high and considerate drivers are few and far between. Brake-checking has become a particularly popular way of expressing road rage of late, but as of next year drivers could pay a high price for it.
In addition to drink driving and driving under the influence of drugs, the country’s traffic police say they have an increasing problem with aggressive drivers who cause serious accidents simply because they are unable to control their anger and brake-check vehicles that they consider to be “too slow” or that have failed to give them right of way.
As many as 20, 000 drivers commit serious traffic offences every year. Last year a young family with a toddler died in an accident due to brake-checking.
High fines seem to have had little effect and now the authorities have put their foot down.
As of January, repeat offenders who have had their license revoked for breaking the road law will not get it back unless they undergo behavioral therapy to help them deal with their anger.
The aim of the therapy is to get problem drivers to recognize when and where they make mistakes, how to avoid them and, most importantly, to realize the consequences. The therapy is divided into four parts lasting five hours each. It will cost around 11,000 crowns and drivers will have to pay for it.
Anyone who is banned from driving for 18 months or more or refuses a breathalyzer test for alcohol or drugs will have to take it. It will also apply to drivers who are ordered to do so by a court or prosecutor.
A pilot program undertaken by 750 drivers indicates a 70 percent success rate in addressing problem behavior and helping with anger-control.
The Transport Research Centre in Brno is now training new lecturers to handle the group therapy and deal with less-motivated participants. Over 160 future lecturers have completed the 7-day training session to date, with another forty due to complete the course by March next year.
