roadwise.Open study app

Kentucky driving lesson · Fit to Drive

Distractions, emotions & road rage

A 3-minute lesson from the Kentucky course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.

Study this lesson in the app Back to the course
Read time
3 minutes
Course unit
Fit to Drive
Checkpoint questions
6
Source pages
29, 30

A distraction is anything that takes your attention away from driving. Phones get the headlines, but eating, grooming, adjusting vehicle controls or even chatting with a passenger can pull your eyes, hands or mind off the road.

Distracted driving (NHTSA)

A specific type of driver inattention that occurs when drivers divert attention from the driving task to focus on some other activity.

Handbook p. 29 ↗

The three types of distraction

The three types of distraction
TypeWhat it takes away
VisualYour eyes—looking away from the roadway
ManualYour hands—one or both off the steering wheel
CognitiveYour mind—thinking about something other than driving
Handbook p. 29 ↗

Know the rule

Texting is especially dangerous because it combines visual, manual and cognitive distraction.

Handbook p. 29 ↗
4.6 seconds

Average time a text takes your eyes off the road—at 55 mph, the length of a football field (100 yards)

Handbook p. 29 ↗
3 times

Increase in crash risk from visual-manual phone tasks like reaching for a phone, dialing and texting

Handbook p. 29 ↗

When driving:

  • Don't talk or text on a cell phone
  • Avoid arguments and stressful or emotional conversations with passengers
  • Avoid eating
  • Make sure children are properly and safely buckled up
  • Secure pets in a pet carrier or portable kennel
Handbook p. 29 ↗

If you're worried, excited, afraid, angry or depressed:

  • Give yourself time to cool off—take a short walk or nap, and stay off the road
  • Leave a few minutes early so delays don't upset you
  • Don't get upset when other drivers make mistakes or take advantage of you
  • Never vent your feelings through your vehicle
  • Have someone else drive until your emotions are under control
Handbook p. 30 ↗

Aggressive driving

Intentionally committing an action that endangers other people or property—such as tailgating, abrupt lane changes and speeding. Primarily traffic offenses that could lead to criminal behavior.

Handbook p. 30 ↗

Road rage

Uncontrolled anger that results in violence or threatened violence on the roadway. It is criminal behavior and is prohibited.

Handbook p. 30 ↗

Know the rule

If you're involved in a road-rage incident, don't retaliate or argue. Safely pull off the road in a well-lit, public area and call police.

Handbook p. 30 ↗

Put it into practice

A driver tailgates you, flashes his lights, then pulls alongside yelling. Don't yell back, brake-check or speed up to 'win.' Keep driving calmly, and if he keeps following, pull into a well-lit public place and call the police.

Check your understanding

Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.

According to AAMVA, sending or receiving a text takes a driver's eyes off the road for an average of:
  1. 10 seconds
  2. 1 second
  3. 4.6 seconds
  4. 2.5 seconds

Answer: 4.6 seconds

Texting takes a driver's eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds, equal to a football field at 55 mph.

Handbook p. 29 ↗
NHTSA categorizes distracted driving into visual, manual, and which third type?
  1. Cognitive distraction
  2. Auditory distraction
  3. Emotional distraction
  4. Physical distraction

Answer: Cognitive distraction

NHTSA places distractions into visual, manual, and cognitive categories.

Handbook p. 29 ↗
Using a hand-held phone for visual-manual subtasks like dialing or texting increases crash risk by about:
  1. Three times
  2. One and a half times
  3. Ten times
  4. Five times

Answer: Three times

Engaging in visual-manual phone subtasks increases the risk of a crash by three times.

Handbook p. 29 ↗
What is the key difference between aggressive driving and road rage?
  1. Aggressive driving is a crime; road rage is a traffic offense
  2. Aggressive driving requires a crash; road rage does not
  3. Road rage is violent crime; aggressive driving is a traffic offense
  4. They are legally identical terms

Answer: Road rage is violent crime; aggressive driving is a traffic offense

Aggressive driving includes tailgating and unsafe lane changes; road rage is criminal behavior involving violence or threats.

Handbook p. 30 ↗
If you become involved in a road-rage incident, the manual recommends that you:
  1. Pull into a well-lit public area and call police
  2. Stop in your lane and call police
  3. Exit your vehicle to talk it out
  4. Follow the other driver to get their license plate

Answer: Pull into a well-lit public area and call police

Safely pull off into a well-lit, public area and call for police assistance rather than retaliating.

Handbook p. 30 ↗
Aggressive driving and road rage mean exactly the same thing under Kentucky law.
  1. True
  2. False

Answer: False

The manual explicitly states aggressive driving and road rage are not the same thing.

Handbook p. 30 ↗
Take the lesson checkpoint in the app

More in Fit to Drive

All Kentucky lessons