THE other evening I caught part of an ITV documentary focusing on road rage – something which the programme claimed is on the increase.

It’s perhaps a sad reflection of modern times but I fear motorists are far more aggressive than they were.

And where better to see that than in Warrington as we have our fair share of horrendous traffic problems, particularly at the moment thanks to the roadworks on the Thelwall Viaduct which has seen many trying to use Warrington as a short cut – as if!

So with dreadful traffic congestion comes frustration, drivers trying shortcuts or attempting a spot of queue jumping.

And other people’s bad driving makes us angry, but it’s how we handle it that is the issue.

I get upset at those who drive up the bus lane in the mornings on Knutsford Road and Wilderspool Causeway and I was quite pleased to see a driver pulled over by the police for it a couple of weeks ago.

It also aggravates me that the bus lane outside our office on Bridge Street is abused by many drivers who think it’s acceptable to avoid going round the one-way system on their way home.

If the police want to make a few bob, put a camera there and the money will roll in.

I’ve certainly been on the end of a bit of road rage myself.

Once I was driving from Kingsway North towards the roundabout and a car in the right hand lane cut me up.

So I honked my horn at him. Then at the next set of lights he got out of his car and banged on my car window, screaming abuse at me, when he was in the wrong.

Fortunately my husband was with me otherwise I’d have been petrified.

Just a few weeks ago when I was driving across Latchford swing bridge one morning, the traffic was bad and I’d stopped to let some drivers turn right while the traffic ahead was stationary.

When I started to pull forward a man in a blue car was so incensed that I hadn’t let him go that his face was contorted in anger, he was shrieking at me even though I couldn’t hear him and shaking his fist in an obscene gesture. It was my right of way and he only had to wait a few seconds for the next gap.

The Saturday before last, my husband was driving us into town from Stockton Heath. It was bad timing as the bridge was off so we were stuck on London Road.

I was watching the young woman in front of us in a white Ford Fiesta, she was busy texting on her phone, completely oblivious to everything around her to the point that after waiting what seemed like ages, when the traffic started to move she didn’t realise. After a few moments, my husband parped his horn to let her know the traffic had moved.

Her reaction was to make a nasty hand gesture – she managed to put her phone down long enough to do so.

So as they used to say in Hill Street Blues – let’s be careful out there!