House nod on anti-road rage bill pushed

A HOUSE lawmaker is pushing for the swift passage of the anti-road rage act, prompted by the shooting to death a family driver by a motorist in the EDSA-Ayala tunnel in Makati City on May 28.

Aniceto Mateo, 65, a stay-in driver, was shot by businessman Gerard Raymond Uy in a traffic altercation.

In a statement on Friday, San Jose del Monte City Rep. Florida Robes said that the swift passage of House Bill (HB) 1511, which she authored, would penalize aggressive, hostile, and violent behavior of motorists on the road.

The bill, pending with the Committee on Transportation, proposes to penalize acts of road rage with a prison term of up to six years and a fine of not less than P250,000.

It also seeks the suspension of the erring motorist driver's license for five years.

«Road rage incidents that result in serious injuries or even death of a person will likely be prevented if motorists were aware that a hostile act of cursing, use of foul language or even moderate screaming can land them in jail,» Robes said.

Citing data from the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, Robes said that a significant number of the 90,258 road crash incidents in 2014 were triggered by road rage.

«In the Philippines, road rage cases are on the rise. Recent statistics show that eight out of 10 drivers admit to exhibiting aggressive behavior at least once a year, while nine out of 10 drivers think of aggressive driving as a threat to their personal safety, Robes said.

Under her bill, road rage will be defined as „any aggressive, hostile or violent behavior in traffic or on the road by a motorist, which may include mild to moderate screaming, wild gesturing at others, cursing or using bad language, physical attack at another or an attempt thereof, reckless driving, any kinds of threat or intimidation, any use of force against another person and other analogous circumstances.“

The bill will grant a road-rage complainant to initiate a separate action for damages or any other affirmative relief he or she may intend to pursue.

It would also provide that road rage will be considered as an aggravating circumstance if a more serious crime is committed by the offending party, while