The State With the Worst Road Rage Problem Also the Least Charitable
I’ll be honest: I’ve driven through Arizona several times now and I’ve been nothing short of delighted by the charming people and gorgeous landscape. So I was shocked to see the Grand Canyon State land on the top of two separate studies: the state with the most road rage and least charitable giving in 2023.
Let’s start with road rage. We all get that traffic can be frustrating, and annoying drivers make it even worse. But in some states, residents are more likely to respond with angry words or aggressive driving. And Arizona comes in number one.
The folks at the Finn car subscription platform compared road rage data collected by Forbes, AAA, and the IIHS. In total, 81% of Arizonans report they’ve been yelled at, insulted, or threatened by other drivers. And here’s the kicker, 22.5% of them report they’ve been forced off the road by an angry driver.
Hot on Arizona’s heels are Montana and South Carolina. What’s the state with the least road rage in the country? Minnesota. But Hawaii and New Hampshire are pretty friendly too.
It seems Arizona drivers aren’t especially generous with other drivers. And according to the Wallet Hub, they are not especially charitable in person. This study combined the amount of money Arizonans give to charity and the amount of time they spend serving those less in need. Overall, it found Arizona is the least charitable state in the country. What’s really unique is that half of Arizonans report that they gave money to charity in the last year, but their tax paperwork doesn’t support this claim.
Not to add insult to injury, but CNBC’s annual “Top States for Business” study ranked the best states to live in and Arizona got–you guessed it–dead last. Arizona’s weak points cited by CNBC included education, poor air quality, cost of living, and access to capital. And those last two may be our common thread here.
If Arizonans are overworked and underpaid in a state with a high cost of living, they may simply not have anything extra to give to charity. Certainly not for big enough donations to write off on their taxes. And I imagine if you are racing from your first job to your second job, your tolerance for poor drivers evaporates as quick as clouds over the Arizona desert. Add the legendary heat and some extra air pollution and you have the perfect (cloudless) storm for road rage.
Again, I have never had less than a stellar time in Arizona. So it’s sad to see it land at the bottom of several national studies. But there’s always next year.
Next, find out why the state with the most pickup trucks is also the second most dangerous to drive in. Or need a silver lining? Learn about what might make Arizona the next hotbed for the tech industry in the video below:
