road rage shootings – how to protect one’s self?

Every morning when I watch the news, someone was shot the previous night in a road rage incident. Often they have no leads or a vague lead on a vehicle.

When I first moved to Houston in 2007, I got in an incident with a white Subaru who proceeded to follow me off the highway. I tried to get away from him but he caught up to me at a stoplight. He got out of his car with a tire iron and wanted me to get out and fight him. I wouldn't, so he struck the top of my car several times with the tire iron, leaving big dents. I drove off as soon as the traffic cleared and got away. That was my 'Welcome To Houston' moment.

But now after pandemic and with the fact that anyone can carry a gun, it seems like these incidents of people shooting at each other on the road are getting much more common.

My partner was in an incident yesterday. She was waiting behind a Monte Carlo waiting to turn. The MC wasn't turning and there was no traffic, so after a few minutes my partner beeped the horn. Beeped, not slammed. The MC turned and my partner then turned. The MC stopped and tried to get alongside her. They rolled down their pax window and started shouting things. They wouldn't drive forward and kept trying to get alongside my partner. My partner was terrified.

I don't know what to do about this. I've considered carrying myself. I've never previously felt the need to carry a pistol however I am highly proficient from participating in competitions. And while that might help me, it doesn't help my partner who has no such proficiency nor the proclivity to draw on someone.

I am genuinely scared one of us is going to get shot for no reason. I know they say not to respond to aggression and that's typically something we do, we try to get out of the situation. They say call 911 but I don't see how that would possibly help.