OUR front page story today about a knife attack on a driver on a North-East road, underlines again the dangers of road rage.

Annoyed at being overtaken on a bend, the victim made the mistake of flashing his lights and sounding his horn.

That led to him being blocked and then attacked by a man armed with a knife. His injuries could easily have been far worse - even fatal.

The message is that, no matter how strong the provocation may be, it is simply not worth running the risk of inflaming the situation.

We live in an age in which manners are sadly lacking among many motorists.

It costs nothing to wave in acknowledgement of another driver's consideration, or to signal an apology for an error of judgement, but it doesn't happen enough.

The incident on the A68 in County Durham was far more serious than an error of judgement. It was recklessness which could easily have caused a serious accident.

But someone driving like a maniac, with no thought for oncoming cars, is hardly likely to be made to see the error of his ways by the flashing of headlights and the sounding of a horn.

Reckless drivers need to be dealt with by the police, and it is to be hoped that the knifeman on the A68 is brought to justice quickly - before his lack of self-control leads to a tragedy.