Ronald Zerangue (inset) of El Sobrante was killed in an apparent road rage crash on Interstate 80 in Richmond. (Photo: CBS News)

A 63-year-old man  died in a “road rage” car accident Wednesday morning on Interstate 80 in Richmond.

•  An AC Transit mechanic was driving a minivan on I-80 in Richmond when he attempted to “brake check” a pickup truck in the carpool lane.

•   The minivan clipped the side of the truck and went out of control. It rolled several times.

•   The minivan driver died at the scene.

•   The pickup truck driver and his passenger suffered minor injuries.

•   The CHP said this was a road-rage accident.

The fatal freeway crash occurred at about 5:45 a.m., according to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle.

California Highway Patrol officer Sam Morgan said the deadly I-80 accident happened after a westbound 1989 Ford Aerostar minivan — driven by a man later identified as Ronald Zerangue of El Sobrante — allegedly “brake checked” a 2004 GMC pickup pickup truck in the carpool lane west of Carlson Boulevard.

“It appears that this may have been a road rage-type incident,” Morgan told Bay City News (in a report published by the San Francisco Examiner).

Brake checking involves intentionally accelerating past another vehicle, swerving in front of it, and slamming on the brakes, Morgan said.

When Zerangue tried the maneuver, he sideswiped the pickup truck and lost control of his vehicle. The minivan crashed into the center divider and rolled several times before it came to rest on the freeway.

Zerangue, who was the sole occupant of the vehicle, died at the scene.

The pickup truck driver stopped at the scene and spoke with officers. He and his female passenger suffered minor injuries that did not require hospitalization, Morgan said.

Officials had to close the freeway for three hours during the heavy morning commute.

Zerangue had a valid license and a clean driving record, according to a California Department of Motor Vehicles report obtained by the Chronicle. He had been a mechanic at AC Transit for the last four years, transit spokesman Clarence Johnson said.

Morgan said no arrests or citations were made and there were no signs that drugs or alcohol were factors in the accident.

The accident is under investigation. Anyone with information on the collision is asked to call the Oakland-area CHP office at (510) 450-3821 or (800) TELL-CHP.

Road Rage

Almost 90 percent of drivers have experienced another motorist’s “road rage” — aggressive driving behaviors — at one time or another, according to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. Here are the foundation’s tips for de-fusing a road-rage situation:

• If you’re being hassled by another driver, try not to react. Avoid making eye contact, as this is often seen as confrontational. Don’t accelerate, brake, or swerve suddenly, as this also may be seen as confrontational — and it increases the odds of losing control of your vehicle.
• If a driver continues to hassle you or you think you are being followed, drive to the nearest police station or busy place to get help.
• In town, lock the car doors and keep the windows and sunroof only partly open.
• When stopped in traffic, leave enough space to pull out from behind the car you are following.
• If someone tries to get into your car, attract attention by sounding your horn or a personal alarm.
• Do not start a fight.

Richmond Freeway Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented freeway accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.