1. A method for controlling an operational mode of a self-driving vehicle (SDV), the method comprising: detecting, by one or more physical detectors, an erratically driven vehicle (EDV) that is being operated in an unsafe manner within a predetermined distance of an SDV, wherein the SDV is initially being operated in a nominal autonomous mode; in response to the one or more physical detectors detecting the EDV, changing, by an operational mode device in the SDV, an operational mode of the SDV from the nominal autonomous mode to an evasive autonomous mode; retrieving, by one or more processors, traffic pattern data for other SDVs; examining, by one or more processors, the traffic pattern data to determine a first traffic flow of the other SDVs while operating in the evasive autonomous mode; examining, by one or more processors, the traffic pattern data to determine a second traffic flow of the other SDVs while operating in a manual mode; and in response to determining that the first traffic flow has a higher accident rate than the second traffic flow, changing, by the operational mode device, the operational mode of the SDV from the evasive autonomous mode to the manual mode.