Left Lane Law (aka. one of the most stupid new laws of 2004)
Left Lane Law - While traveling on an interstate highway, a vehicle may not be driven in the left lane, except when overtaking and passing another vehicle. This prohibition does not apply to authorized emergency vehicles while engaged in official duties.
Makes me wonder who put the idiots in charge. Can I get my taxes back for the portion of the road that I’m no longer legally able to drive on?
Comments
- Anonymous
January 04, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
I think it's a good law. People sit out in the left lane on the drive because they think it was deeded to them when they got their license and impede the whole flow of traffic.
If you're moving along rapidly in the left lane (e.g. faster than traffiic in the rightmost lanes), you're passing cars, you can be there.
The point of it is to make things move a little quicker, I think. - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
That's a great law. That's how it SHOULD be.
How many times have you sat behind some idiot in a minivan going 40 in the left lane? :) - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
Great law -- which state? - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
The great state of New Jersey has had this law for years, and unfortunately they don't enforce it enough.
DonXML Demsak - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
If you only drive in the left hand lane on I-5 through Seattle you end up exiting downtown a couple of times. Not to mention you can never get onto 520 East if you are southbound on I-5.
I think it's worse in NY and LA.
translation: It's the kind of law that would only work well away from Urban centers.
I thought that this law : New Teen Drivers
provided an interesting contrast to the Seattle mantra of ride sharing and mass transit use. In Ill. they WANT teens to clog up the roads with multiple cars. So now, ALL those kids at the party have to drive home drunk alone. :) - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
This is an awesome law! In Colorado they have this law, it makes perfect since if you think about it. Why does a person need to be in the left most lane if they are not passing anyone? Nothing makes me angrier than a driver in the left lane, blocking me in, because they are driving right next to the car I’m behind in the right hand lane. - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
Count 1 more completely supportive of this new law. Get these f**kers out of the fast lane! - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
sounds good to me... you must be one of those guys just chilling in the left lane and wondering why everyone passes you on the right... - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
Awesome law. About time this method of using the interstate enters the U.S. consciousness. I learned to drive this way from my father who picked it up in Germany. If this becomes the standard here, perhaps then we could have higher speed limits. Right now, you can't have faster speed limits because you'll come up fast on some lollygagger in the left lane. - Anonymous
January 04, 2004
Have to agree with the supporters... "Keep right except when passing!" - Anonymous
January 05, 2004
I agree this is stupid and unenforcable!
It almost contradicts the speed limit law.
If I'm traveling at the speed limit of 65 MPH and the car in front of me is traveling at 60 MPH, is a quarter mile enough distanct to safely pass without exceeding the speed limit? - Anonymous
January 06, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
January 06, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
January 06, 2004
>OTOH, do you think the police will choose to
>pull over left lane blockers or speeders?
My understanding here in Chicago was that cops are given the perogative to pull over anybody who is obviously holding up left lane traffic. I think this is pretty obvious - anybody with cars stacking behind them. - Anonymous
January 06, 2004
Irony of ironies ... a Google search of Left Lane Law puts this blog entry ahead of the actual law as listed by the State of Illinois. - Anonymous
January 10, 2004
It is a wonderful way to drive. I had a wonderful vacation driving all over europe (mainly Austria, Germany, Italy, Czech Republic). This is the way they drive. Traffic congestion is almost non-existant save city centers.
Residing in California where this is on the books, but never enforced. Once you drive with sane drivers, you never want to drive in CA again... - Anonymous
February 06, 2004
PA was like that years ago and they had signs that stated KEEP RIGHT EXCEPT TO PASS. They then allowed
the mentally challenged to drive in any lane and allowed passing on the right. Now they have changed it back but have not installed signs. It is our responsibility to educate the mentally challenged drivers now. Talk to them as you pass them on the right. That is if you are able to pass on the right. You may have a genuine slow driver doing the correct thing by driving in the right lane. What do you have? Gridlock!!!!! The law knows that if everyone goes the exact speed limit there is gridlock. That is why they do not enforce speed laws until a driver is “x” amount over the limit. I love this law although I think they should reinstall the signs. I would agree with giving back your taxes as long as you keep out of either lane. I’ve encountered drivers like you! There should be more stringent procedures to keep people like you off OUR roads! I LOVE this site! - Anonymous
February 25, 2004
The law exists to keep people safe. Typically, traffic merging onto the highway, which is moving slowly and attempting to gain speed, comes from the right side of the highway.
Slow traffic blocking the left lane forces faster moving traffic to pass on the right, where it often mixes with the much slower moving merging traffic, creating dangerous situations.
It is not your right simply because you pay taxes to block traffic that belongs in the left lane. - Anonymous
March 11, 2004
i think hat this is the stupidist law ever. with the exception of a few others! why should we drive on the right lane and suffer through sow drivers and then get another ticket for tailing them, when they're driving to pass on the left lane they're not going to let you pass anyway, so who really cares! i mean seriously, does anyone really care for this ;aw? do you think that law officials really care? i wish i could talk to the idiot] who makes these laws!!!!! - Anonymous
March 18, 2004
Obviously whoever believes this is a stupid law has not driven on an American interstate or is completely oblivious to those other drivers around him. Answer this for me. What is wrong with that empty right lane. Does it have cudies? If you don't want to drive the speed limit or there is someone behind you..GET OVER! Become an pro-active driver, move over, pull out to pass and move over again (oh and did I say use your mirror and turn signal). It is amazing how fun driving can be when you put down the phone and the supersized soda, take your car out of cruise control and actually drive! This law is good...we are moving in the right direction. - Anonymous
March 18, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
March 23, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
March 24, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
March 24, 2004
one more thing. for the morons that argue that this law would require them to break the speed limit law, get out of your myopic black and white world! Any cop that gives you a ticket for anything less than 10 over would be laughed out of court and immediately executed by his fellow officers. If you don't believe me-- ask them! Between the 7.5% of the drivers ABSOLUTELY TERRIFIED of breaking the law (and driving) and the other 7.5% that ignore it totally (both having absolutely no concept of courtesy), the rest of us suffer. By the way-- read up on the concept of the 85th percentile concept. - Anonymous
May 19, 2004
In the US, the left lane is for passing, that is the best way to keep highway travel organized. When drivers cruise in the passing lane, they force other drivers to swerve and pass through multiple lanes. Very Unsafe.
Report and track vehicles that you find in the passing lane at www.leftlanedicks.com -also see if you've been reported! - Anonymous
May 24, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
May 24, 2004
p.s. The Ohio law will further state, "Any moron who needlessly steps on his/her brakes for no apparent reason more than twice in a mile shall be guilty of reporting a false alarm to vehicles following, and shall be required to attend a three day retraining program followed by retesting. Mopes who fail retesting shall have odometer-connected brakes installed which activate above 50 mph, and which shall be automatically disabled after the second application in less than a mile, until a full mile has elapsed since the first application." - Anonymous
May 26, 2004
---------portion of the highway you're no longer able to drive on????
Please ! ! ! A typical immature response. You must be one of the people that sits out in this lane without passing anyone. Just like the tour bus I saw last week that moved from the middle lane to the left lane---WHEN THERE WERE NO CARS IN FRONT OF HIM----IN ANY OF THE LANES. This law is a great idea, in theory, since it will clear all those people from clogging the passing lane, and let the rest of us drive. - Anonymous
June 30, 2004
The whole idea behind the law is too keep people from blocking the passing lane. And, yes indeed, that is the name for the left or inside lane. It's yet another unfortunate response to an uncicivil civilzation where the plaintive chant is "MINE! MINE! MINE!" and people don't bother to learn the rules of the road. Traveling between Colorado Springs and Denver you're pretty much guaranteed to find a couple of people doing 60 or 65 in a 75 zone while in the passing lane. - Anonymous
July 01, 2004
I don't understand why people think the law is stupid. It should be obvious. If people knew how to drive and the reason there is a lwft or passing lane is for just that. Passing. Paying taxes does give one the right to do as you please. There are rules of the road, however few seem to obey them. - Anonymous
July 01, 2004
Driving on the right is common sense and there is not need to a make law about it. Should we be paying for the legislature to convene and pass a law about brushing your teeth? I think there are way too many laws, they are spelling every little thing that can happen in life taking away from the judiciary the right to think. Rather there should be one single law saying that if you impede traffic in any way, you get in trouble and let the courts decide case by case based on jurisprudence. - Anonymous
July 22, 2004
Speed limit? I don't need no stinking speed limit! The "left lane is mine for speeding" mentality is the source of rage anyway. My obseration is that the left lane users are not coming up on "below the limit users", rather they are trying to overtake other speeders who are not speeding as fast as they are. - Anonymous
July 23, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
July 27, 2004
This law is meant to be used as a passing other drivers rule, not for the "lead foot" speeders to hog it and run the slower tnan average drivers off the road! Just because this law has been put in place by the state of Illinois, doesn't mean that the "self justified" speeders can play police patrol by flashing their lights and tailgating the driver in front of them. That will only lead to more accidents and road rage. - Anonymous
July 29, 2004
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
July 06, 2005
The comment has been removed - Anonymous
September 01, 2005
Good blog - Anonymous
September 22, 2005
It's a great law....That's the way it is supposed to be here in Oregon but you still see campers from Washington riding in the fast lane blocking the traffic. Trying blocking the left lane in Europe...you'll get pushed off the road. Needs more enforcement by the police to keep the left lane clear for passing only. It's a great law if enforced. - Anonymous
March 24, 2008
PingBack from http://carsmaxblog.info/kevin-w-hammond-left-lane-law-aka-one-of-the-most-stupid-new-laws/