John Carr

Hey, I exclusively drive the speed limit in the right or middle lane. This is just an observation I've made that seemed relevant. For what it's worth, I highly doubt that there was any sort of "emergency" involved in the vast majority of times I've observed this behavior. Also, apart from properly lighted emergency vehicles no one has the right to exceed the speed limit regardless of the situation. Edit: According to this resource[0] only 4 states require you to yield to faster traffic approaching from behind in the left lane, so this seems to be far from a universal requirement. [0] https://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

I disagree with your premise that you are obligated to stay right to enable others to break the law. My premise is actually a little different, which is that a keep-right law without an exclusion for vehicles travelling the speed limit implicitly condones speeding. I'm questioning the intent of the lawmakers, not suggesting that the state laws should not be followed as they currently exist. The law says to stay right regardless of speed so there is no corner case based on traffic moving at the legal speed limit. Well, except (as best as I can tell) for Alaska, Arkansas, Maryland, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, and South Dakota, plus a couple more that make an exception if you are travelling faster than traffic flow: http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html. Interestingly, though, it looks like the current trend is for states to move away from this approach that I feel is more logical, and switch to a blanket "keep right except to pass" that you seem to prefer. This would suggest that my concerns are becoming less widely shared by others. I would turn your request for parallel examples around and ask you for examples of a situation where it is ok to break the law to prevent someone else from doing the same. This is a question that does trouble me, but I'll start by reiterating that I'm not encouraging people to ignore this law. Rather, I'm more interested in whether laws of this sort have an overall positive effect for society. But answering the question, I think…

My interpretation is that in a state has an "absolute" speed limit law then you have a successful defense against a ticket for going at the speed limit in the left-most lane when there is faster traffic. If you are in a state which does not have an absolute speed limit law, then you do not have that defense, and can be fined for going at the speed limit in that situation. Here is a breakdown of the state laws (undated, and no promises that it's correct or still true) - http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html . The bottom has the following: > The Uniform Vehicle Code states: > Upon all roadways any vehicle proceeding at less than the normal speed of traffic at the time and place and under the conditions then existing shall be driven in the right-hand lane then available for traffic ... > This law refers to the "normal" speed of traffic, not the "legal" speed of traffic. The 60 MPH driver in a 55 MPH zone where everybody else is going 65 MPH must move right. Contrast Alaska's rule, 13 AAC 002.50, allowing vehicles driving at the speed limit to use the left lane, and Colorado rev. stat. 42-4-1103, prohibiting blocking the "normal and reasonable" movement of traffic. > Enforcement is inconsistent. Toledo police used to ticket truck drivers for driving at the 60 MPH speed limit in the left lane. Police looking for criminal activity frequently use the "keep right" law as a pretext to stop a suspicious car. On the other hand, a New York judge announced that he would not convict…

This is often true, but it varies from state to state. https://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

For ease of reference, here's a list of each state's "keep right" laws: https://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

The one that gets me the most is Keep Right Laws[0]. I've never been in a state (I've been in a lot) where these are enforced. There's small patches where people do this, but never more than a 50 mile stretch. It's simple: "If you aren't actively passing, stay out of the left/PASSING lane." I really do believe that people think being in the left lane makes you go faster. But these laws, if enforced, can dramatically reduce highway accidents. [0] https://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

Only a couple of states have laws allow speeding to pass and the vast majority of states have an absolute speed limit rule disallowing speeding in any situation. A handful of states won't give you points due to a speeding ticket <6 mph though. Of course these are the laws, not the practice, which is what I think GP was trying to say. http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/laws.html

It really depends on the state laws [0]. It also really depends on the traffic patterns. In places like California where there are 7+ lane wide roads, the left lane is not so special (unless it's a HOV lane). If you've only got two lanes, it's more important to keep the left lane for passing, but when things are bumper to bumper, that doesn't make any sense. [0] https://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

https://travel.stackexchange.com/questions/40365/in-what-states-is-the… http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html States where it is illegal to pass on the right: Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey (My note: In 20 years of driving in Illinois, I have never been cited for passing on the right)

Nope. Not all Interstates are 4+ lanes of traffic. Many states simply require slower traffic to use the right hand lanes. http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

Incorrect, the left lane is only for passing only in certain states, and mainly on roads with only 2 lanes of traffic in each direction. >The Uniform Vehicle Code states: Upon all roadways any vehicle proceeding at less than the normal speed of traffic at the time and place and under the conditions then existing shall be driven in the right-hand lane then available for traffic ... >All states allow drivers to use the left lane (when there is more than one in the same direction) to pass. Most states restrict use of the left lane by slow-moving traffic that is not passing. The table below describes the law in effect in each state. http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

You are incorrect, but I can see why you would be confused, since so many people pick the left lane to go slow in. I think they imagine themselves to be some sort of force for good, slowing down all those evil speeders. Here's a summary of the law, by state. http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

> The left most lane (excluding HOV lanes) is for /passing/. Unless you are passing you should NOT be in this lane. This is not generally the case. http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

Here's the breakdown for the US states: http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

Some states have laws that restrict use of left lanes for passing. Many states have laws requiring drivers who are moving slower than the rest of the traffic, regardless of the speed limit, to keep right. Most of the time if somebody is going the speed limit for any length of time in the left lane, there often is legitimately is an issue that they can be ticketed for. http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

Some states have official tolerances codified into law, usually 5-10 mph, depending on the posted speed, road, how the speed was measured, etc. http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/laws.html

Here's a table of speeding laws, for anyone else who's wondering about their state: http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/laws.html

There are even laws on the books specifying the left lane as the "passing lane". There seems to be a recent trend in making these more strict, so I wonder what effect they're having. This guy seems to have an up-to-date catalogue (green indicates more strict): http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

No. Stop it. This attitude is consistently responsible for the most dangerous road conditions I see driving in America. Keep right except to pass. Period. Everybody traveling the same "maximum speed limit" is a fantasy and rarely exists in reality. There are lots of good reasons for traveling over the speed limit (quickly passing to avoid prolonged travel in close proximity to another car, for example). Left lane cruisers inevitably lead to long queues in the left lane with empty lanes to the right, which leads to people passing on the right, tailgating, and a host of unpredictable situations that increase the danger on the road much, much more than simple speed (duh, many speed limits are arbitrary and political, not based on some absolute "maximum safe speed", which is a ridiculous notion anyway for roads that carry both sports cars and heavy tractor trailers). Your prescription creates situations in which it is literally impossible to drive safely (and frankly, I'm sick of finding myself in these dangerous and completely unnecessary situations because of Americans' insane (and sometimes illegal[1]) driving practices...I don't want to race anybody, I just want to get to my destination safely and efficiently). Even choosing to waste your time being the slowest car on the road in the right lane, you end up being put in danger by cars trying to right-lane-pass with dangerous closing speeds up to dangerously close distances. Keep right except to pass. 1. What you…

> It's strange to see this behaviour as someone living in Germany, where you are supposed to, by default, drive in the right lane if you are not overtaking another car or there is a traffic jam... That used the be the norm in the US as well, but it has broken down over the past few decades. Some studies and motorist groups blame the nationwide 55 mph speed limit imposed in the 70s due to oil shortages. Slow drivers suddenly felt safe driving in left lanes and a whole generation has learned to drive like this. [1] There are laws in many states against impeding traffic in the left lane [2], but they aren't that enforced. You also see signs occasionally on the highway, but my issue with these signs is that they say "Slower traffic keep right" (instead of eg, "Stay right except when passing"). I strongly suspect that very view people view themselves as "slow drivers" -- rather everyone tends to believe they drive the appropriate speed and everyone else is driving too slow or too fast. [1] http://nytimes.com/2016/07/08/us/more-states-are-cracking-down-on-left… [2] http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

The role of size of modern gigantic SUVs is vastly overstated. Speed is much more of an issue. But it doubtful that citizens (or planners) would be willing to accept the residential & city speed limits required to meaningfully affect change. "Across 2000-2019 I estimate that 8,131 pedestrian lives would have been saved if all light trucks had been cars. The reduction would be equal to avoiding 9.5% of all pedestrian deaths" https://www.justintyndall.com/uploads/2/8/5/5/28559839/tyndall_pedestr… Other countries who have seen large increases in SUV ownership (i.e. other parts of the anglosphere) have still reduced pedestrian fatalities. https://www.ft.com/content/9c936d97-5088-4edd-a8bd-628f7c7bba31 And the NYTimes found that pedestrian fatalities only increased at night, not during the day, suggesting vehicle size isn't the primary factor. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/12/11/upshot/nighttime-deaths… Even a microcar still weighs 350kg https://www.carmagazine.co.uk/car-reviews/microcar/microcar-mc1-2007-r… Even a circa 1995 era car moving at 32mph has a 25% fatality rate on pedestrians. https://aaafoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/2011PedestrianRis… Even at 23mph there is still a 10% fatality rate. At 16mph there's a 10% risk of severe injury. So you'd need to have residential speed limits something under 20mph and probably under 15mph. Right now residential speed limits in the US are 30-35mph in most…