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Sunday, April 02, 2017

Drive slow in the left lane? Md. considering a crackdown

WASHINGTON — It’s a lesson you’re taught all the way back in driver’s education: slower traffic keeps right so you can pass in the left lane.

In this area, people sometimes slow traffic down in the left lane, anyway, creating a convoy of agitated highway users who can’t get around because too many other cars are passing them on the right already.

But should failure to abide by those lessons, learned along ago by some drivers, result in a ticket?

According to one Maryland lawmaker, the answer is yes.

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37 comments:

Anonymous said...

define slow.

if im in the left lane doing the speed limit, that should be legal.

Anonymous said...

How about driving the speed limit , we cannot condone speeding . We have laws that we should recognize and abide by. Our judicial system has failed , we are now a nation of guilty until proven innocent .

Anonymous said...

21-804 (A) is already a violation...

Anonymous said...

10:35 This law is aimed at dumbass, inconsiderate drivers like you. The left lane is the passing lane. Yes, you can drive in that lane but move over when another vehicle appears behind you if it's safe to do so.
Better yet, don't ride in the left lane at all unless you are moving faster than the traffic in the right. If there is no traffic in the right, then get in that lane. This isn't rocket science.
I always cruise in the right lane and pass on the left. Always have.

I'm amazed at how many inconsiderate and/or ignorant drivers are out there - some that slow down/speed up so others can't pass. This isn't NASCAR so don't try to 'own' the left lane so others can't pass.
Is it ignorance or apathy? I don't know and I don't care.
But I hope his bill passes. Enforce or not, it's a move in the right direction.

Anonymous said...

How about making people use the forgotten blinker.

Anonymous said...

AMEN TO THAT !!!

Anonymous said...

11:28. how about doing the speed limit and it wont matter.

leave a little earlier.

there are people that drive under the speed limit in the right lane, and passing them without speeding sometimes takes a couple of miles.

it amuses me when this happens, then i get back to the right. that car speeds up, and i pass them again after a cop pulls them over.

Anonymous said...

Blinker 1134? You want me to use a blinker while I'm driving, eating and texting? Oh come on!!!

(SARCASM OFF!)

Anonymous said...

Anonymous Anonymous said...
define slow.

if im in the left lane doing the speed limit, that should be legal.


March 27, 2017 at 10:35 AM

well it's not and now we are getting more laws with teeth to get people like you out of that lane. why do you people have to be so hard headed?

Anonymous said...

in most european countries you will be sent a ticket in the mail for driving in the fast lane and not passing someone. you should never camp out and ride next to the slower lane vehicles. but then again a lot of europeans dont have drivers licenses. Really expensive in some to even get one. Maybe that's where we've gone wrong, if you're not smart enough to hold a job maybe you shouldn't be driving?

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

Anonymous Anonymous said...
10:35 This law is aimed at dumbass, inconsiderate drivers like you. The left lane is the passing lane. Yes, you can drive in that lane but move over when another vehicle appears behind you if it's safe to do so.
Better yet, don't ride in the left lane at all unless you are moving faster than the traffic in the right. If there is no traffic in the right, then get in that lane. This isn't rocket science.
I always cruise in the right lane and pass on the left. Always have.

I'm amazed at how many inconsiderate and/or ignorant drivers are out there - some that slow down/speed up so others can't pass. This isn't NASCAR so don't try to 'own' the left lane so others can't pass.
Is it ignorance or apathy? I don't know and I don't care.
But I hope his bill passes. Enforce or not, it's a move in the right direction.

March 27, 2017 at 11:28 AM

Amen!!

Anonymous said...

1:08 - anger issues? i never said i camp in the left lane. i use it to pass just like everyone elses, and then move back to the right lane.

it just takes longer to pass, as there is a maximum speed limit.

now, as long as i am within the law, i see no problem.

lmclain said...

10:35 thinks the whole world revolves around him (or her).

He/she does 55 in the left lane because he/she has appointed themselves as a traffic enforcement agent and doesn't care or pay attention to the constant stream of cars passing them on the RIGHT.They also don't think about why there are 10 cars jockeying for position behind them, or why some drivers pass them holding their finger out the window.
Nope. The entire world will behave the way he/she thinks they should.
And if he/she has to leave Dover this morning and will be turning left to go to Wallops, its is perfectly fine to drive 100 miles in the left lane, no matter what kind of problems it creates.
Selfish. Self-centered. Holier than thou. Self righteous.
Finally, to answer your stupid question -- if you have READ the driver's manual you'd know it CLEARLY states that slower traffic stays to the left and the left lane is for PASSING.
So no, you don't get to control traffic speed by parking your Camry in the left lane at 55 for 40 miles because "I'm going the legal speed limit". YOU smugly believe you are being a good citizen, keeping crazy, law-breaking, hooligan drivers in check. Everyone else thinks you are one big fat dumb ace. Who is constantly in someone's way. On purpose!
Look in the rearview at least once or twice a year and keep to the right.

Anonymous said...

12:10 My dad always said never argue with idiots because you'll never win. They're too dumb or stubborn to understand logic.

I'll stop now.

Anonymous said...

1035...is that you, each/everyday going east on route 50 from Salisbury to either Sixty Foot Road or gosh forbid further to Route 354 IN THE LEFT LANE????????

Drive on the right, pass on the left and if you have to turn left - do so by making the move within a half mile and USE YOUR DAMN TURN-SIGNAL so all behind know.

Remember it isn't always about you...there are OTHERS out there in the world!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Zorro said...

Just ban cars.....case closed

Anonymous said...

Please pass this law!!!! As far as doing the speed limit that is fine, just do in right lane. The left lane is for passing then you move to the right lane.

Anonymous said...

Of course none of you bothered to read the article or you would know that this law will not have any effect in this area.
"If passed, it would only affect numbered highways with at least three lanes going in the same direction, and a speed limit of at least 55 mph. That would include the beltway, Route 50, and Interstate 270."

Must have 3 lanes of travel going in the direction.

Please return to your regularly scheduled arguments over fire depts., gays and illegal aliens.

Anonymous said...

If you are doing the speed limit, you won't pass anyone.

Anonymous said...

2:59 Roger that. But this thread allowed us road warriors to vent on the left lane logistical lemmings, regardless of where its implemented. The Delaware left lane drives are oblivious. The Virginia left lane drivers seem to do it for spite. Maryland is a combination.
Come on, have a little fun.
But I do like your dry humor.

Anonymous said...

FINALLY !!! LONG OVERDUE !!! NEEDED IN ALL 50 States !!!

The Passing Lane is for Passing, then get the Hell out of it
and move your behind over to the RIGHT lane and get out of the way !!!!!!!!! Ticket those who don't Comply !!!!

Anonymous said...

Offense/Charge = Blocking Traffic Flow

Anonymous said...

Slow (selfish) drivers are Far More Dangerous than Any Fast
Driver.....and endanger Others around them >>> FACT

They Block traffic flow and everyone else has to take risks
to get around them

This New Law is Much needed !! LOOOONG OVERDUE

Anonymous said...

Still only applies to 3 lane highways. No tickets for being in left lane to the beach from Centerville to OC.

Anonymous said...

I generally move over for faster vehicles unless they zoom up and act aggressive. In that case, I just tighten my seatbelt, load a round in the chamber and ignore them. It's nice being in a 10,000 lb. pickup truck.

bayman said...

@11:28. as long as I am doing the speed limit I will drive in the left lane. There are NO signs that say the speed limit is higher in the left lane. The only law we have on this says if you cannot drive the speed limit for some reason, you must be in the right lane. It does not say if you drive slower than all the idiots that are speeding to get in the right lane. Have you ever seen the left lane vacant? NO, you have not. If you people can drive in the left lane, so can I and will and do. By now.

bayman said...

@ 7:35, Ticket those that break the speed limit. And it is not called the passing lane in any law in Maryland. The speed limit is the same in both lanes, numb nuts.

bayman said...

@7:56, Offense/Charge = Exceeding the speed limit. If you catch up to me you are speeding. I am supposed to move over for someone like you? No way in hell. I obey the law, like you should be doing. Speeding endangers the life of everyone on the road. Slow down and drive the speed limit. Man, some people.

bayman said...

@4:10, you are exactly right. The reason they come up behind someone is not because the other driver is driving slower than the SPEED LIMIT, it's because they are speeding and breaking the law. Bravo.

Anonymous said...

bayman thank you for educating some of the idiots on here. If I am on 50 going East and have to make a turn onto Forest Grove I better be in the left lane at Hobbs and speed with the speeders or I will not be allowed into the left lane even going 65. So there I am in the left lane going 65+ with people right on my bumper. Some of us don't like strangers trying to sniff our tailpipes and might even take offense to this and slack off the accelerator or even tap the breaks to help alert the idiots behind them... These speeders are really the ones that are inconsiderate and selfish and they are the ones that cause any safety issues because they jam up too close. Accidents at 50W and Hobbs prove this all the time...

Anonymous said...

You are putting yourself and any ofher occupant in danger. You are the poster child for the instigator of doad rage.

lmclain said...

bayman...i read your posts and must tell you --- YOU are a problem. The law being considered is being considered because of people like YOU.
-These roads, by the way, were DESIGNED for speeds of 70-80 MPH. Which WAS the speed limit until politicians (spit the bad taste out of your mouth now) decided that 55 was an energy saving idea and a treasure chest on money just waiting to be had.
Now, YOU think it's your job to control the speed of others and no matter what is going on behind you (you probably never look in the rearview), you will create a traffic jam of monstrous proportions and will match speeds with the car in the right lane for miles. Just because YOU think other people are not driving safely.
Did you read the part about selfish and self-centered? Even the police recognize that people like YOU are just as much a danger on the road as the speeding driver. Do you think this law is being considered for the fun of it?
Nope.
They should name this law after YOU. And know this, too --- sometime, somewhere, in the last few months, I guarantee someone has considered putting a bullet in your head as they finally get a chance to go around you.
As you get buried, the mourner at your service will make sure everyone knows what a goot ci-di-zen you were and how you changed the world with your unflagging committment to making sure everyone lives the way you think they should.
Now get to throwing dirt. We're in a hurry.

Anonymous said...

Why have laws that aren't going to be enforced by law enforcement, i.e, texting or talking on your phone while driving?

Anonymous said...

11:28 I wanted to leave a reply to 10:35's ignorance as well, but I do not think I could have done that as elegantly as you. Well done, I totally agree.

Anonymous said...

ru telling me to speed so i can break the law again ?

Anonymous said...

If I am an illegal I can drive wherever and however I want, the laws don't apply to me and I will use your tax dollars while ignoring you.