Mini Rant - Drive right, pass left!!

Ματθιας

Ματθιας

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Drive right, pass left! it's a foreign concept, apparently.

Why do dome drivers insist on sitting in the fast lane, forcing everyone to pass on the right - especially on the interstate outside of city limits? Why?

Two vehicles pacing each other with a two lanes of traffic behind them and wide open road in front. I mean, seriously!!! Move over to the driving lane, and let faster traffic pass instead of forcing folks to pass on the right! Then, when you pass them on the right, they don't take the hint - especially when 10 or more vehicles roar by and some give them the bird. I don't understand.

Anyway, 1st world problem...
 
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I used to stop folks for that when I had time. They were amazingly ignorant about the law (in many ways). About the only one I gave a warning is the one whose kid to him I would likely stop him. I preferred nights and some number of these folks were impaired. Most were just stupid. The majority of them offered me the opportunity to use all three violations possible on one ticket. I took it.
 
Ματθιας said:
Drive right, pass left! it's a foreign concept, apparently.

Why do dome drivers insist on sitting in the fast lane, forcing everyone to pass on the right - especially on the interstate outside of city limits? Why?

Two vehicles pacing each other with a two lanes of traffic behind them and wide open road in front. I mean, seriously!!! Move over to the driving lane, and let faster traffic pass instead of forcing folks to pass on the right! Then, when you pass them on the right, they don't take the hint - especially when 10 or more vehicles roar by and some give them the bird. I don't understand.

Anyway, 1st world problem...
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I have talked with a few of those lane kings and most of them give you a variation of the speed limit is 65. I'm doing that speed and there is no reason to go faster! FWIW most of those people in a snow storm will go much slower than necessary and many will have on their 4 way lights. Nothing you can say or do (legally) will change their mind!:mad:
 
If the highway department would keep the right lane in better shape, I wouldn't be tempted to drive in the left.

There is a stretch of highway and a time of day that I will drive in the left lane unless somebody is gaining on me. An extra eight feet away from the shoulder and deer, dogs, coyotes, and cows is valuable.
 
Jim Watson said:
If the highway department would keep the right lane in better shape, I wouldn't be tempted to drive in the left.

There is a stretch of highway and a time of day that I will drive in the left lane unless somebody is gaining on me. An extra eight feet away from the shoulder and deer, dogs, coyotes, and cows is valuable.
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This, no question. I-10 between San Bernardino and Palm Springs is a classic example. I-40 in most places got so bad at one time late wife#1 commented that she had never been off-roading with a center divider. It still has right lane issues in many places given my last ride to Texas.

US-93 between Vegas and Kingman was all but unusable in the right lane in some places last Christmas. I took to running with my right wheels well in the shoulder with my left wheels on the "hump" between the ruts in the right lane. Picked up that trick from an Arizona registered truck in front.

Of course, some of the right lane aversion is down to the big wheels and consequent lack of sidewall on so many vehicles. Also, vehicle suspension tends to be stiffer these days to improve handling and braking at the expense of ride.
 
I'm definitely sympathetic to the "right lane" for travel. Left lane for passing.

However, I use to do a lot of long distance road trips. Our highways are often plagued with endless miles of interstate highway with horrible right lane conditions. Potholes and patches and road debris going on forever. Unpleasant driving and potentially damaging or dangerous.

Under those conditions it hard to not favor the better lane. It is however proper curiosity to pull over when it's obvious someone is overtaking you to pass.
 
Most people are just oblivious to anything outside their car, or anything further in front of them than their front bumper. Until they've suffered a consequence, they just don't care. And many won't even comprehend that the consequence they eventually suffer is their own darn fault.

I was never a big ticket writer, but my favorites were failure to yield (pulling out in front of traffic) and impeding the left lane. Most of the recipients were either utterly clueless, or so distracted that they weren't paying any attention. Impeding the left lane not only clogs up traffic, it angers other drivers, and angry drivers do stupid, dangerous things. My feeling is that 60% or more of road rage incidents originate with some knucklehead blocking the left lane.

I will agree that the state of many Interstates' right lanes are just awful. We travel a good bit in a Class A RV, and I try to just do my thing in the right lane, but sometimes I have to take the left if there's no traffic just to keep the rig in one piece! Usually the truckers are doing the same.
 
Just people too stupid to use their rear view mirror.
On one of our road trips, maybe last year, a state trooper saw some woman blocking the left lane on a 3 lane (our) direction. He turned on his lights and got behind her, she woke up and moved to the far right and he went on his way. When I passed him, I gave him a thumbs up. He smiled and waved! I've often thought about getting in front of lefties, and slowing down, but that's unsafe for everyone else.
 
It is not just on the interstates. On our last visit to Houston I was in the right lane of the Beltway 8 access road approaching our hotel, so I was doing the speed limit. Traffic in the left lane was slowly passing me.

A rather large SUV towing a trailer passed me on my right using the shoulder. He overtook the two cars in front of me as well before pulling back into the right lane.

As for the standard of US interstates and freeways, come and drive New Zealand roads. They will give you a new appreciation for US ones. Two lane, no centre barriers and potholes/rough repairs so numerous that you just cant't drive around them.
 
Bigdog357 said:
I've been known to jump in front of them and slow down, forcing them to get in the right lane. Not a long-term solution, but it makes me feel better.
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Ahh, early stage of road rage.
Rudi said:
So many people should not be behind the wheel.
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That is how I feel about people that think the speed limit doesn't apply to them.
 
Around here, the left lane has become the designated dump truck lane. Not unusual to see them 3 abreast. When they merge onto the highway, right to the left lane they go, not even close to being up to speed
 
Jim Watson said:
If the highway department would keep the right lane in better shape, I wouldn't be tempted to drive in the left.

There is a stretch of highway and a time of day that I will drive in the left lane unless somebody is gaining on me. An extra eight feet away from the shoulder and deer, dogs, coyotes, and cows is valuable.
Click to expand...

I normally try to stay in the right lane unless passing, but when the right lane is rough and the left is smooth, I tend to hang around in the left lane a bit more.
 
Traffic as I was taught.
Slow moving vehicles on the Highway is always to the right. Left lane is for passing.
The Ignorant campers of the left lane are too self-absorbed to bother moving to the right. I have encountered once or twice these people at rest stops where I was approached as a tailgater (I wasn't) and was putting everyone on the highway at risk. At risk I said. My response was simple left for passing and faster traffic. then out comes the Karen about how I was too dangerous to be on the road. I simply replied " if I was still driving my old beater of a Ford Bronco" I would have simply smashed into, your car and wrecked you into the median and I would sleep very well that night. Looks are priceless! The very fact I was followed into a rest area to be yelled at by someone driving below the speed limit in the 1st place just to annoy other drivers speak volumes. I always stay 2 car lengths back not to avoid accidents per say but to avoid damaging my car at all costs. I move to the right when I notice faster cars approaching. It's just simple curtesy. Others are right Road rage is real. I know of a victim of such a thing she purposely cut off a motorcyclist, at the next stop light he parked his bike pulled her from her car and beat her jumped back on his bike to never be caught this was in the 80's. By no means justified as she was known for being a Karen while driving. Just saying in today's world it's smarter not to antagonize people because you are right or not. It's almost too dangerous to walk out your own front door these days. Yes, I generally go about 10 miles over speed limits on highways in the fast lane.

I'll stay safe and let God sort out the idiots on the highway.

Cities
 
I don't think it's illegal to park in the left lane in NC. There is probably a law about obstructing traffic generally, but it is not enforced as relates to folks going near the speed limit (say 10-15 mph under) any more than speeding enforced until you exceed 10-15mph over. I look at the drivers on the left lane with disdain, but I've no interest in slowing down once I pass them.

Road rage is real, once or twice a year someone decides to be offended that I passed them on the right and they chase me. I usually give them space, if I can get them on my left with nobody behind me I'll brake hard and they usually roar off going 30 or 40 mph faster than they were a few min earlier.

Buddy of mine got cut off a couple weeks ago by a nice pickup truck, he was driving a new to him Lexus LS500. He honked at the guy and the guy started throwing rocks at him. Broke a couple windows and the sunroof, dented up the car pretty good. Called 911 with the plate number and let the guy go, police haven't done anything,
 
jeffrefrig said:
I've often thought about getting in front of lefties, and slowing down,
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That is known as a "brake check" and there are ample dashcam videos of it leading to wrecks and fights.

If I am doing the speed limit, why does it matter which lane I am in and why do you need to pass me? Unless an emergency vehicle, of course. Drives me nuts that people will come to a stop for a dead man and not get out of the way of fire, police, or ambulance.
 
pmanton said:
Their mindset is "I'm going fast enough! No one needs to go any faster!"
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I believe the majority of them believe this.

What I've noticed on an Interstate I drive almost every day are trucks not using the truck lane up the mountain causing cars to pass them both in the passing and truck lanes often at the same time. It's dangerous passing on the right given the large speed disparity with the slow moving trucks. Some truckers eventually wake up or finish their phone call and realize they're in the center lane and swerve over. Others stay in the center lane all the way up.

What's really needed are officers in unmarked cars out there pulling over fast enough Freds in the left lane and distracted drivers chatting on their phones paying no attention to their driving.
 
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