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Westbound and Down, there've been enough discussions about this very topic on C-D that I have, indeed, researched the statutes in Texas. There's two statutes that apply - slower traffic move right AND speed limit statutes that state that anyone driving should not drive more than the speed limit.
In addition, there's another statute that pertains to left lane for passing only. It states that the Texas Department of Transportation can designate stretches of highway to be left lane for passing only and if they do those stretches must be signed with a particular verbiage. In addition to that, there is case law that if the sign is far enough back, left lane for passing only no longer applies. Certain police officers have thought as you do, and had their drug arrests resulting from such stops handed back to them as invalid stops because the sign was five miles (or even, in one case, 27 miles!) back and they pulled someone over for driving in the left lane without passing and found drugs, only to have that bust invalidated because they didn't know the law.
In those discussions, there have been other examples given of other states where it's not The Law All The Time. That's why I wrote as I did above; I suggest doing some research yourself, but remember, you need to find ALL the parts of the law, those applying to speed limits as well as those applying to slower traffic move right and left lane for passing only, in order to get an accurate picture, if that is, indeed, what you're looking for.
Another thing I should add is a lot of the time police have to drive faster to a call, but not necessarily one that requires lights and sirens. If people had the common courtesy of moving over this would cut down on police response times!
Westbound and Down, there've been enough discussions about this very topic on C-D that I have, indeed, researched the statutes in Texas. There's two statutes that apply - slower traffic move right AND speed limit statutes that state that anyone driving should not drive more than the speed limit.
In addition, there's another statute that pertains to left lane for passing only. It states that the Texas Department of Transportation can designate stretches of highway to be left lane for passing only and if they do those stretches must be signed with a particular verbiage. In addition to that, there is case law that if the sign is far enough back, left lane for passing only no longer applies. Certain police officers have thought as you do, and had their drug arrests resulting from such stops handed back to them as invalid stops because the sign was five miles (or even, in one case, 27 miles!) back and they pulled someone over for driving in the left lane without passing and found drugs, only to have that bust invalidated because they didn't know the law.
In those discussions, there have been other examples given of other states where it's not The Law All The Time. That's why I wrote as I did above; I suggest doing some research yourself, but remember, you need to find ALL the parts of the law, those applying to speed limits as well as those applying to slower traffic move right and left lane for passing only, in order to get an accurate picture, if that is, indeed, what you're looking for.
I did not say it is "The Law All the Time" - I noted the exceptions (rural vs urban).
Since you like to look up laws, find for me, in Texas, where it is legal to pass slower cars to the right. If it is "legal" (or not expressly prohibited), you might want to get some friends together and demand that it be made illegal, because it is dangerous and unnecessary. Or do you think it is a perfectly safe practice to have cars passing to the right and left around slower cars in what should be seen as the passing lanes? Really? Because I just love it when I am trying to get over to the exit lane and I have to avoid someone doing 70 because he is trying to pass some slowpoke in the center or left lane...
I am not "looking for" anything, just expressing my opinion about what is wrong in the US with respect to this issue. The Germans have it right, whether we would ever agree to the unposted speed limit deal or not.
Edit: chew on this link for a while: http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html How do you interpret this table? The laws in the vast majority of states are a combo (or an either or) of laws that say "slower traffic keep right, passing and faster traffic keep left" depending on, in some states, if it is rural, urban, open road. And that is exactly what I said in my first post here.
Also - notice it is "illegal" to pass on the right in Texas on anything but a one way road. You are welcome - I saved you a trip to Austin!
BTW - you brought up speed limits. Nowhere did I suggest that it is or should be "legal" to speed, anywhere (except of course for the autobahn exception). My discussion focuses on the passing lane issue, only. I assume everywhere I drive that if I get pulled over for going 1 mph over the posted limit that I have nothing to argue about - people always want to claim that there is a range over the posted limit that cops let go, but I never assume it - cops appear to use discretion, I suppose, but the law is the law, and anyone speeding is breaking the law and should be subject to ticketing (although the AZ cop, when I asked about the speeders and why I was pulled over and not them, told me that AZ law allows passing cars to temporarily exceed the speed limit, and perhaps that is actually their law, and it makes sense to me - think about those cases when you have to pass on a 2 lane road, and you have to "speed" to safely get around the car you are passing to get out of the way on oncoming traffic).
Last edited by Westbound and Down; 05-07-2014 at 07:31 AM..
I did not say it is "The Law All the Time" - I noted the exceptions (rural vs urban).
Since you like to look up laws, find for me, in Texas, where it is legal to pass slower cars to the right. If it is "legal" (or not expressly prohibited), you might want to get some friends together and demand that it be made illegal, because it is dangerous and unnecessary. Or do you think it is a perfectly safe practice to have cars passing to the right and left around slower cars in what should be seen as the passing lanes? Really? Because I just love it when I am trying to get over to the exit lane and I have to avoid someone doing 70 because he is trying to pass some slowpoke in the center or left lane...
I am not "looking for" anything, just expressing my opinion about what is wrong in the US with respect to this issue. The Germans have it right, whether we would ever agree to the unposted speed limit deal or not.
Edit: chew on this link for a while: State "keep right" laws How do you interpret this table? The laws in the vast majority of states are a combo (or an either or) of laws that say "slower traffic keep right, passing and faster traffic keep left" depending on, in some states, if it is rural, urban, open road. And that is exactly what I said in my first post here.
Also - notice it is "illegal" to pass on the right in Texas on anything but a one way road. You are welcome - I saved you a trip to Austin!
BTW - you brought up speed limits. Nowhere did I suggest that it is or should be "legal" to speed, anywhere (except of course for the autobahn exception). My discussion focuses on the passing lane issue, only. I assume everywhere I drive that if I get pulled over for going 1 mph over the posted limit that I have nothing to argue about - people always want to claim that there is a range over the posted limit that cops let go, but I never assume it - cops appear to use discretion, I suppose, but the law is the law, and anyone speeding is breaking the law and should be subject to ticketing (although the AZ cop, when I asked about the speeders and why I was pulled over and not them, told me that AZ law allows passing cars to temporarily exceed the speed limit, and perhaps that is actually their law, and it makes sense to me - think about those cases when you have to pass on a 2 lane road, and you have to "speed" to safely get around the car you are passing to get out of the way on oncoming traffic).
Regarding speeding, my comment was directed not just to you but to other participants of this thread who DO insist that the move right law should be strictly obeyed while ignoring the speed limit law.
No trip to Austin necessary - the statutes are available online, takes only about 10-15 seconds to come up with them with the assistance of Mr. Google (faster than bookmarking, even), and since I used to be a legal assistant I know (a) how to do research and (b) how to read the statutes and (c) that the law is ALL of the statutes taken together, not just the parts I like and I can throw out the parts I don't.
Here's the statute regarding passing on the right, since you brought it up (you will note that passing on the right on a roadway containing two or more lanes in the same direction is allowed, as is driving on the improved shoulder in order to allow a faster vehicle to pass, which is an old time-honored Texas custom which has made its way into the statutes so there will be no confusion regarding its legality):
Sec. 545.057. PASSING TO THE RIGHT. (a) An operator may pass to the right of another vehicle only if conditions permit safely passing to the right and:
(1) the vehicle being passed is making or about to make a left turn; and
(2) the operator is:
(A) on a highway having unobstructed pavement not occupied by parked vehicles and sufficient width for two or more lines of moving vehicles in each direction; or
(B) on a one-way street or on a roadway having traffic restricted to one direction of movement and the roadway is free from obstructions and wide enough for two or more lines of moving vehicles.
(b) An operator may not pass to the right by leaving the main traveled portion of a roadway except as provided by Section 545.058.
Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.
Sec. 545.058. DRIVING ON IMPROVED SHOULDER. (a) An operator may drive on an improved shoulder to the right of the main traveled portion of a roadway if that operation is necessary and may be done safely, but only:
(1) to stop, stand, or park;
(2) to accelerate before entering the main traveled lane of traffic;
(3) to decelerate before making a right turn;
(4) to pass another vehicle that is slowing or stopped on the main traveled portion of the highway, disabled, or preparing to make a left turn;
(5) to allow another vehicle traveling faster to pass;
(6) as permitted or required by an official traffic-control device; or
(7) to avoid a collision.
I lived in Texas 30 years ago, and I am quite familiar with the tradition of "passing on the right - even on the shoulder" BS, not limited to interstates or limited access roads, but on highways with driveways and turnoffs, too, making it quite easy for a driver in the right hand lane to turn off the road and directly into the path of the idiot who is passing on the shoulder. Texas is the only state I have lived in or driven in where this ridiculous "tradition" has been memorialized in the law.
You can have it. All of it. I got forced off the road and onto the shoulder by plenty of jerks in Texas who could have easily passed me to the left, and I had a few who went around me on the shoulder to the right.
Oddly, in the last 39 years of driving on Texas roads all over the state (with the longest periods in East, North, and Central Texas) on roads from small country roads to interstate highways, I've never had that situation occur. Especially being forced off the road and onto the shoulder by someone passing on the RIGHT, who would, of course, be BETWEEN me and the shoulder. Wonder why it happened to you multiple times and more interestingly, HOW.
However, the custom I was referring to that was formalized in law has nothing to do with passing on the right but with moving right onto the improved shoulder of a one lane in one direction road to let someone driving faster pass you on the left, much like you are advocating that people do in roads with two or more lanes in one direction, so I'm hard pressed to understand how you think that is "ridiculous".
If you'd actually read the thread you'd know better, as I've stated several times that I only drive in the left lane to pass, but it's by preference, not by law, in most of the places I drive.
I follow the 80/20 rule in determining if it's even worth it to yield to someone coming from behind at high speed. In other words, I don't cater to the rare instances of extremely aggressive drivers.
If it's pretty obvious that I'm moving slower than the average flow of traffic in that lane, I move aside.
If I'm holding up tons of cars behind me, I move aside.
If i'm moving at speed of traffic in my lane, the car in front of me is 2-3 seconds ahead, and someone comes from behind with their high beams, too bad.
Oddly, in the last 39 years of driving on Texas roads all over the state (with the longest periods in East, North, and Central Texas) on roads from small country roads to interstate highways, I've never had that situation occur. Especially being forced off the road and onto the shoulder by someone passing on the RIGHT, who would, of course, be BETWEEN me and the shoulder. Wonder why it happened to you multiple times and more interestingly, HOW.
However, the custom I was referring to that was formalized in law has nothing to do with passing on the right but with moving right onto the improved shoulder of a one lane in one direction road to let someone driving faster pass you on the left, much like you are advocating that people do in roads with two or more lanes in one direction, so I'm hard pressed to understand how you think that is "ridiculous".
Like I said, my experience was 30 years ago. Texans may have "matured" in those years and maybe aren't as aggressive. Don't have to reveal your age, but how long have you lived in Texas and driven the roads? Edit: 39 years? If it never happened to you, ask someone your vintage about it...you missed out on one of the great Texas traditions, being forced off the highway by some jerk!
But back then, it was common on a 2 lane highway for cars to pull up behind another car and flash their bright lights for that driver to pull over onto the shoulder so he could pass in the single lane. Passers would do this even if there was no oncoming traffic that would make it hard for them to pull out temporarily into the oncoming lane, the way that people pass in every other state I have ever driven in.
I was not a Texan when I first experienced this "tradition" - I was a grad student from another state, enroute to Austin - and I did not know about any "time honored traditions" about pulling off the road to make way for someone else. I thought it was crazy as hell then, and I still do now, and on those times when I decided it was too unsafe to pull over (like at night when I could not see if the "improved" shoulder was wide enough for me to safely drive my vehicle) I would just let the passer figure it out, and I had many drivers pull over onto the shoulder to the right of me to pass me, and if you read the law you posted (2nd graph, #4) it appears to more or less legitimize this ridiculous tradition, even though I was not "slowing or stopped" as the law now requires but traveling the speed limit.
Maybe it was done as a courtesy at one time, but in the 80s drivers got bullied on the highways in Texas to get the hell over and out of the way. Don't miss that, and I don't miss Texas, either.
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