Safe in 60: Don’t plug up the fast lane

If you have driven on Utah’s freeways, you have probably been annoyed once or twice by someone camping out in the fast lane.

In today’s Safe in 60, I’ll explain why plugging up the passing lane is against the law.

Simply stated, Utah code 41-6a-704 says that if you are driving in the left lane and someone comes up behind you wanting to pass, you are obligated to pull safely over to a lane to the right

You also cannot pull a trailer in the left lane.

This law is to help traffic flow more smoothly, and prevent people from tailgating and weaving in and out of traffic. It also leaves the left lane open to emergency vehicles

So why do people refuse to pull to the right? In my experience, there are several reasons:

1. They may be unaware of the law – so spread the word.
2. They are unaware they are disrupting the flow of traffic, which raises the potential for accidents.
3. They are trying to control the flow of traffic, and make others drive the speed limit.

For the safety of everyone on the road, please don’t clog the left lane. Pull to the right, and let those cars pass.

 

Statute:

Utah Code 41-6a-704. Overtaking and passing vehicles proceeding in same direction

(2) On a highway having more than one lane in the same direction, the operator of a vehicle traveling in the left general purpose lane:

(a) shall, upon being overtaken by another vehicle in the same lane, yield to the overtaking vehicle by moving safely to a lane to the right; and

(b) may not impede the movement or free flow of traffic in the left general purpose lane.

(3) An operator of a vehicle traveling in the left general purpose lane that has a vehicle following directly behind the operator’s vehicle at a distance so that less than two seconds elapse before reaching the location of the operator’s vehicle when space is available for the operator to yield to the overtaking vehicle by traveling in the right-hand lane is prima facie evidence that the operator is violating Subsection (2).