Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Stay to the Right, Pass on the Left

You’re on a four lane road and there is one car on the right.  Can you stay in the left hand lane without passing?The answer generally speaking is no.  The vast majority of states have “Stay to the Right” laws.  Of course Ohio tends to be a little ambiguous, but the general law is there. 

It is one of my incredible pet peeves is when people are blocking the left lane.  I don’t know why it bothers me so much, but it does.  The amazing thing is that 80% of the time it is women.  This is just observation, not scientific evidence.  Lest you think I am a male chauvinist pig, my mental tallies as my wife will support are pretty accurate.  Men do other bad stuff on the road but women are the lollygaggers. 

The other night, I was driving home and I got behind a women who decided the left lane was her personal lane for nearly a mile.  I could not pass her because she was doing exactly the same speed as the car on the right.  I unfortunately have a habit of tale gaiting people like that.  The car on the right turned right at a light and the women on the left rolled down her window and asked me (actually she was pretty nice – I wouldn’t have been so nice) if I knew that she was driving the speed limit (it does not matter by law if you are doing the speed limit or not)  I asked her if she knew that she was breaking the law by camping in the left lane.  She said she didn’t know that was the law.  Now I felt bad because I was pretty snippy.  We do things in cars we wouldn’t ever do in person because we have anonymity in cars.  I wouldn’t push her the left if she was slow standing in a bank teller line. 

Anyway, the law is stay to the right and pass on the left.  You will then avoid the wrath of Spoorts.  I will try not to get so upset about it.   

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