| LEFT LANE DRIVERS Most people seem to know that the left lane is for faster traffic, and for passing. But that still leaves a lot of people who don't know this, and drive along slowly, holding up traffic. There's also lots of drivers who choose to ignore this rule (or courtesy) and stake their claim in the left lane no matter what speed they're driving. Apparently there are also drivers who are "speed enforcers" who deliberately drive slowly in the left lane to force other drivers to keep their speed down. I guess they have our best interests at heart, right? But it makes other drivers furious, and causes some drivers to make some drastic and dangerous moves. I think most places in the world have this as a matter of law, and you can be cited for being too slow in the left lane. But here's the part I find the most interesting: when drivers are on an expressway it's generally understood that slower traffic keeps to the right.But what about driving in the city? My observation is that most people tend to ignore this (rule) when driving in city traffic. It could be that in your jurisdiction the law just says to keep to the right on expressways, and ignores city driving. However, I rather doubt it. Here's an example: according to the Highway Traffic Act of Ontario, Canada, a "highway" is defined as any public road. Therefore the left lane rule applies everywhere, and so it should. It's just that most people don't seem to be aware of that. I have a hunch that in most places, a highway is defined as any public road. There's a group called Left Lane Drivers of America who are trying to raise awareness about this issue. Their mantra is: "If You're Not A Left Lane Driver Get Out Of The Left Lane." Good for them. They even have a decal on their windshield with a huge arrow, and large letters saying MOVE OVER. I really wonder how effective it is, because in my experience drivers who dawdle along in the fast lane aren't very much aware of what's happening around them. I have noticed countless times when a driver does something stupid, sloppy, or whatever, if you watch them for a short while you'll see them doing other things along the same line. There certainly is such a thing as lousy drivers. Poking along in the left lane anywhere makes other drivers very angry and can be the cause of some drivers losing their cool, and indulging in road rage. I would suggest no matter where you are in the world you keep to the right except to pass. More safe driving tips can be found in my defensive driver course "Learn To Drive And Survive." Click on the link below: http://www.ultimate-driver-training.com/index.html Webmasters: if you would like to link to this article you can use the following URL: http://www.ultimate-driver-training.com/left_lane_drivers.html
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