I'm not aware of ANY law against passing on the right, unless it is posted "Do not pass on the right." Likewise, a sign saying "Slower traffic must keep right" means JUST that (regardless of speed limits or speed of traffic.) You can be ticketed for not doing this.... and the offense is "failure to obey a traffic control device."

I hate to agree with Fozzy, but his description of a three lane highway/interstate is correct. If you want to "hang out" in the middle lane for safety reasons, I would agree with you, AS LONG AS you are going the speed limit OR with the flow of traffic in THAT lane.

I applaud, and often join, those who don't mind "lifting" occaisionally to help another driver pass (even a 4 wheeler,) when it helps maintain a safe and consistent flow of traffic.

But, a driver who pulls out and BLOCKS the middle OR far left lane, to pass a truck he can ONLY do 1 mile faster than; is a DANGER, an S.O.B., and an IDIOT. (when there is ANY appreciable amount of traffic behind them to be "impeded.")

For the record, I usually hang out in the middle lane. It is safer in the long run. 4wheelers are getting dumber every day about how to merge safely and LEGALLY. It is MUCH easier for them to accelerate and get out of my way, than it is for me to lose all my momentum and have to slow down and further impede the traffic behind me, just to let them in when they are too timid or stupid to get on it and get ahead of me. (But, that doesn't mean I won't DO it, when I find myself "trapped" in the right lane.)

When I am in the far left lane, I am constantly watching my mirrors to ensure that I am NOT part of the problem. I do the SAME when in the middle lane.

My truck will do or exceed the speed limit in most states. Whether or not I'm speeding is none of your business. I know it must come as a shock to some of you, but if you drive a truck governed at 55-65 mph, you need to be MORE courteous than others. It is not OUR fault you work for that company, as it is not YOUR fault that the truck is governed. But.... show a bit of courtesy to the rest of us!

Colin (I believe) mentioned a company policy that says you must stay in the middle lane, although you are a slow truck. Is the company rep riding WITH you?? Will an EOBR tell them you are in the far right lane? You even mentioned that traffic conditions should be considered in your decision. Okay.... then get OUT of MY FAST LANE! No one will know, and no one will tell!

There is only ONE thing worse than a stupid 4wheeler holding up traffic.... and that is an ARROGANT (so-called professional) truckdriver doing the SAME!!!

If you are holding up traffic, you have NO LEG to stand on! No law... no company policy... nothing! If it is SAFE for you to move to the right (or STAY to the right when you see a faster truck coming behind you,) and let "us" by, that is part of your JOB as a "professional driver." To do otherwise, makes you no better than a "steeringwheelholder" or a 4wheeler!

To INTENTIONALLY pull out to pass when you KNOW you will cause us to "brake," is nothing less than RUDE and COMMON! It shows the size of your brain, and implies a certain "insecurity" about the size of another part of your anatomy! And that is NOT my problem! I've got a job to do!

As another poster said, either LEAD, FOLLOW or GET OUT OF MY WAY! I'm SURE I'll catch some H&ll for this.... but I don't care. But don't even TRY to offer an excuse! There IS NONE!!!

And before someone tags me as a BBR, I'm a VERY careful driver. I am constantly aware of ALL traffic around me, and make my moves gently and early, so there is no need for "other" traffic to make sudden moves! I don't tailgate, or intimidate! I'm just constantly "working" the road.... doing my job professionally! And, for what it's worth, I get MORE help and courtesy from the 4wheelers I share the road with, than I do from MOST truckers out there! So, what does that say about our "industry?"

The original poster was right. ANY truck in the middle lane, causing traffic to pass him on the RIGHT, is a menace and an IDIOT! And is probably on his cellphone!

 

I'm just talking about my state, I don't know about Virginia, I'd imagine mosts states have similar laws regarding the passing lane.

 

I will not try to pass a truck at 1mph faster in heavy metro traffic, I will wait it out.

However out in the country, I stand by my reasoning that if I want to pass you going 1mph faster, you could be courteous and drop your speed a bit to let me get around, and then hit the resume on your cruise control.

I see no reason to lose 30 minutes when I don't HAVE 30 minutes to lose.

Oh and even in the country I try to be coureous, if I'm attemping a slow pass, and I see a car coming up behind me off in the distance and I know he'll catch me before I complete the pass, I will drop my speed and fall back into the right lane until the car gets passed...

Even though 4-wheelers constantly burn me when I'm nice to them (like when you let them on when they're merging slow, by moving over to the passing lane, then they gun it and match your speed and won't slow down or speed up to let you back over) I always try to be courteous.

 

It is illegal to pass on the right in some states even if it's a 4 lane. It is illegal here but is rarely enforced unless whomever is doing it, is making aggressive moves.

Fredog, you can do whatever you want, nobody can't stop you if you want to ride in the middle lane but don't whine and complain when a faster driver comes along and takes off your front end as they go by because you pissed them off.

I will not pass a truck that is 1 mph slower than me, I am usually getting off real soon with being local, so no need to. If they are going 5 mph slower than me, then yes I will go on by and get gone.

 

I would have NO problem with the circumstances as you state them, Deus. Although, sometimes traffic is heavy in more "rural" areas as well on the Interstate. I am talking mostly about the "4 mile pass" regardless of where it takes place.... when it causes traffic to back up behind the passing truck.

We ALL have a job to do. Actually, with my speed advantage, I wouldn't lose MUCH time by braking HARD to let you pass in a matter of only a minute or two, but that is not the point. My problem is with a truck who has been following another for the last couple of miles, who sees me "barreling" down on him, and thinks he must pull out NOW and attempt a pass, rather than spending 5 more seconds behind that truck while I blow by both of them. This is DANGEROUS, and makes NO SENSE.

I understand and feel the agony of a single "wasted" mph. My problem is with the "slower" governed trucks who cannot or will not see that I am going at least 10 mph faster than them, and pull out to block me for that 4 mile pass!

Worse yet, by the time they finally clear the other truck, we are on an uphill grade, and I am heavy. Now, I've lost all my momentum, and "I" may have to fall in behind the truck they passed, so that I can let some 4wheelers get by. Then, we crest the hill, and I again gain 15 mph on the "governed" truck in front of me.... but NOW I have to break going downhill to keep from running over a 4wheeler who is doing the "4 mile pass!" And just a moment ago.... I was leaving him in my dust! :twisted:

Had you (or a truck like yours) LET me pass by, I would have been long gone, and still dragging a string of slower 4wheelers behind me. Then, the road behind the two of you would be "empty" and you can take as long as you needed to pass him. It's all about courtesy and road management. You may not have 30 minutes to spare, but you've got another 5 seconds that I'm SURE you can't find a way to log! :lol:

 

Right on Hobo! If you run the middle thats fine but move over for faster traffic, plain and simple. As I stated earlier, the majority of guys in the middle are lazy and inconsiderate and it has nothing to do with safety. They just want to hold their little wheel and not interupt their cruise control setting. And like you, thats my opinion and aint nothing you can say to change it.

 

God, what a stupid effing thread. Sheesh.

 

Mr. Ford95: I am not arguing with you, but I would like to know what states it is illegal in? I do not run ALL 48 states, so it might be true somewhere. But, I'm not aware of such a law in any state I drive in, except where "posted" as in when a lane is about to become an exit, etc.

I can't help but envision a situation with a two or three lane freeway, with a big truck doing 50 in the far left lane, and NO ONE can pass him on the right?? Before I got into trucking, I travelled nearly every interstate in this country, and I NEVER saw, or was aware of, such a regulation.

Can you give me a specific example of a section of Interstate where this is the law? Or cite a statute to that effect? I'm pretty sure you are older than I, but I've been around for awhile. I can't think of ANY place in the country, except where specifically posted, that it is illegal to pass on the right on an interstate.

Such a law would make NO sense, and could have NO reason to exist outside of a few specific areas. The traffic implications are a nightmare! You're in Virginia, right? I travel through there quite often. I've NEVER seen such a "posted" law. Doesn't mean there's not one "on the books." Please "educate" me further concerning this ridiculous regulation.

 

What is so stupid about this thread, Colin? If you've ever been an OTR driver, as I believe you said you were, you KNOW this is one of the biggest problems drivers face in their daily "job."

There are threads on here about Anna Nicole Smith, lot lizards, what to bring with you on a road trip, and many OTHER banal subjects. What is so stupid about a thread about slow trucks impeding traffic?

Our job is DRIVING! Not sleeping in a truckstop, or finding a Walmart, or what satellite radio station or WiFi card is best. I really don't understand your animosity on this. But, if you find it a WASTE of your time..... change the channel! Go to another thread!

I'm not questioning your 10 years or more of "previous" experience, but times are changing out there on the road. To MY mind, THIS is one of the most pertinent subjects that we could be discussing. In fact, it should be MOVED to the "new drivers get help" forum!

The only thing worse than the hordes of WIMPS who are getting into driving trucks today, is the number of POOR DRIVERS who are doing so! People think that they can go to a 4 week school and learn how to drive a truck.... and then they get out there with the rest of us! :roll:

I couldn't give a DA@N about what GPS system someone uses, or what laptop they need, or where they go to the bathroom.......... I want to see people who can DRIVE! THAT is what affects me every minute of every day that I am on the road!

I spend at least 11 hours on the road every day, between the white lines and the ditches! I'm guiding 80k pounds on some pretty lousy roads, surrounded by IDIOTS, and my job is to make the miles and do so SAFELY for me and everyone else on the road. MY LIFE, and yours, could depend on what I KNOW about the "expected" actions of every other vehicle on the road.

I don't really have TIME to worry about DDL programs and satellite radio mergers. I spend almost every minute of my working day thinking about the safety issues that face me on the road! And, I'm proud to say, that I maintain my concentration on my job!

A couple of days ago, I heard no less than THREE truckers trying to get the attention of a flatbedder to tell him his airlines were dragging the ground! A possibly "critical" situation! When he finally "answered" them, he admitted his radio was turned down so he could make a cellphone call!

The road is a dangerous place these days! Apparently, you are no longer out here in the "battle." Idiots going slow in the middle lane are a BIG part of the problem! This is a thread addressing THAT problem.

So WHAT, pray tell, is so "effing stupid" about this thread??? And what, does GOD have to do with it?

 

Hobo, in VA it is not posted, yes. It is a law, just like honking your horn when your passing someone on the left here. It just isn't enforced very often if at all. It will also get you into more trouble if you do honk your horn because it can now be construed as aggressive driving. :roll: Both are a dumb law like most you never hear about that are on the books. You have to know that you cannot pass on the right though to pass our DMV tests just to get a regular driving license.

Your right, it's not posted in every state but there is prolly a law on the books. Wife told me your not allowed to pass on the right in Ohio after my first time there trying to jet around someone on Rt. 32 which is a 4 lane. She would know from living there her whole life along with being neighbors with a State Trooper who taught her how to drive and all the laws. Usually it is not a problem on a 4 lane because most states have sensible drivers who actually know how to move right to let faster vehicles pass. That law in Ohio may have changed though, I know they can no longer pull you and ticket you for not using a turn signal, even it causes a wreck unless you merged into someone. They can ticket you for failure to yield but not for failure to use a turn signal. Just changed it recently.