COLUMBUS — The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) is reminding drivers that the left lane on highways is intended for passing, not for cruising, our news partners at WBNS reported.
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ODOT has launched a social media campaign with the slogan, “Camp in the parks, not in the left lane,” to address the issue of slow drivers blocking traffic by lingering in the passing lane.
“You are only going to make the situation worse if you start tailgating that person, driving aggressively, road raging that person,” ODOT spokesperson Matt Bruning said.
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Ohio law mandates that motorists must “keep right, except when passing,” and drivers who impede the flow of traffic by driving below the speed of surrounding vehicles can be ticketed.
Violators of the left lane law face fines up to $150 for a first offense.
As WBNS reported, Ohio Revised Code Section 4511.25 requires vehicles to be driven on the right side of the roadway, except when overtaking or passing another vehicle, avoiding an obstruction, or when driving on a roadway with multiple lanes in going in one direction.
Ohio’s “unreasonably slow speed law” ORC 4511.22 prohibits driving “at such an unreasonably slow speed as to impede or block the normal and reasonable movement of traffic, except when stopping or reduced speed is necessary for safe operation or to comply with law.”
Transportation officials warn that left-lane campers can create unsafe conditions by causing other drivers to tailgate or pass on the right, leading to aggressive driving and potential collisions.
Officials also encourage drivers to be patient and to allow slower vehicles time to move over, avoid road rage, and save passing for the right moment, WBNS reported.
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