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Wait a sec, you drive on the opposite side of the road in the UK, so the advice to stay in the left lane except for overtaking is the equivalent of the advice h
by jibe 7y ago
Wait a sec, you drive on the opposite side of the road in the UK, so the advice to stay in the left lane except for overtaking is the equivalent of the advice here to stay to the right, or out of the left lane except when passing.
- rahimnathwani 7y ago"is the equivalent of the advice here to stay to the right" Yeah, but the advice in the California DMV handbook is to stay in the middle, not the right. The difference is that, in the UK, the middle lane is explicitly only for overtaking. If you're going the same speed as the cars in the left lane, you're not overtaking, so you shouldn't be in the middle lane. California's guidance is directly contrary to this.
- pg_is_a_butt 7y agoYour comment is directly contrary to itself.
- kevin_thibedeau 7y agoIn the US there is no priority with 3+ lanes. You can legally plod along in the left lane without passing anyone. The middle is a safe option to avoid conflicts on either side. For two lanes you are supposed to leave the left/high-speed lane for passing only.
- nitrogen 7y agoThat really depends on the state. In Utah, for example, the law requires left lane drivers to move over if they are being passed on the right. Some other states explicitly designate the left lane for passing only.
- masonic 7y agoIn the US there is no priority with 3+ lanes There is no monolithic Nationwide vehicle code. Laws can vary state to state. You can legally plod along in the left lane without passing anyone. Generally false. Definitely false in CA: Slower traffic keep right, notwithstanding speed limits.
- hn_throwaway_99 7y agoSo wait, in a 3+ lane setup in the UK, both the middle lane and the rightmost are only for passing? That seems weird to me. Reason for the CA rules is that, in the US, the rightmost lane is where all the entrance and exit ramps are, so you often have people speeding up or slowing down as they enter and exit. Rather than have to do a ton of lane changes to pass people as they merge on, the advice to stay in the middle lane if you just want to stay a constant speed is so you don't have to deal as much with people entering and exiting your lane.
- rahimnathwani 7y agoYes, the UK highway code rule 264 says: "You should always drive in the left-hand lane when the road ahead is clear. If you are overtaking a number of slower-moving vehicles, you should return to the left-hand lane as soon as you are safely past." When I learned to drive (many years ago), the guidance was more specific: the middle lane for overtaking a vehicle, and the right-most lane for overtaking multiple vehicles.
- bartread 7y agoUK motorway junctions are all equipped with long sliproads. Generally you're supposed to do all your accelerating or braking on the sliproad when you join or leave the motorway, although traffic conditions can obviously prevent this. With that said, in free-flowing traffic, it can be incredibly dangerous when people fail to follow this protocol, and I often wish there was more enforcement.
- oblio 7y agoEverywhere in Europe it's the same as the UK. Exits add extra, temporary lanes 90% of the time, the right lane keeps going forward.