Trying to explain this in LHD/RHD-neutral terms. Let’s see how I do …
One of the rationales I’ve heard from inside campers is that they feel safer there.
There are not scary cars on both sides of them as there would be if they cruised in a middle lane.
There are not scary cars pulling into their lane at on-ramps as there would be if they cruised in the outermost lane.
When a car does pass them, it’s on the far side of their own vehicle, so they’re farther away and less startling than if they whiz by right next to the driver’s door.
Granted, these are stupid reasons. But they are the reasons given.
Which is why smarter states use the “slower traffic keep right” model.
The “keep right except to pass” model essentially turns the typical rural state high highway or interstate into a one-lane-each way road. All the wear and tear is on just the outer lane’s pavement and the road’s total carrying capacity is limited to how many cars fit into 1 lane. Or at least that’s what the law ignorantly requires.
What really happens once the outer lane is beaten by large trucks into a washboard surface or there’s too much traffic to flow fast in one lane is that everybody switches to some haphazard version of “slower traffic keep right” and “I’ll drive whatever speed I want in whatever lane I want.” Which works as badly as it sounds.
I wouldn’t call Ohio to Oklahoma “cross country.” You’re only “crossing” two states. I’ve driven California to Ohio several times. That’s a much longer trip, but still not “cross country.”
CA to Ohio is truly cross country. You don’t have to go sea-to-shining-sea to be on a cross country trip.
And to the OP, you’ve got more patience than me. I would have said something before we left the state. Polite at first, mildly snark after 200 miles, full on “GET IN THE RIGHT LANE!” after 500 miles.
Yeah, but slower than what? You and I know it means “Slower than other traffic”, but maybe she thinks it means, I don’t know, maybe “Slower than the speed limit.”
I figure the driver of the car is the captain of the ship. They don’t get my advice unless they ask for it, or there’s a sudden emergency. Especially if they’re sort of my boss
The only people who I would tell to get in the right (and correct) lane would be my wife, my kids, good friends (perhaps) and my employees.
Literally the only people whom I have given driving advice to are my wife (and VERY few times at that) and my kid who is a learning driver and asks me for advice and feedback.
The idea of criticizing your boss or a client’s driving seems foolhardy at best. Unless they are actually endangering lives. Camping out in the left lane on I-35 doing 70 in a 65 doesn’t meet that criteria by a long way.
In Minnesota the few signs they do have say “Slower traffic move right”, maybe because it sounds more direct than “keep right”. I’ve gotten best results in a similar situation by telling of the only time I’ve hit a deer, it was because it was coming up from the median and there was less time to react than if it came from the right shoulder.
I frequently disobey traffic laws. I frequently am annoyed by slow pokes. But have never understood the legal justification people use, or the laws that are apparently on the books.
The speed limit is 70 mph on this highway. But if you drive 70 mph and slightly inconvenience someone who wants to do 80 mph, we are gonna give you a ticket. And society considers you a jerk for obeying the law.
I also drive 80 mph on Interstates. Sometimes someone comes up behind doing 90 mph. So I mover over. But that guy is a maniac.
We had to take some measurement equipment to Tinker AFB (oscilloscope, isolation transformer, meter, etc.) to take some measurements. Figured it would be easier to drive vs. fly.
We’re now in Greenville, Illinois to spend the night. She drove in the left lane the whole way here. Tomorrow… more of the same back to Dayton, I expect.
The problem is that you can’t simply tell some to “GET IN THE RIGHT LANE!”. They have to know how to drive… they have to know when to overtake someone, and how to make the maneuver. It takes years of driving to learn this.
Oh, and she tailgates, and likes to slam on the brakes when the car in front stops. I am cringing in the passenger seat.
…and this is why I’ve often advocated that, in a democracy, that speeding tickets should be based on how fast you were going relative to the rest of traffic. If everyone else on the road thinks that 100 mph is safe, who are we to disagree?
Show me Ohio to Oklahoma while only being in 2 states total. Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri are 3 states in and of themselves. Were they in the Mach 5 and jumped over a state and the state they started in and finished in Don’t count?
My mother used to do this, often to the point of creating a traffic hazard. Eventually saying “You know, if you get passed on the right a couple of times, you’re probably in the wrong lane and causing a traffic hazard. Get over to the right when there’s a reasonable gap.” enough times got her to stop doing it while I was in the car.
Umm, even my mom knew how to overtake another car. They actually covered it in driver’s ed. If they aren’t able to do that, they might need to consider giving up their license.
Man, I probably would have just exclaimed something after that happened the second time. Of course, I have shouted things at people that I meant to only think.
By all means, compel this woman to drive in the right lane, point out the hazards of her actions. Maybe a letter or e-mail would make addressing this issue more comfortable to address, thus non-confrontational.
This is actually a very serious issue; that her poor choice of which side of the road she has chosen to drive on can lead to not only tickets from the highway police but serious accidents, potentially life threatening.
There is nothing mundane or pointless about what you’ve said in your post. I urge you to take action on this, sooner rather than later.
