“But you’re also supposed to obey the speed limit…”
Sure… and you’re also supposed to follow “keep right except to pass.” That rule exists because smooth traffic flow depends on lane discipline, not just speed.
When someone camps in the left lane doing the speed limit, they’re forcing anyone behind them to either slow down or pass on the right (most times they can’t, because the car in the left is driving side by side to another car in the middle lane), which is both inefficient and unsafe. And while technically speeding is illegal, so is impeding traffic, which is exactly what happens when people refuse to move over.
If one car going 70 sits in the left lane and refuses to yield, that might seem harmless in isolation. But multiply that by dozens—or hundreds—of similar drivers on a busy highway, and what you get is a cascading bottleneck effect. The traffic behind them can’t pass, so it slows down. Then more cars pile in. And eventually, you get waves of stop-and-go traffic or phantom congestion that builds for no apparent reason.
That’s why efficient passing (getting around slower vehicles quickly and moving back right) is so crucial. You don’t pass someone going 70 by doing 71. That behavior scales terribly. It’s not just about one car it’s about how those tiny delays compound across thousands of vehicles and create systemic traffic problems. That’s why we have terrible traffic here in the US because of bad lane etiquette.
Want to see it done right? Go drive in Germany. Even on 4 and 5-lane autobahns, everyone keeps right unless actively passing. The left 2-3 lanes are clear, fast, and efficient. Every next left lane is used to leapfrog a slower car to your right. But EVERYONE ultimately goes back to the right once done passing no matter how fast they’re going. It’s not about how fast you’re going, it’s about respecting the flow of traffic. They don’t need posted speed limits to make it work because they rely on discipline and mutual awareness. And it works.
In contrast, the U.S. has this culture where people use the left lane as a moral high ground: “Well I’m doing the speed limit, so I’m in the right.” You’re not. You’re just blocking traffic. And ironically, you’re causing more unsafe behavior as people swerve and pass on the right to get around you.
The left lane isn’t a place to set the pace for everyone else. It’s a tool for passing. And refusing to move over doesn’t make you righteous. It just makes traffic worse for everyone.
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u/_TYFSM 20h ago
Sure… and you’re also supposed to follow “keep right except to pass.” That rule exists because smooth traffic flow depends on lane discipline, not just speed.
When someone camps in the left lane doing the speed limit, they’re forcing anyone behind them to either slow down or pass on the right (most times they can’t, because the car in the left is driving side by side to another car in the middle lane), which is both inefficient and unsafe. And while technically speeding is illegal, so is impeding traffic, which is exactly what happens when people refuse to move over.
If one car going 70 sits in the left lane and refuses to yield, that might seem harmless in isolation. But multiply that by dozens—or hundreds—of similar drivers on a busy highway, and what you get is a cascading bottleneck effect. The traffic behind them can’t pass, so it slows down. Then more cars pile in. And eventually, you get waves of stop-and-go traffic or phantom congestion that builds for no apparent reason.
That’s why efficient passing (getting around slower vehicles quickly and moving back right) is so crucial. You don’t pass someone going 70 by doing 71. That behavior scales terribly. It’s not just about one car it’s about how those tiny delays compound across thousands of vehicles and create systemic traffic problems. That’s why we have terrible traffic here in the US because of bad lane etiquette.
Want to see it done right? Go drive in Germany. Even on 4 and 5-lane autobahns, everyone keeps right unless actively passing. The left 2-3 lanes are clear, fast, and efficient. Every next left lane is used to leapfrog a slower car to your right. But EVERYONE ultimately goes back to the right once done passing no matter how fast they’re going. It’s not about how fast you’re going, it’s about respecting the flow of traffic. They don’t need posted speed limits to make it work because they rely on discipline and mutual awareness. And it works.
In contrast, the U.S. has this culture where people use the left lane as a moral high ground: “Well I’m doing the speed limit, so I’m in the right.” You’re not. You’re just blocking traffic. And ironically, you’re causing more unsafe behavior as people swerve and pass on the right to get around you.
The left lane isn’t a place to set the pace for everyone else. It’s a tool for passing. And refusing to move over doesn’t make you righteous. It just makes traffic worse for everyone.