When driving on a multi-lane highway or interstate, it can be aggravating to get stuck driving behind a slow driver in the left lane when you’re trying to pass right lane traffic.
Slow driving in the left lane is more than just annoying, it’s also illegal, as many states have laws that designate driving too slowly in the left lane as a traffic violation.
These “keep right” laws require that slower traffic keep to the right lane, and that the left lane be used only to pass other vehicles.
Will I be pulled over for driving slow in the left lane? What Louisiana law says
In Louisiana, there are laws that prohibit driving too slowly in the left lane, especially on multi-lane highways. Moreover, recent legislation has increased penalties for drivers who impede traffic by driving slow in the left lane.
Under Louisiana Revised Statute 32:71 (RS 32:71), drivers should drive on the right half of the road, except when passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction, when the right half of the road is closed to traffic and on roads signposted for one-way traffic, according to the legislation’s text.
The legislation clarifies that vehicles should not drive in the left lane unless directed otherwise, preparing to take a left turn, passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction or when right lanes are congested.
“Upon all multilane highways, no vehicle traveling in the left-hand lane shall be driven at a speed slower than any vehicle traveling to its right on the same roadway. Upon all multilane highways any vehicle proceeding at less than the normal speed of traffic at the time and place and under the circumstances then existing, shall be driven in the right-hand lane…,” the legislation continues.
Cars travel north and south on Outagamie County A (Lynndale Drive) in Grand Chute. The road doesn’t have access to Interstate 41.
This new law, which takes effect Aug. 1, lowers the threshold for penalizing drivers going under the speed limit and increases fines for violations.
Under the law, drivers will be fined $150 for first offenses, $250 for second offenses and $350 for third offenses, as well as possible jail time for a third offense within a year.
Presley Bo Tyler is a reporter for the Louisiana Deep South Connect Team for Gannett/USA Today. Find her on X @PresleyTyler02 and email at PTyler@Gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Is it illegal to drive slow in the left lane? What Louisiana law says