It's summer, and left-lane hogs are everywhere on Delaware highways

In the year since buying his new car, Tyler Shaffer has driven more than 15,000 miles in Delaware and back and forth to his hometown in Ohio.

The 22-year-old airman stationed at Dover Air Force Base said the thing that annoys him most on Delaware roads are the people who drive slower in the left lane than those traveling in the right lane.

"I don't mind if you are driving in the left lane if you are going to pass, but if you are driving there just because, you need to get over," he said.

And need may not be code for "must," but state law has required drivers to do that since 2013, although many may not realize it.

With summer officially here and the beach traffic already starting to get heavy on Del. 1 near Dover and in other parts of the state, Shaffer fears it is going to get only worse.

"I drive it every day, and every time I'm on it, I run into this problem," he said. "When cars have to continually go around other cars on the right, that makes it dangerous for everyone."

With only two major highways taking people up and down the state (Del. 1 and U.S. 13) and few other highways dissecting Delaware, these left-lane hogs can be a major annoyance to commuters, beachgoers and even the casual driver.

Delaware lawmakers amended the "Rules of the Road" law making it illegal to drive in the left lane at a slower speed than vehicles traveling in the right lane.

Delaware State Police spokesperson Sgt. Richard Bratz said that since 2015, there have been 47 citations issued statewide. He said those fines cost first-time offenders $25-$75 and second-time offenders (within 12 months) and any subsequent citations $57.50-$95. 

"We have seen slower-moving vehicles in the left lane impede the flow of traffic, which increases the likelihood of accidents and incidents of aggressive driving," he said.

Ken Grant, manager of Public and Government Affairs in Delaware for AAA Mid-Atlantic, said drivers hanging out in the left lane are a danger to other drivers as well as to themselves.

"If you're driving 10 or 15 miles under the speed limit in the left lane, you could be creating a dangerous situation with faster drivers weaving in and out of traffic," he said. "These sometimes aggressive and multiple lane changes increase the risk of highway crashes."

Every state has some law on record that restricts the use of driving in the left lane. 

In 29 states (including Delaware), any car that is moving slower than the surrounding speed of traffic should be in the right lane.

Nearly a dozen states have gone a step further, enacting stricter laws that allow vehicles to use the left lane only when passing or turning. Those states include Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and Washington.

According to Forbes.com, some states are taking action against the left-lane hogs by hitting them where it hurts, in their wallets.

Virginia has set a $100 fine for driving too slowly in the left lane, failing to stay to the right side except when passing. The infractions were once considered violations but had no fines attached.

In New Jersey, the fine for the same offense went up to a maximum of $300.

In Chicago, if you don't keep up the pace while driving in the left lane, you could receive a $1,000 fine, and multiple-time offenders can be charged with a misdemeanor.

According to Forbes, at least 38 states have laws in place to fine drivers for lingering in the left lane. In five states, fines can reach $1,000, and 22 states classify the violation as a misdemeanor.

Bratz hopes that Delaware State Police writing more citations and putting out more educational messages to Delaware drivers to move over will help reduce left-lane lopers.

Some people may be unaware of how they are affecting traffic flow, but they should heed the signs that say slower traffic keep right, he said.

What the law says

The crux of Delaware code, Title 21, Chapter 41 (Rules of the Road), Subchapter III (“Driving on Right Side of Roadway; Overtaking and Passing, etc.”) states: (a) Upon all roadways of sufficient width a vehicle shall be driven upon the right half of the roadway, except as follows: (1) When overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction under the rules governing such movement….

And: (b) Upon all roadways any vehicle proceeding at less than the normal speed of traffic at the time and place and under the conditions then existing shall be driven in the right-hand lane then available for traffic, or as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway, except when overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction or when preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.

Reach Jerry Smith at jsmith17@delawareonline.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JerrySmithTNJ.

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