I wish I could comment on "general practice" in the NY/NJ area on this topic, but it'd just turn into a rant! :rolleyes:

The only ones I really object to are the "left lane bandits" who insist on driving in the left lane at exactly the same speed as the car to their right. I try to keep in mind its a PASSING LANE. If you ain't passing, keep right (or center).

Boatin Fool, I just edited my earlier post.

Lost In Space Skiboat Dave

Years ago it was illegal to pass on the right in NJ, so those older folks should know better in that state.

Anyone new may think that they pay more taxes than me and so they own the road.

For those, maybe the "push bumpers" installed on CA highway patrol cars would be a good idea. Good old Broaderick Crawford. Said to be a great actor, but only before lunch.

Yes, he had the look of someone who really enjoyed lunch!

I will stay in the left lane if there is no traffic on the h'way. The reason that I tend to do this is that the outside lane is so rutted by the 18 wheelers that if I stay in that lane the rig wants to sway all over the lane like a drunken sailor. Missouri is not known for its fine roads. :rolleyes: I do keep a constant vigil for other vehicles coming up behind me so that I can give them all of the room that they need.

If you want to hear how a** backwards the state of Illinois is, just travel I-94. It is the highway that you get to Chicago from the north or south. They have a law say pickup trucks, any pickup truck without a cap on the back can't run in the "express" lanes. Pickup trucks here are issued a "B" plate and can only travel the "local" lanes. I don't mean when towing something I mean anytime, the "local" lanes are full of semis and exits, takes twice as long to get where you need to go.

Don't get me started folks!

Wet Doggg, I've "experienced" your pain up in the city.

I stay in the right lane as much as possible. I'm German and "dream" of the Autobahn. If they catch you in any lane left, with no one on your right, guess what? Ticket action! Pass and get out of the way. Should be applied here too.

When someone is merging, I'll do everything I can to allow a safe merge. Move left....and back to the right when safe.

When I want to pass slower moving traffic, I will "safely" pull into whatever left lane it takes to pass. Immediately returning to the furthest right lane when possible.

I'm not going to mention what speeds I have traveled pulling my boat. I will tell you this...
my 96' Dodge does not have 4x4, but does have a V10. On-ramps are no problem whatsoever regardless of speed limits.

(I WAS going to really get into this thread...but I digress.)

If you ask me if I like driving fast?...My answer would be "YES!". If you ask me again..."Do you like to drive your boat fast?". My answer would be "NO!". The boat won't and neither will I!!!

Hey...we're on a one-day vacation. Let my wife, whomever, and I, enjoy what little time we have boating. We'll enjoy the slow cruise..."AS SOON AS WE CAN GET THERE"

"OUR self-employed BONUS" is..we boat during the week. You can tan whatever part you want!

Being from the traffic state of Cali-for-nigh-eh, speshully lost angles, I'm pretty familiar with NUTS on the road! on ramps arent for merging, they're made to get on in front of the guy in the slow lane no matter what it takes... and he's trying to get in front of you at any cost!

I try to be as courteous as possible when towing, but I do have a tendency to drive fast..so the left, or next to left on multi lane freeways is my choice of lane. Anyone coming up on me from behind and I also move right, let him by, and get back in the previous lane.

By the way, when Im NOT towing... I AM that other guy!

So you guys got more than one lane on yer roads????

yea, and shoulders! Also no suicide frontage roads!

Out here in California, trucks and autos with trailers are restricted to the 3 and 4 lanes of the fwys. That's counting from the inside out, ie, the #1 lane is the fast lane, far left.

Also on fwys out here, in our FINE state of California, some might be posted at 70 mphs for auto but trucks and autos with trailers, are still held to 55 mph.

Lane violation tickets in our FINE state, will run you about $275.

So stay to the right with your autos with trailers.

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A couple of years ago, I had to drive in the UK for a few weeks while I was there on business.

After spending a few minutes getting used to sitting on the wrong side of the car, I made my way onto the roads - the first mile or so from Heathrow to the highway was an adventure - but once there I quickly figured out that they know how to drive much better than we do.

On the five lane wide Interstate Highway, virtually everyone was driving in the left (slow) lane 80% of the time. Most of the time you only had to move over one or two lanes to pass - when you did you immediately moved back to the left. Only once or twice did I have to get in the fast lane, in 200 miles.

This allowed folks to drive between 60 and 100 miles per hour on the same road without any holdup. In fact, I drove for an hour at 100 mph with the cruise control on, and never hit the brake - try doing that in the US during the daytime.

I really despise the left laners who ignore the law that says SLOW MOVING VEHICLES MUST STAY TO THE RIGHT. The comment about people talking about how much they pay for taxes giving them the right: Long time ago, I was managing a small truck stop. The full service island was full of semis, so this fat-cat in a new motor home pulls into the self-service pumps and then demands full service. He gets told that he would be taken care of after the semis and pops up with the "Do you realize what I pay on road taxes for this thing?". I almost hated to break up the truckers who where going to beat the crap out of him.

One more point: The left lane isn't about how fast you're driving, or if you're driving "fast-enough" to be in that lane. The far left lane is reserved for PASSING traffic. If you aren't passing someone, you shouldn't be in it at ANY speed. Use it to pass, and then move over.

The exception of course, is when congestion overwhelms the roadway, and posted speed limits cannot be maintained--the left lane then becomes just another "move as many cars as possible" lane. Not legally, but practically.

In SC I had to get what's known as a "P" tag (the tag number has a P in front of it) as my GCVW is over x,xxx pounds. I wonder if that makes my Av a truck when it comes to truck traffic signs. I use the left lane to pass. If there's 3 lanes I stay in the middle so I don't have to worry about cars merging or exiting in the right lane.