It's Time To Make Passing On The Right Illegal On California Freeways

Traffic fatalities in California are on the rise.

Here are brief summaries of recent articles on the topic of traffic deaths across the U.S. as well as in California.

• Newsweek reports that the U.S. experienced the highest one-year increase in traffic deaths in a half-century in 2015, with initial estimates indicating that 38,300 people were killed on U.S. roads. Briefly, the article goes on to note that neither the sheer number of miles driven nor a change in population appear to fully account for the increase in fatalities.
• An article in the Los Angeles Times began by noting essentially the same trend across the U.S., offering as one possible reason the recent decline in gas prices, resulting in more miles driven. The article continues by noting that California is no exception.
• The Sacramento Bee features the fact that deaths on California roads actually decreased a dramatic 36% between 2006 and 2010. Increased seat belt use, combined with improvements in vehicle safety such as airbags, were offered as possible factors for the decrease. Sadly, the article goes on to note that the trend then reversed, with deaths increasing by 13% between 2010 and 2013.

These articles, and others, offer several possible reasons for this sad trend. Distracted driving, including cell phone use and texting, are featured as likely contributors. Drugged driving, including increasing prescription drug usage among older drivers and increased marijuana usage, appear to play at least some role. Finally, general anger and rudeness were cited either in the articles themselves, or comments from readers.

While I agree that all of these factors play at least some role, in this article it is my intent to focus on another idea whose time I believe has come.

Chaos On The Highways

Below is a simple diagram copied from the online California Driver Handbook. The diagram shows how lane numbering works. The number 1 lane is the fast lane, with lanes 2 and 3 in this example (and more if the freeway is wider) in theory being progressively slower lanes.

The only problem is; that is not at all how it works in practice. On a typical California freeway with a posted speed limit of 65 MPH, and even if the overall traffic flow is traveling 70 MPH, there will be some percentage of drivers wishing to travel in excess of 75, 80, and even 90 MPH.

Determined to maintain their desired speed, such drivers swerve (generally unsafely) in and out of any and all lanes to accomplish their goals. In the diagram above, it is not at all uncommon to observe a vehicle traveling 80 MPH or more racing down the #3 lane until they encounter some obstacle in their path and swerve into other lanes.

Is this illegal? It appears not. Here are the relevant code sections from the California Vehicle Code. Here is a recent response to a reader question published in the Roadshow column of The Mercury News. And here is an article from another website that I found particularly interesting. I would like to share one brief snippet that caught my eye.

• Passing — it’s usually legal to pass (“overtake”) on the inside (i.e. to the right), as long as it’s safe and in a properly-marked lane (i.e. only do this on multi-lane freeways and highways). Passing on the inside is pretty essential given the lack of lane discipline in California. (Bold mine for emphasis)

However this practice leads to problems, and even great danger. I believe most Highway Patrol Officers would agree with the concept that it is not so much speed itself that kills, but differences in speed. In other words, on a dry sunny day, a properly maintained vehicle traveling at 75 MPH in the fast lane of a freeway and observing safe following distances is actually driving in a relatively safe manner, even though they may be traveling 10 MPH in excess of a posted 65 MPH speed limit. In contrast, that same vehicle bearing down on another car towing a U-Haul and traveling at 50 MPH in the slow lane poses a much greater danger to themselves and others.

Think about the intended purposes of the slow lane. Here are just a few that come to mind:

1. To allow older drivers, whose reflexes may be slowing, to drive at a more moderate pace at which they are comfortable.
2. For trucks, vehicles towing trailers, vehicles using a temporary space-saver spare tire, and other similar circumstances.
3. To allow vehicles to slow down sufficiently to safely navigate exit ramps.
4. To safely accommodate vehicles attempting to build speed and enter the roadway from entrance ramps. 

The chaos that currently exists on California freeways wreaks havoc with this intent. It is not at all uncommon now to see such drivers being intimidated by automotive bullies.

Is there a way this dynamic could be changed? Is there a system that could allow cars wishing to travel safely at a relatively fast rate of speed to do so while at the same time addressing the challenges currently present? As it turns out, one only needs to look at how things are commonly done in Europe for an answer.

Order On The Highways

To keep this article from getting too long, I will focus on the German Autobahn as an example of what is actually relatively common in Europe. From personal experience, I can also share that this is the pattern followed on the motorways in Britain.

Returning to the diagram above, here would be the basic pattern on a German Autobahn.

• Number 3 Lane - Exactly as described above. Slower vehicles of all types, and vehicles entering and exiting the roadway.
• Number 2 Lane - In theory, all vehicles that need to pass vehicles traveling in the number 3 lane. In practice, vehicles traveling at moderate-to-relatively high speeds tend to stay in this lane, except for the rare occasions on which they venture into the . . .
• Number 1 Lane - In theory, all vehicles that need to pass vehicles traveling in the number 2 lane, at which point you return to the number 2 lane. In practice, this lane is often occupied by vehicles traveling at consistently high speed, at the same time yielding immediately and willingly to vehicles desiring to travel at yet higher speeds.

For more details, have a look at this article. 

Is it, though, really the case that such an arrangement can lead to greater safety on the highways? According to this article:

With 2006 data provided by the International Traffic Safety Data and Analysis Group, the United States ranked 11th lowest in road fatalities, averaging 8.8 deaths per billion kilometers traveled. The countries that ranked above the U.S. are Sweden with 5.9 deaths per billion kilometers traveled, followed by Switzerland, Great Britain, Finland, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Australia, and France, all of which are highly motorized and developed nations, and all of which strictly enforce the passing lane law.

One country – Germany – has no speed limits on more than 50% of its highways, but still manages to be safer than the United States.

In summary, the structure, or order, common to highways in Europe allows for vehicles to travel relatively safely even at high speeds. As one last reference, this article contains feedback from Americans who have been exposed to this system. As can be seen, comments are for the most part extremely favorable.

Summary and Conclusion

Traffic fatalities are on the rise on California freeways. While there are many contributing factors, it is my belief that the total chaos and disorder that currently exist are a key component of the problem.

In contrast to certain other issues, which are often difficult to spot and enforce, this one is extremely visible and this would be relatively easy to enforce. Further, as I have demonstrated in this article, this is not an esoteric, theoretical, concept. Rather, it is the system currently in place in many countries.

As a result, I respectfully submit that it is time to legislate passing on the left on California freeways.