Reader Diagnoses Left Lane Hogs

I got a fabulous letter from Melton Dodd last week. Since my Times News column space is so limited, and since the online forum has a large readership, I elected to publish it here. Melton graciously agreed. Here it is:

Since last fall much has been published in your column as well as in “letters to the editor” concerning “left lane hogs”. Just about every one of the articles exhibit three main characteristics: 1) a driver in the left lane approaches a slower vehicle in the left lane which will not move to the right lane, 2) the approaching driver always sees the other person in the wrong, 3) the driver complaining never sees his own actions as contributing to the problem. In your article on 5/4 I saw another characteristic that indicates just how degraded the average driver’s respect for the law has evolved. This new characteristic is represented by Cynthia Johnson in the statement “The law that says ‘left lane for passing only’ supersedes the speed limit law”. Now we have a hierarchy of traffic laws where an individual can decide just how many laws one must observe.

Since last fall my wife and I have had to travel to the Nashville area quite often using I-40. I also find myself on the interstate between Kingsport and Johnson City about three times a week. During these trips I have taken the opportunity to examine the “left lane hog” syndrome and have a number of observations I find interesting.

1. Yes there are “left lane hogs”, but they are in the minority. The true “left lane hog” is a driver who stays in the left lane while traveling at least five miles per hour slower than the posted speed limit. Yes these drivers are in the wrong and are violating the law.

2. Most drivers who approach a vehicle in the left lane from behind are traveling faster than the speed limit. Many of them significantly faster. Almost all the time the vehicle being overtaken is also traveling faster than the speed limit, just slower than the approaching vehicle. Any elementary school student can tell you if all the drivers in the left lane traveled at the speed no car could approach another from behind and there would be no need to pass the leading vehicle resulting in the extinction of the “left lane hog” syndrome. What’s better than the speed limit for the speed all vehicles in the left lane to travel?

3. Most of the drivers in the left lane who are speeding do not move into the right lane once all slower traffic has been passed. How can one left lane driver accuse another of being in the wrong when the only difference is that the lead driver is slightly slower then the trailing driver yet both are violating the speed limit?

4. Many of the speeding left lane drivers will pull right up to the slower vehicles bumper and stay there. When the lead vehicle does not immediately move to the right lane the trailing driver will quickly jerk his vehicle into the right lane, accelerate, and once just past the vehicle in the left lane quickly pull back into the left lane. Movement back into the left lane is taken even when there is no other vehicle in the right lane. Which driver is being the larger “hog”?

5. Another tactic is for the trailing vehicle to approach to a close and often unsafe distance behind another vehicle which is legitimately passing slower traffic in the right lane. Once the lead car has passed the slower right lane traffic and is seeking sufficient separation to move back into the right lane, the trailing vehicle will quickly pull into the right lane, accelerate to pass the vehicle in the left lane, and then quickly pull back into the left lane, effectively preventing the slower left lane car from moving safely to the right lane. This action is often repeated by a chain of other vehicles wishing to get by the slower left lane driver. How can the accused “left lane hog” get out of the way when speeding vehicles continually block any possibility of moving safely into the right lane?

Therefore my conclusion is that the “left lane hog” syndrome, just as the word syndrome implies, is due to a combination of factors. One factor, the one mentioned predominately, is the driver who refuses to move to the right lane. Another is the practice of speeding coupled with multiple drivers proceeding at different speeds. Another is the inability of the accuser to recognize his own faults or his rationalizations to justify his on actions. Therefore the “left lane hog” syndrome is primarily the results of multiple speeding individuals who proceed at different speeds and wish to seek a clear path in the left lane.

Cynthia Johnson did go on to state “A driver’s first obligation is to share the road agreeably with other drivers; it is not to enforce the speed limit”. This statement is correct as far as it goes. Unfortunately the statement has the same flaw as the position presented by most drivers who complain about the “left lane hog” syndrome. The flaw is that the problem is always and exclusively with the other driver. The only way for multiple drivers to share the road agreeably and safely is for all drivers to adhere to the same set of rules. This means you drive up to but not past the speed limit, you use the left lane only for passing, and you know and follow all the other traffic laws.

Anyone who has attended a DB football game in the fall at J. Fred Johnson Stadium will witness a sound example of the value of everyone adhering to the same set of rules. This past fall around 400 DB band students moved onto the field in an orderly and quick manner. These students quickly took the field even though they all had to pass through a relatively narrow gate at the end of the field. How did 400 band students get on the field and off in an orderly and timely fashion? They all knew what they had to do; they all knew what the other person would do; and they all knew the consequences of not marching according to the rules would not only prevent them from achieving their objective but could result in serious consequences. To put is simply, they all observed the laws established by the band authorities. How many times have you seen 400 vehicles on an interstate proceed smoothly and consistently past a construction zone where one of the lanes is blocked?

The primary reason stated for accidents on the road is speed. The primary reason for the “left lane syndrome” is also speed, or the absence of a realistic, safe, and consistent speed. If everyone would adhere to the posted speed limit the problem of a “left lane hog” would be a largely a feature of the past.