Olympia, Wash. – “Left lane campers” were the subject of targeted enforcement this summer by Washington State Patrol troopers.
“Left lane camping is one of the top complaints we hear from motorists,” said WSP Field Operations Bureau Captain Tim Coley. “Left lane camping can prevent emergency vehicles from quickly responding to scenes and can lead to potentially dangerous behaviors such as passing on the right or aggressive driving.”
From June 20 to June 22, WSP troopers stopped nearly 500 people for camping in the left lane.
The emphasis was made to educate drivers about the negative aspects of driving in the left lane, which is against the law in Washington unless you’re passing another vehicle.
A similar law was put forward in Oregon this past legislative session.
Senate Bill 535 would have required “certain persons to not drive in far left lane unless passing.”
The bill passed the Oregon Senate, but never went up for a House vote before the session ended.
While left lane driving is still technically legal in Oregon, there remains the possibility left lane hogs in the state could get cited for impeding traffic if they’re driving “in a manner that impedes or blocks the normal and reasonable movement of traffic.”
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