Passing Lane X Miles sign

[corco]

In general, the directions of travel are separated by a double yellow line although I have seen instances where 2 sets of double yellow lines are used.

This might be the case in California, but in most other states in the west there often is not a double yellow line and oncoming traffic can also use the center lane to pass (whenever the design of the road would allow passing anyway). Idaho has a bit of a problem where oncoming traffic treats the passing lane as a suicide lane and doesn't yield to the traffic that actually has the passing lane, prompting them to post "Yield center lane to oncoming traffic" signs at almost every passing lane.

[3467]

Illinois allows passing on the other side in some of its few passing lanes. I think Missouris alternating or shared 4 is a safer option to prevent a suicide lane from forming No passing with rumble strips .

Someone once told me there were 3 laners with suicide lanes in Texas Does anyone else know about this?

[BigMattFromTexas]

Illinois allows passing on the other side in some of its few passing lanes. I think Missouris alternating or shared 4 is a safer option to prevent a suicide lane from forming No passing with rumble strips .

Someone once told me there were 3 laners with suicide lanes in Texas Does anyone else know about this?

If I know what you're talking about, I'm pretty sure I've seen that, one sec I'll see if I have any pics.
BigMatt

[US71]

then there's a sign called 'pass with care', which means 'we can't be bothered adding extra lanes - either stay stuck behind this yokel doing 42 in 60, or contemplate getting your brains scraped off the concrete'.

I've seen those in Illinois, but not so much in Arkansas

[3467]

Thanks Big Matt
They took almost all the old Pass With Care signs down I think a few counties might still have them
Also when I was little it was customary to honk while passing so the other driver wouldnt make a left turn.

[algorerhythms]

I'm sure most of the people here know there's a difference between "Passing Lane" and "Divided Highway" but I'll clarify anyways. 

then there's a sign called 'pass with care', which means 'we can't be bothered adding extra lanes - either stay stuck behind this yokel doing 42 in 60, or contemplate getting your brains scraped off the concrete'.

Pennsylvania is quite fond of those. Myself, I usually just stay behind the yokel.

[BigMattFromTexas]

Shoot, I couldn't find a picture, but I'm pretty sure I've seen it. And they have those "PASS WITH CARE" signs all over here, especially in construction areas that allow passing.
BigMatt

[corco]

Also when I was little it was customary to honk while passing so the other driver wouldnt make a left turn.

I've never seen anybody do it, but when I went to get my Wyoming driver's license a few months ago I was shocked to see that mentioned as something required in the driver's manual. The text reads as follows:

How to pass
DECIDE if it is necessary to pass, then:
- START at least two seconds behind the vehicle ahead.
- MAKE SURE you have time and space to pass safely.
- SIGNAL AND CHECK all around your vehicle before
passing.
- INCREASE SPEED and pull into the passing lane.
- SIGNAL with your horn as you move into the other
driver's blind spot.
- MOVE BACK into the right lane when you see the
front of the vehicle in your rear view mirror.
- RESUME SPEED.

http://www.dot.state.wy.us/webdav/site/wydot/shared/Driver_Services/Driver%20manual%202010.pdf

[hm insulators]

I'm sure most of the people here know there's a difference between "Passing Lane" and "Divided Highway" but I'll clarify anyways.  

then there's a sign called 'pass with care', which means 'we can't be bothered adding extra lanes - either stay stuck behind this yokel doing 42 in 60, or contemplate getting your brains scraped off the concrete'.

[hm insulators]

We have those signs in Arizona, too. When the passing lane starts, the signs read, "Keep right except to pass."

[PAHighways]

I'm sure most of the people here know there's a difference between "Passing Lane" and "Divided Highway" but I'll clarify anyways. 

then there's a sign called 'pass with care', which means 'we can't be bothered adding extra lanes - either stay stuck behind this yokel doing 42 in 60, or contemplate getting your brains scraped off the concrete'.

Pennsylvania is quite fond of those. Myself, I usually just stay behind the yokel.

I just wait for the straight sections then floor it, otherwise I wouldn't get anywhere on time.

Then there is West Virginia that has passing zones on curves.

[bulldog1979]

US 2 in Michigan has signs that state how many passing lanes in the next X miles. The idea is to encourage drivers to wait for the passing lanes instead of trying risky behavior to pass in heavy traffic.

[BigMattFromTexas]

Then there is West Virginia that has passing zones on curves.

Seriously? Here it goes to a double solid yellow line unless there's a passing lane. But I don't think I've ever seen a passing zone on a curve. That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard of.
BigMatt

[deathtopumpkins]

It's actually not that stupid, as long as you can see around the curve. Virginia sometimes stripes passing zones on curves with no sight obstructions.

[3467]

http://epg.modot.org/index.php?title=232.2_Passing_Lanes

MO has some design standards here. US 2 was mentioned earlier . It has a lot of passing lanes in WI I wish maps would include these as multilane undivided

[corco]

Seriously? Here it goes to a double solid yellow line unless there's a passing lane. But I don't think I've ever seen a passing zone on a curve. That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard of.

Curves can be pretty handy for passing, especially when you're following something like a river bed or the side of a mountain. If the curve is angled towards the driver, there can be a significant amount more distance and sometimes you can see as much as twice as far down the road as you can on a straightaway, especially when you're descending towards a river bed. I always get annoyed when states don't allow passing in those areas because frankly they're the easiest to pass in- straightaways can be kind of spooky on a sunny afternoon, especially if oncoming traffic doesn't use their headlights (always a good idea on 2-lane roads with lots of passing...I have no idea why we don't make like the Canadians and require DRLs)

[corco]

Here are some examples of the Idaho unique (?) YIELD CENTER LANE signs designed to keep the opposing passing lane from becoming a suicide lane


and with rare mileage placards underneath (the only instance I know of this is Whitebird Grade on US-95, which not coincidentally is where this photo was taken)

[Ace10]

Many will be surprised to find that similar signs was posted in, of all places, flat Florida, specifically, US 1 between Key Largo and Florida City on the Overseas Highway.

Due to the extremely limited land to build a wide enough roadway for the entire 18-mile stretch, four lanes were only possible in certain sections.  As a result, "the 18-mile stretch" became Florida's worst travel death trap where accident rates were high coupled with south Florida's horrific driving habits.  Passing was done anywhere, anyway, anytime and so what if you cross over 3 or 4 lanes to do it.  Typically insane, get-the-hell-out-of-my-way south Florida drivers. 

After many years of debate, this section of the Overseas Highway has been widened to four lanes, I believe for its entire length, the Jewfish Key Bridge completely scrapped and the entire roadway substantially elevated with a Jersey barrier installed down the middle.  All of this was under construction in April 2007, the last time I drove down to the Florida Keys.

Last time I was in the Keys was in late June/early July. At that time, US-1 on the stretch wasn't fully four-laned but it looked like the crews were working hard to get it done. Before that I drove that stretch in May, a few months back, and they were working on the Jersey barrier.

I did notice some signs that mentioned PASSING LANE - X MILES and also PASS WITH CARE. I also saw these when I took my first trip to the Keys from Central FL, and took US-27 to FL-60. FL-60 is mainly two lanes from Sebring to Yeehaw Junction (where it meets the Turnpike/FL-91) but does occasionally allow passing by adding a third lane and alternating eastbound passing and westbound passing.

If I ever get the chance again I'll grab a camera (or a dedicated photographer) and capture the signs.

[rarnold]

We have them here in Western Kansas. The signs are set up like so, white on green, all caps

PASSING LANE
    X MILES

The opposing direction is also restricted from passing with double yellow, and in some areas the passing lanes are in the same location for both directions of traffic.

[Scott5114]

We have them here in Western Kansas. The signs are set up like so, white on green, all caps

PASSING LANE
    X MILES

The opposing direction is also restricted from passing with double yellow, and in some areas the passing lanes are in the same location for both directions of traffic.

I've seen these on US 400 in eastern Kansas as well.

[US71]

We have them here in Western Kansas. The signs are set up like so, white on green, all caps

PASSING LANE
    X MILES

Like this?

[realjd]

Many will be surprised to find that similar signs was posted in, of all places, flat Florida, specifically, US 1 between Key Largo and Florida City on the Overseas Highway.

Due to the extremely limited land to build a wide enough roadway for the entire 18-mile stretch, four lanes were only possible in certain sections.  As a result, "the 18-mile stretch" became Florida's worst travel death trap where accident rates were high coupled with south Florida's horrific driving habits.  Passing was done anywhere, anyway, anytime and so what if you cross over 3 or 4 lanes to do it.  Typically insane, get-the-hell-out-of-my-way south Florida drivers. 

After many years of debate, this section of the Overseas Highway has been widened to four lanes, I believe for its entire length, the Jewfish Key Bridge completely scrapped and the entire roadway substantially elevated with a Jersey barrier installed down the middle.  All of this was under construction in April 2007, the last time I drove down to the Florida Keys.

Last time I was in the Keys was in late June/early July. At that time, US-1 on the stretch wasn't fully four-laned but it looked like the crews were working hard to get it done. Before that I drove that stretch in May, a few months back, and they were working on the Jersey barrier.

Nope, they aren't 4-laning it. It's going to be 1 lane southbound and 1 lane northbound, with the northbound side having a shoulder wide enough to use as a second lane during hurricane evacuations. They're putting a bright blue concrete divider between the directions so you can't pass anymore, and they are adding an actual passing lane in a few places.

[Truvelo]

Ours look like this.

We don't call them passing lanes here. The traditional name is Crawler Lane but that was changed a few years ago to Climbing Lane. They are generally found on hills hence the name. Here's a sign showing the distance to a crawler lane. They are sometimes used to let drivers know there's a passing opportunity ahead and it can deter a dangerous passing maneuver from being carried out in the meantime.

Another type is used on freeways where trucks struggle up a hill. This one has an extra lane for use by slow vehicles. Putting on 4 way flashers is not used over here by slow trucks, indeed, if someone was to use them it may be mistaken for thinking the truck is in trouble or has broken down.

[deathtopumpkins]

We have those on freeways here in the US too, and at least here in the east, the only time any slow-moving vehicle would put on its flashers is if it is doing WAY below the speed limit for a long period of time. Trucks who slow down to like 10 under to go up a hill never put their flashers on, at least not that I've seen.

[rarnold]

The signs here in Kansas are not that big, and they are not alternating passing lanes built. They come after towns where traffic becomes tighter. It will all be moot when the divided highway is done between Greensburg and existing US-54/400 expressway east of Kingman. Maybe someday it will reach to Liberal, but not holding breath.