'NO TRUCKS IN LEFT LANE'

[davewiecking]

Maryland's left lane prohibition is by weight.  The MDTA roads say "No Vehicles Over 5T GVW Left Lane", while SHA uses "Trucks" instead of vehicles.  On sections with more than 3 lanes, the restriction is on the left two lanes.  Exceptions (which are signed) are made in advance of median service plazas or left exits.

Most of the DC beltway in MD is 4 lanes each way, but only restricts such vehicles from the left lane. HazMats are restricted from the left 2 lanes.

[Scott5114]

NC I40 coming in from TN going over the mountain, even poping into the left lane to pass will get you a ticket.

So this guy can't drive in the left lane of I-40?

[machias]

New York usually does if there are more than 3 lanes, although this is not a guarantee. It always holds true on NYSTA-maintained highways.

Yes, and their verbiage–"Trucks Prohibited in Left Lane"–raises a grammatical quandary, which I believe we've discussed here before.


iPhone

NYSTA typically uses this sign or a variant

I see those in downstate N.Y. as well

Surprisingly I haven't seen those signs in the Syracuse or Rochester area. Never gave it a thought until reading this thread.

6-lane section in Victor uses them, along with every other 6+ lane section of the Thruway.

Indeed, I should have noted that I was referring to I-81, I-481 and the I-x90s in those areas.

[roadfro]

Nevada does not use signs saying "NO TRUCKS IN LEFT LANE" or similar. The state does not have blanket lane restrictions on trucks.

There are some areas where trucks are told to use a certain lane
*Truck climbing lanes. In these cases, the sign is "TRUCKS USE RIGHT LANE"
*I-580/US 395 between Reno and Carson City. During crosswinds, (but not winds high enough to restrict high profile vehicles from this stretch), trucks are told to use the left lane (southbound) or right lane (northbound) so they are on the side away from the second lane--so if a wind gust picks up suddenly, the truck is not blown into adjacent lanes.
*US 395 Business in Carson City. For reasons I have yet to figure out, trucks are told to use the left (inside) lane through much of downtown Carson City.

[ukfan758]

I think Kentucky's rule is they must stay in the two right lanes, which means on a four lane interstate, the rule doesn't apply and you get to sit behind a turtle race.

[authenticroadgeek]

In our area where I-15 is a whopping 10-12 lanes wide, trucks aren't allowed in the left TWO lanes. It actually kind of confuses me because I don't know if the HOV lane counts.

[allniter89]

A semi-related (no pun intended!) issue is how common it is, in left-hand-drive countries (so as to exclude the UK and the like), to have a restriction REQUIRING trucks to use the left lane. I know I've seen it a few times, though off the top of my head I can't say where.

IRC In the early 1990's Arkansas had signs on I 40 that suggested trucks (18 wheelers) use the left lane to even out road wear, I dont remember the exact verbage. I 40's right lane was like a washboard back then   If you didnt move everything off your dashboard before the AR line after a few miles in the right lane everything on your dash was bounced off onto the floor. Cabovers were predominate back then & they were notorious for having a rough ride even on smooth roads.
The I40 truck restriction thru the Gorge (NC-TN) was put in place b/c too many Billy Big-rigers were turning their trucks on their sides by going too fast thru the curves there. I seldom had a problem runing 55-60mph thru there you just gotta pay attention & know what your doing. Driving there during the day you were limited to whatever speed the truck at the head on the line was doing, often 35-40mph but at night you could cheat & pass by listening to the cb for bear reports.
The PA Tpk often used trucks & busses use left lane thru construction zones when the right lane used the shoulder.

[jakeroot]

I was in fact mistaken about Washington because I was somewhat misinterpreting the signs on I-5 between Seattle and Tacoma (where there are five total lanes in each direction).  The signs along this stretch say "USE RIGHT 3 LANES" because trucks are allowed in lanes 3, 4, and 5, but banned from lane 2 (the left most general-purpose lane).  But they are allowed in the HOV lane.

...

However, I'm pretty sure there's one case where it does apply to HOV lanes.  The southern half of I-405 through Renton and Newcastle (where there are 2 GP lanes and an HOV lane) there are signs prohibiting trucks from the carpool lane.

If I'm reading the law correctly, vehicles over 10,000 GVW are not permitted in the HOV lane:

Commercial vehicles over 10,000 pounds GVW are prohibited from HOV lanes, even with the minimum number of occupants specified on signs.

[Kacie Jane]

I was in fact mistaken about Washington because I was somewhat misinterpreting the signs on I-5 between Seattle and Tacoma (where there are five total lanes in each direction).  The signs along this stretch say "USE RIGHT 3 LANES" because trucks are allowed in lanes 3, 4, and 5, but banned from lane 2 (the left most general-purpose lane).  But they are allowed in the HOV lane.

...

However, I'm pretty sure there's one case where it does apply to HOV lanes.  The southern half of I-405 through Renton and Newcastle (where there are 2 GP lanes and an HOV lane) there are signs prohibiting trucks from the carpool lane.

If I'm reading the law correctly, vehicles over 10,000 GVW are not permitted in the HOV lane:

Commercial vehicles over 10,000 pounds GVW are prohibited from HOV lanes, even with the minimum number of occupants specified on signs.

Huh.  I managed to skip over that line multiple times because I was focusing on the one a couple of sentences later instead:

It [the law] does not apply to HOV lanes

That statement is probably trying to explain that the HOV lane doesn't count as the left lane.  But the way it's juxtaposed with the rest of the sentence threw off the meaning for me.  I'll try to look up the actual law (rather than a WSDOT document explaining the law...poorly) if I get a chance.

[jakeroot]

It [the law] does not apply to HOV lanes

That statement is probably trying to explain that the HOV lane doesn't count as the left lane.  But the way it's juxtaposed with the rest of the sentence threw off the meaning for me.  I'll try to look up the actual law (rather than a WSDOT document explaining the law...poorly) if I get a chance.

It was confusing me as well. My assumption is that the "prohibited from HOV lanes" phrase automatically trumps the rest of the law. The law seems poorly written.

[Kacie Jane]

My original post wasn't quoting the actual law, it was a WSDOT-written interpretation of the law.  Here are the actual laws in question, though to my eyes, they're not much easier to interpret unambiguously:

(3) No vehicle towing a trailer or no vehicle or combination over ten thousand pounds may be driven in the left-hand lane of a limited access roadway having three or more lanes for traffic moving in one direction except when preparing for a left turn at an intersection, exit, or into a private road or driveway when a left turn is legally permitted. This subsection does not apply to a vehicle using a high occupancy vehicle lane. A high occupancy vehicle lane is not considered the left-hand lane of a roadway. The department of transportation, in consultation with the Washington state patrol, shall adopt rules specifying (a) those circumstances where it is permissible for other vehicles to use the left lane in case of emergency or to facilitate the orderly flow of traffic, and (b) those segments of limited access roadway to be exempt from this subsection due to the operational characteristics of the roadway.

(1) RCW 46.61.100(3) mandates that no vehicle towing a trailer or no vehicle or combination over 10,000 lb. may use the left lane of limited access roadways having three or more lanes in one direction, and that a high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane is not considered the left hand lane of a roadway. Within this section, 10,000 lb. means 10,000 lb. gross vehicle weight (G.V.W.).
(2) RCW 46.61.100(3) further mandates that the department, in consultation with the Washington state patrol, shall adopt rules specifying those circumstances where it is permissible for other vehicles to use the left lane in case of emergency or to facilitate the orderly flow of traffic, and those segments of limited access highways exempt from the subsection due to the operational characteristics of the roadway.

ETA also:

Pursuant to RCW 46.61.165 and 47.52.025, the department has reserved portions of interstate highways, state highways, and ramps, as HOV lanes for the exclusive use of public transportation vehicles or private motor vehicles with the number of occupants specified on signs. Motor vehicles authorized to use HOV lanes are:
(6) All other vehicles with the number of occupants specified on signs, except that trucks in excess of 10,000 lb. G.V.W. are prohibited from the use of HOV lanes regardless of the number of occupants. Tow trucks that would be otherwise prohibited because of weight or number of occupants may use HOV lanes when en route to an emergency on a specific roadway or roadside.

To me, the sentence "This subsection does not apply to a vehicle using a high occupancy vehicle lane" in the first one means that a truck in an HOV lane is breaking WAC 468-510-010 but not RCW 46.61.100, which I guess kinda makes sense (doesn't really matter how many laws you're breaking, just matters that you're breaking one).  My issue is with the next sentence.  To me, when you say, "A high occupancy vehicle lane is not considered the left-hand lane of a roadway", it doesn't necessarily follow that the leftmost GP lane is considered the left-hand lane of the roadway.

[Pete from Boston]

I saw one recently on 290 eastbound in the Shrewsbury, Mass., area:

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3294296,-71.692728,3a,75y,50.62h,67.84t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s4-jZNR8n_kY5P4GWCN6FMw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

However, since Google did its drive-by, at least one of the all-text signs has been replaced with a truck silhouette in a circle-and-slash, with "LEFT LANE" or some such legend beneath.

[AlexandriaVA]

I believe that in Europe, trucks and motorcoaches (also known as intercity buses here in the US) are generally required to stay in the right lane at all times.

[texaskdog]

I can't remember seeing it anywhere in Minnesota or Wisconsin.

Every freeway there is 2 lanes!

We have them in Austin in the 3+ lane stretches

[MASTERNC]

Looks like Virginia has new signage from the looks of this video uploaded today (around the 3:00 mark).  The words "Commercial Vehicles Except Buses" are now white text on black background (like the infamous "Radar Detectors Illegal" signs), with "Prohibited In Left Lane" directly below it in the normal regulatory color scheme.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ehbu-4isHc

[MASTERNC]

Maryland's left lane prohibition is by weight.  The MDTA roads say "No Vehicles Over 5T GVW Left Lane", while SHA uses "Trucks" instead of vehicles.  On sections with more than 3 lanes, the restriction is on the left two lanes.  Exceptions (which are signed) are made in advance of median service plazas or left exits.

Most of the DC beltway in MD is 4 lanes each way, but only restricts such vehicles from the left lane. HazMats are restricted from the left 2 lanes.

You are correct.  I'm not sure if that is because Virginia has the same restrictions.