KEEP RIGHT, PASS LEFT!

On my 4am drive to work; a fresh cup of coffee in my hand, window cracked just enough for me to feel a slight breeze but not too much to make me shiver and house music blasting from my speakers, I noticed something.  I noticed that at 4am the drive is serene it's peaceful, and for not having slept much, it's relaxing.  I realized that not having anyone on the road makes driving all the more pleasurable.  That, if I decided to wake up on a summer's morning at 4am it would be to drive the empty roads with the windows fully down, no coffee, only adrenaline keeping me awake.  In memory of the late David E. Davis; "God does not charge us for hours spent driving before breakfast".
I wish driving could be that enjoyable ALL day, but sadly, it isn't.  Part of the reason for this are the large number of careless people that do not pay attention nor do they care much about sharing the roads with other people.  Most people care more about texting, checking their e-mail or facebook, reading the newspaper, or checking themselves out in the mirror than they do about the actual act of driving itself.  This is not to say that everyone should love driving as much as I do, nor that a good driver can't multitask.  No, for those who don't love driving the way I do what I'm trying to say is... "Get out of the way!".  It's not that I approve of aggressive driving, but I feel that it is every driver's responsibility to observe the unwritten (and written, but unenforced) rule of the road.  The left lane, at least in the US, is the passing lane.  The left lane is not the drive slow because it's your road too lane.  The left lane is not the keep up with the driver to my right and block traffic lane.  It is not the change into the lane because I don't want to be too close to any other car lane.
The passing lane was designed to keep the flow of traffic.  When drivers don't observe it, they obstruct the flow of traffic and irritate those who want to pass.  I must make note, that the passing lane is not a ticket to speed (although that would be nice).  
In Germany's Autobahn, where in some portions, there is no observed speed limit; if you are in the passing lane and not passing every other car you will, eventually, irritate someone in an Audi R8 who WANTS to pass you, who NEEDS to pass you, who has EVERY RIGHT to pass you.  On the Autobahn, not observing this might as well be grounds for death amongst your peers.  It is strictly forced via the law of the land, and it is shunned to say the least.
 Should we Americans adopt such a policy?  Where anyone caught driving less than ludicrous speed should be honked and cursed at.  Should law enforcement actually enforce this law strictly and pull people over for such a crime?  It's hard to tell.  Simply because such a decision would be too subjective.  In bumper to bumper traffic this law does not apply, so it would be difficult to determine what is grounds for a citation.

I'll stick to flicking my high-beams or honking my horn.

Posted in: lane,law,speeding,traffic