Topic: No Passing on the Right Nonsense.

[george]

There is no law in Ontario prohibiting passing on the right and yet some drivers think it is illegal. Where do they get these notions?

If  I have an open lane ahead of me and I have somebody on my left I want to overtake,  I am going to go ahead and overtake with no harm done. I wish people would stop making up imaginary laws.

[Scarecrow]

I believe there is a section of the HTA prohibiting you from "passing on the right," that is, crossing over the solid white line demarking the shoulder of the road to overtake the car ahead of you.  This doesn't apply when the car ahead is turning left.

Obviously this is not the same as "passing on the right" on a multi-lane highway such as the 401.

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UPDATE: Here is the applicable text from the HTA.

Passing to right of vehicle
150.  (1)  The driver of a motor vehicle may overtake and pass to the right of another vehicle only where the movement can be made in safety and,
(a) the vehicle overtaken is making or about to make a left turn or its driver has signalled his or her intention to make a left turn;
(b) is made on a highway with unobstructed pavement of sufficient width for two or more lines of vehicles in each direction; or
(c) is made on a highway designated for the use of one-way traffic only. R.S.O. 1990, c. H.8, s. 150 (1).

Driving off roadway prohibited
(2)  No driver of a motor vehicle shall overtake and pass another vehicle by driving off the roadway. R.S.O. 1990, c. H.8, s. 150 (2).

Non-application of subs. (2)
(3)  Subsection (2) does not apply to,
(a) a motor vehicle overtaking and passing to the right of another vehicle where the shoulder to the right of the roadway is paved and the vehicle overtaken is making or about to make a left turn or its driver has signalled his or her intention to make a left turn;
(b) an ambulance or fire department vehicle;
(c) a police department vehicle or a vehicle being driven by an officer appointed for carrying out the provisions of this Act;
(d) a tow truck where the driver is responding to a police request for assistance;
(e) a road service vehicle; or
(f) a motor vehicle overtaking and passing to the right of a road service vehicle or road-building machine where a person apparently employed by or on behalf of the authority that is engaged in the highway maintenance operation has directed the driver to pass it and the movement can be made in safety. 2009, c. 5, s. 46 (2).

[tooscoops]

yeah... if you just mean using the right, open lane to pass a car in the "passing" lane.... go for it... and flip em off for using the passing lane as a driving lane.

i hate people who use the left lane as a driving lane... hop on the highway and scoot directly over as if they just *know* they are going to drive faster than everybody else on the road.

[george]

I am not going to flip them off since they might have legitimate reasons for being in the left lane e.g. exit/entrance ramp coming up and they don't want to be slowed down by merging traffic, or there is too much traffic in the right lane for them to maintain a safe distance between themselves and the car in front.

[johngenx]

GTFO of the left lane unless you're passing someone.  NO ONE ever passes me on the right.  If I'm in the left lane and someone is closing on me, I speed up to get around whoever I'm passing, allowing the person behind me to pass without slowing.

If I've moved over to let someone on (they're merging) and there's a car gaining on me in the left lane, once again, I match their speed, pass the merging car, and move over.

If you're in the left lane and someone passes you on the right, you're a MORON.

[Snowman]

GTFO of the left lane unless you're passing someone.  NO ONE ever passes me on the right.  If I'm in the left lane and someone is closing on me, I speed up to get around whoever I'm passing, allowing the person behind me to pass without slowing.

If I've moved over to let someone on (they're merging) and there's a car gaining on me in the left lane, once again, I match their speed, pass the merging car, and move over.

If you're in the left lane and someone passes you on the right, you're a MORON.

  I pass a lot on the right because the 400 series highways are full of ignorant morons. At times I am in the far right lane where the morons should be and its wide open for me to pass them by the dozens.

[Fobroader]

GTFO of the left lane unless you're passing someone.  NO ONE ever passes me on the right.  If I'm in the left lane and someone is closing on me, I speed up to get around whoever I'm passing, allowing the person behind me to pass without slowing.

If I've moved over to let someone on (they're merging) and there's a car gaining on me in the left lane, once again, I match their speed, pass the merging car, and move over.

If you're in the left lane and someone passes you on the right, you're a MORON.
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[Weels]

I pass a lot on the right because the 400 series highways are full of ignorant morons. At times I am in the far right lane where the morons should be and its wide open for me to pass them by the dozens.

X2.  And it gets worse by the day.

[rrocket]

GTFO of the left lane unless you're passing someone.  NO ONE ever passes me on the right. If I'm in the left lane and someone is closing on me, I speed up to get around whoever I'm passing, allowing the person behind me to pass without slowing.

I was in a car that did this (speed up so as not to hold up traffic in the left lane; right lane was blocked) and he got nailed for speeding.  This guy no longer speeds up and moves over.  If he's in the left lane and the right lane is blocked, he just waits until it opens up.  I asked him about it and he said "Why should I risk a speeding ticket just so someone else can drive fast?"

A bit hard to argue with that.......

[ArticSteve]

There is no law in Ontario prohibiting passing on the right and yet some drivers think it is illegal. Where do they get these notions?

If  I have an open lane ahead of me and I have somebody on my left I want to overtake,  I am going to go ahead and overtake with no harm done. I wish people would stop making up imaginary laws.

Same ppl that think it's illegal to pass on a solid single yellow or double yellow.  Actually the vast majority of drivers think this is forbidden.  It is not.

[tpl]

There is no law in Ontario prohibiting passing on the right and yet some drivers think it is illegal. Where do they get these notions?

If  I have an open lane ahead of me and I have somebody on my left I want to overtake,  I am going to go ahead and overtake with no harm done. I wish people would stop making up imaginary laws.

Same ppl that think it's illegal to pass on a solid single yellow or double yellow.  Actually the vast majority of drivers think this is forbidden.  It is not.

It is all us ex-Brits  who remember the UK rules. 

[george]

Same ppl that think it's illegal to pass on a solid single yellow or double yellow.  Actually the vast majority of drivers think this is forbidden.  It is not.

Wait a minute! I thought that a solid double yellow meant "do not cross and overtake". You see the double yellow on uphill stretches where you cannot see the oncoming traffic beyond the crest of the hill. You are saying the solid double yellow is not a prohibition but just a warning?

[Scarecrow]

A solid yellow line is meant to indicate that it is not generally safe to pass at that location.  And there's usually a pretty good reason why the yellow line is solid in those places.  But no, it isn't a prohibition.

[CanuckS2K]

A solid yellow line is meant to indicate that it is not generally safe to pass at that location.  And there's usually a pretty good reason why the yellow line is solid in those places.  But no, it isn't a prohibition.

That must be an Ontario thing because I'm pretty certain passing on a solid yellow line is not prohibited in NB. 

[tpl]

In Ontario as I understand it, yellow lines and signs with a yellow background  are recommendations. White is mandatory.

I suspect that if you passed another car, crossed a solid yellow line or a solid double yellow line and caused a crash it would be counted against you.

[johngenx]

I was in a car that did this (speed up so as not to hold up traffic in the left lane; right lane was blocked) and he got nailed for speeding.  This guy no longer speeds up and moves over.  If he's in the left lane and the right lane is blocked, he just waits until it opens up.  I asked him about it and he said "Why should I risk a speeding ticket just so someone else can drive fast?"

Yup, it's a risk.  Generally, our traffic is light enough that I can pass one car, tuck into the right lane, let the really fast guy go by, and then hop back out into the left.

It's also officer dependent, and I bet Ontario is filled with draconian speed nazis.  I was on the motorcycle on a two lane road and passed a slow car.  I agree I didn't NEED to increase my speed as much as I did, but I have always believed that the less time spent in oncoming traffic the better, and so I had hammered the throttle pretty hard.  Anyway, he clocked me at 192 in the 90, but wrote me up for 117 and saved me a suspension, etc.

[george]

A solid yellow line is meant to indicate that it is not generally safe to pass at that location.  And there's usually a pretty good reason why the yellow line is solid in those places.  But no, it isn't a prohibition.

Yes, but what about the DOUBLE  solid yellow?

[aaronk]

I believe double solid yellow means prohibited passing unless there is a slow-moving vehicle (like a tractor or cyclist) in which case it is legal to *safely pass. Otherwise you will get dinged for it, as I have in the past. Officer let me off, but double yellow means a ticket if you get caught passing.

On the passing on the right thing, funny you should mention it - my wife was arguing just this point the other night. She said it's illegal to pass on the right, but my point was...there should be no option to pass on the right if the guy in front of you is in the right lane. If drivers use the slow and middle lanes for driving and always pass left there should be no option to pass on the right. I figure the only reason I would be able to is if the guy in front of me is in the wrong lane, so how can you get me in crap for passing on the right?

And another point regarding merging - you shouldn't have to leave the slow lane to allow someone to merge. Firstly the driver should accelerate to highway speed before merging, so nobody should have to brake or move over. Secondly, cars in the slow lane should leave enough of a gap for a car to safely merge into the lane - not see someone trying to get into the lane so you move up and block them out.

[rrocket]

I believe double solid yellow means prohibited passing unless there is a slow-moving vehicle (like a tractor or cyclist) in which case it is legal to *safely pass. Otherwise you will get dinged for it, as I have in the past. Officer let me off, but double yellow means a ticket if you get caught passing.

No.  It's perfectly legal in Ontario to pass on either type of yellow line.  Yellow is generally a "precautionary" color for warning and signage. 

The Highway Traffic Act says absolutely nothing about passing on yellow lines....(Sections 148 & 149)

[Northernridge]

Every day on my brief semi-rural commute I have to pass slow moving left lane drivers by moving into the right lane. We even pass a few signs that tell slow moving traffic to keep right. If I honk or gesture they seem miffed and mystified as to why I'm doing so.