Bunching up cars creates dangerous situations with so many others in blind spots. Enforcing the left lane for passing opens up the spacing.
I remember reading a safe driving article in Popular Science around 1965 or 1966 when I was getting ready to get my license. A highway patrolman called them “wolf packs.” On long stretches of interstate where you can see long distances ahead, you can see several of these packs. That article pointed out that it is much safer to stay between them than get into one of them. That was and still is good advice for defensive driving.
I recently took a road trip from the east coast of the US into Mexico at Nogales, AZ and down to Sinaloa, Mexico. Oklahoma has the worst problem with drivers trying to enforce speed limits in the left lane. They were worse than New Jersey drivers. Interestingly, left lane driving was not a thing in Mexico. Nobody was in that big of a hurry or something.
Yep, gonna bet a few hundred tickets for obstructing a roadway (big deal here like low level DUI) and some news stories and people might start driving appropriately.
Int eh part of Texas I am it’s common (esp during daylight) for traffic to be moving 90+ and 70% of the time the person obstructing the left lane is usually a middle aged or older woman in a minivan or or a prius going 2mph over the speed limit on cruise when traffic is trying to move 15-20 faster.
I honk—a lot.
They aren’t oblivious. These are the people who were the drinking fountain monitors in grammar school. Self-appointed traffic wardens.
But...but....I’m turning left 5 miles ahead.
I can live with that more than the jerks who pass you then pull in front and go slower than you were going.
I am in the habit of moving to the left lane when approaching on/off ramps to permit easier merging for the entering traffic and to avoid braking for those exiting. I'll merge back to the right when it is safe to do so. Sometimes that takes a fair distance, but if you come screaming up on my bumper at 90 when I'm already over the limit at 75 or so, do not expect me to speed up or merge unsafely. Wait your turn.