Posted on 04/08/2005 6:29:31 AM PDT by RedBloodedAmerican
TALLAHASSEE -- Slowpokes could get a $60 fine for hogging the fast lane and ticking off motorists who want to pass.
The "Road Rage Reduction Act" is speeding through the Legislature following a 27-10 vote in the Senate on Thursday, two days after the House passed a similar bill by an even wider margin, 109-4. A spokesman for Gov. Jeb Bush said the governor must still evaluate the issue.
The bill requires drivers to stay in the right lane unless they're passing a vehicle or making a left turn. Supporters -- including the Florida Sheriffs Association and Florida Police Benevolent Association -- said the bill would ease traffic flow and make it unnecessary for motorists to dangerously maneuver around slower moving vehicles.
Opponents, including Sen. Evelyn Lynn, R-Ormond Beach, said the bill's emphasis on slower drivers was misplaced.
"We should have our police catching all the offenders of speeding," Lynn pleaded on the Senate floor.
In addition to the proposed fine, the bill calls for a three-point penalty on a driver's record (motorists who accumulate 12 points can lose their license). Bill sponsor Mike Bennett, R-Bradenton, had pitched a four-point penalty but critics said it should be less than the four points assessed to reckless drivers.
The proposed law would allow for many exceptions to the right lane rule, such as using the left lane to avoid hydro-planing in a rain storm or to dodge debris in the roadway. Plus, it doesn't apply when there's no one else on the road.
"You can drive from (Tallahassee) to Miami as long as there's no one behind you," Bennett said.
Still, Sen. Rod Smith, D-Gainesville, called it a "traffic ticket enhancement" act, and Rep. Irv Slosberg, D-Boca Raton, one of the few opponents in the House, said it would increase speeding.
Local motorists were mixed in their reaction to the proposal.
Terry Carter, 26, of Holly Hill liked the idea of separating lanes for faster and slower drivers: "Most older people go slow. I have problems when I get cut off by an older person," Carter said.
Donna Parks, 48, of Volusia County said the bill was necessary: "All truck drivers should be in the right lane. Once when I was merging onto the interstate a truck driver was going so slow he almost ran me off the road," she said.
Naamon Lewis of Holly Hill, though, had doubts.
"We got a lot of people that hog that left lane, but I don't know about making a law," Lewis said. "Good gracious. I don't necessarily agree with the fine and (three) points off your license. I think that's stepping a little too far."
-- Staff Writer Eileen Zaffiro contributed to this report.
SIGNS YOU MIGHT BE AN AGGRESSIVE DRIVER
· Do you get angry at drivers who cut you off, tailgate or go slowly?
· Are you impatient at stoplights or when driving in the slow (right) lane?
· Do you compete with other drivers, drag racing from stoplights or moving ahead in traffic jams?
· Do you punish bad drivers by tailgating, cursing, flashing high-beam headlights or blocking drivers attempting to pass?
SOURCE: Adapted from AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety aggressive driving quiz at www.aaafoundation.org/quizzes
Especially around town. Despite my highway speed, I don't like to go more than 5 above elsewhere (ok, maybe 10, but only downhill).
The question becomes a legalistic nightmare for motorists AND cops.......ummm, I don't think this means you CAN'T enter the left lane, it means you can't get in the left lane and tool along like you own the road at 55mph. PA has this law and I just love watching the NJ drivers get picked up for violating this and causing traffic jams.
Good for you, just the right combo of smarts and guts!
Intersting. However I thought that interstate construction did not start until the 1950's long after the depression. I believe Eisenhower was President and wanted to build what he had seen during his service in Germany during WWII.
He sounds like a safe driver. Let me guess, you're one of the ones we're supposed to watch for, coming through the yellow/red at the last second.
Hmm, yup, you are right...Federal-Aid Highway Act, but Highway building started long before that. The 1954 Act established Federal funding for the improved Interstate system.
How so?
Well then I guess that explains why so many truckers act like I am in their way. Probably even the trucker who is hauling the load of hardwood lumber that I was able to sell to a customer because I got on the interstate and visited the customer at his plant.
But if she's going with the flow of traffic, above the speed limit, with no passing possible, if the person is tailgating her, he does have a problem. His impatience is way out of line. There is nowhere for her to go.
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