The most annoying part of driving is inconsiderate drivers, especially drivers who share the common highway habit of driving slowly in the far left lane.
Recently, TikToker Jethroboogie (@jethroboogie) garnered 2.1 million views and over 166,000 likes when he captured a GMC getting tailgated by an impatient driver because the driver was driving so slowly.
Why is it bad to drive slowly in the passing lane?
According to the law firm Allen, Allen, Allen & Allen, driving slowly in the passing lane is one of the most dangerous things to do on a highway. Safety hazards include causing other drivers to suddenly change lanes and causing others to take “unnecessary risks” when trying to pass the slow driver.
Driving slowly also causes traffic delays and leads to congestion of the roadway. According to the law firm, the common habit of driving too slowly in the fast lane can create a bottleneck, increased travel times, increased fuel consumption, excessive emissions, and other drivers becoming “frustrated and [engaging] in aggressive or reckless behavior.”
FirstTimeDriver.com explains that every state allows drivers to pass or speed in the far left lane and most of them don’t allow slow drivers who make no attempt to pass or turn to use the left lane. The website reports that “keep right laws” are designed to encourage a smooth flow of traffic without any backup.
When drivers have the common highway habit of driving slowly in the left lane, they inadvertently leave traffic and road rage in their wake. The best thing to do is be aware of your surroundings and courteous to other drivers by moving out of the way if someone wants to pass.
Any other bad habits to be aware of?
Jethro Boogie’s video didn’t just capture one bad driver, but two. At the time of recording, the Dodge Ram truck, in the driver’s frustration, was dangerously close to the other car.
Law firm Farris & Thomas describes tailgating as driving too closely behind the vehicle in front of you. This can lead to a “domino effect of accidents” where a “single crash caused by following too closely triggers a chain of crashes involving multiple vehicles.” Tailgating, according to the law firm, can induce stress and anxiety in the driver in front of you, increasing the chances of reckless driving.
Tailgating is such an issue that it made I Drive Safely, a driver’s education site, list it in its ranking of “Top 10 worst driving habits.” Other bad habits include ignoring traffic signs, not checking blind spots, not using turn signals, and merging improperly.
Which driver did viewers think was worse?
Multiple viewers argued that driving slowly in the left lane was the worse bad driver behavior.
“Cruising in the passing lane is a violation,” one said.
“If you’re just cruising in the left lane, please just move over,” a second agreed.
“Okay but why is the car chillin in the left hand lane just to pace the car beside him??” another pointed out.
Others claimed that the tailgating Dodge Ram was at fault.
“Tailgating till the very end like a true dodge,” one said.
“I love how there’s 17 cars in front of the guy he’s tailgating,” a second added.
Some said the worst driving in the video was when all three cars across all lanes began staying side by side.
“Tooooo be fair the whole ‘cars pacing each other across all 3 lanes’ thing is infuriating,” a viewer said.
“3 cars all goin the same speed next to each other is actually crazy tho,” a second added.
“All 3 are going the same speed tells me the truck did Something wrong so they’re screwing with him,” another said.
The Daily Dot reached out to Jethro Boogie via TikTok Comments. No other form of contact was available.
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