HOUSTON – Law officers across the Houston area are cracking down on drivers beginning on Wednesday. They'll be on the lookout for speeders, drunk drivers and people driving too slow in the left lane.
Most people don't even know that can get you a ticket, and that's part of the reason for the crackdown: to make people aware.
By state law, a driver can get a ticket for driving too slow in the far left lane, or not turning left or not passing other cars when the left lane is marked for only those purposes.
"It is a violation of the law to travel in that left lane when you're not passing other vehicles," said DPS Trooper Alan Williams. "Or if you're traveling at the same speed as those other vehicles."
DPS officials say the left lane crackdown is taking place on rural highways in Fort Bend and Montgomery counties where TxDOT signs are already posted.
This enforcement is not taking place in the Houston metro area or Harris County because DPS says it's hard to enforce the law with the high volume of drivers on those roads.
Law officers say slow drivers in the left lane not only clog busy Houston-area traffic, they can sometimes cause accidents and even spark road rage in some drivers.
"They start getting mad at the people that are driving too slow in the left lane, which then forces a chain reaction a lot of times," said Trooper Williams.
DPS says drivers can travel in the left lane as long as they are not creating a road hazard to other drivers.
If you're pulled over for this, you could get a ticket, or if you're lucky, just a warning.