We’ve all been there. You’re in an 80km/h zone or under, cruising along in the right-hand lane because your turn is coming up, and someone has decided to cosy right up to the back of your car and loudly complain about where you’re driving.
In the early days of learning to drive, we’ve all heard “keep to the left unless overtaking.” This is the driving equivalent of learning “don’t use ‘and’ to start a sentence” in English class. Once you’ve left grade four or read a book or two, you’ve figured out that using ‘And’ at the start is actually fine unless you’re doing an academic paper.
It’s the same with keeping left unless overtaking. That rule only applies when you’re doing over 80km/h along a highway or through a road-side township. It ONLY applies then (https://www.qld.gov.au/transport/safety/rules/road/left). You are not beholden to stay in the left lane if it doesn’t make sense for you to be there, not matter how many oversized Ranger drivers try and bully you out of it.
The only permanent exception to this is if it’s explicitly signed that you must keep left in a certain area regardless of speed limit (https://www.qld.gov.au/transport/safety/signs/regulatory). These signs often appear on single or double-lane highways, or in an area where heavy vehicles regularly operate. Short-term exceptions to keeping left when doing over 80km/h includes avoiding road debris, traffic congestion, or turning right.
If you’re turning right, make sure you put your indicator on to turn as soon as possible so the pedal-to-the-metal Telsa driver knows you’re leaving soon. That way, the tailgating remains at the minimum.
Purple Truck Driving School is based in Toowoomba and helps future truckers get their MR Licence.
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