COLUMBIA, S.C. — A bill allowing police to charge a bigger fine for people driving slow in the left lane of interstates and other multilane highways is one of the first to be taken up at the South Carolina Statehouse in 2023.
A Senate subcommittee Tuesday approved increasing the fine from $25 to up to $100 and giving most of the increased amount to the state Highway Patrol. The full Senate Transportation Committee is scheduled to take up the bill Wednesday.
“Sometimes it takes getting hit hard in the wallet for us to change behavior," AAA Carolinas spokesperson Tiffany Wright said. "We know the left lane is reserved for emergency vehicles and for passing when you can do so safely.”
Lawmakers passed the so-called “slowpoke" bill in 2021. Over roughly a year, state troopers wrote nearly 500 tickets. It requires drivers in the left lane to move over if a car comes up behind them and the right lane is clear.
AAA Carolinas say it supports legislation that would prevent pile-ups on interstates and help overall traffic safety to discourage drivers from cruising in the left lane.
“We know that it can lead to tension amongst drivers," Wright said. "We see more aggressive driving, people start tailgating, cutting each other off and we know that can lead to road rage which can have devastating consequences.”
The fine is not a criminal penalty and doesn't get reported to a driving record.
The senators on the subcommittee said they noticed compliance when the law was first passed, but slower drivers have started to creep back into the left lane, necessitating a tougher penalty.
“Would the committee entertain a motion to make this retroactive — to this morning — maybe a blue Camry?” joked Republican state Sen. Wes Climer who has about a 70 mile (113 kilometer) commute from Rock Hill to the Statehouse on Interstate 77.
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