Aforward on the right side enters the ‘perfect decalogue’ of imprudence at the wheel. In fact, he has even given rise to the expression “overtake on the right”, which means take advantage of others unfairly or illegally.
General Traffic Regulations
Overtaking on the right is often a consequence of the so-called ‘left lane syndrome’which consists of the fact that, on roads with at least two lanes in each direction, a car is placed on that side of the road despite not being overtaking. This means violating the article 31 of the General Traffic Regulationswhich clarifies that “it will normally circulate through the located More to the rightalthough the rest of those in that sense can be used when the traffic or road circumstances advise it“.
So, with a driver who does not move out of the left lane, it is not surprising that many of the other drivers become desperate and end up overtaking on the right.
Three exceptions
But advancing on the side that seems wrong to all of us can be legal, as the DGT has reminded us. In fact, there are three cases in which it is allowed:
- -When the car we are going to overtake has the intention to stop or turn left along a street or a detour.
- -On two-way traffic routes, when we overtake the trams that occupy the central area.
- -When we are in a town with at least two lanes in the same directionas long as it is done without endangering other users.
To this it could be added that overtaking can also be done on the highway or motorway, when the traffic suffers delays and the lane on the right moves faster than the lane on the left, but the reality is that this is not overtaking, but to overtake, since there does not have to be a lane change.
Fines… for everyone
If we are not in one of these cases, the penalty for overtaking on the right carries a fine of 200 euros. But be careful, the driver of the vehicle traveling in the left lane can also be fined. For now they can fall 200 euros for ‘anchoring’ in the left lane. And if on top of that the other vehicles are overtaking you on the right to go to abnormally reduced speed (on the highway it would be 60 km/h; very little), you could fall another 200 euros.
