Bailey Looks To Expand ‘Slow Poke Law’

An Upper Cumberland state lawmaker wants to expand a law that makes it illegal to drive slowly in the left lane.

Senator Paul Bailey said he plans to introduce a bill that would make the ‘Slow Poke Law’ apply to four-lane divided highways.

“We all travel the highways quite a bit and we find drivers that are in the left-hand lane that really need to be over in the right-hand lane,” Bailey said. “They’re impeding traffic, which basically slows down the flow of traffic. With today’s congestion on our highways, we need to make these drivers more conscientious to move over into the right-hand lane.”

The current law applies to six-lane divided highways. Bailey said his measure would allow police officers to enforce the law along Highway 111 and Interstate 40 in Cookeville.

“We’re wanting to make sure that we encourage drivers to move over into the right-hand lane,” Bailey said. “Basically, we want to make it more of a safety issue in the state of Tennessee.”

The Senate passed Bailey’s proposal during the most recent legislative session. The session ended before the House could get the bill through the committee process.

Bailey said he and State Representative John Mark Windle plan to introduce the bill during the upcoming session.