Newsgroups: ont.general
Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!csri.toronto.edu!malton
From: malton@csri.toronto.edu (Andrew Malton)
Subject: Highway Driving Rules
Message-ID: <8904061731.AA21685@ellesmere.csri.toronto.edu>
Organization: University of Toronto, CSRI
Distribution: ont
Date: Thu, 6 Apr 89 13:31:34 EDT

Are the `lane discipline' rules for driving on multi-lane highways
a matter of law in Ontario, or of recommended driving habits only? By
`lane discipline' I mean the rules including but not necessarily limited to:

1) overtake only on the left;
2) use the left-most lane for active passing only;
3) move right when approached from behind (even when not in the
   left-most lane);
4) yield or claim right-of-way at merge (actually I know this is in the
   HTA: the traffic flow and the merge flow have equal responsibility to
   ensure even merging);
5) limit speed on ramps (I believe the orange `ramp speed NN' signs are
   warning only; some ramps have white legal speed-limits instead,
   as on the 400 at Gravenhurst);
6) flash high-beams to communicate with other drivers (as in
   `You should move out of my way', or `I am going to pass you now' or
   `You are welcome to move in ahead of me now');
7) signal lane changes.

These questions came up during an over-coffee-in-the-lounge discussion.
Anybody know answers for sure?

(In Great Britain (1) and (2) are matters of law. In Europe (3) is a
de facto necessity. I've found in European highway driving that 1-3 are
observed universally anyway; in Ontario it's commonplace to be overtaken
on both sides at once (I drive in the middle lane where possible).)

I think (7) is a trick question. Does the HTA *ever* require signals?

Andrew Malton