Is it OK to speed in SC to pass another vehicle? Here’s what state law says
A few states say it is OK to speed if you are passing.
South Carolina isn’t one of them.
Captain Sonny Collins of the South Carolina Highway Patrol said South Carolina’s speeding law applies.
That means no matter whether you’re annoyed someone is slow poking under the speed limit or you’re in a hurry to get to an important meeting, the speed limit is the speed limit — 70 mph on interstate highways, 60 mph on multi-lane divided primary highways, and 55 mph on other highways, 30 mph in urban districts.
That said, SC law is based on the fundamental principle that speed should be based on circumstances, so you must slow down at intersections and railway crossings and when going around curves.
Perhaps it goes without saying watch out for pedestrians and slow down in bad weather.
There are some states that are not as persnickety about passing speeds, such as Washington, Montana, Minnesota, Wyoming and Idaho.
Washington, Minnesota and Wyoming allow it and don’t say by how much. Montana says you can go 10 mph over the speed limit and Idaho allows 15.
Idaho’s law was recently changed to allow drivers of passenger vehicles to speed on a two-lane road if another vehicle is not going the speed limit, the Idaho Statesman reported. It applies only to roads with a speed limit of 55 mph.
In a related matter, the law firm Matthiesen, Wickert & Lehrer says on its website a growing number of states are designating the far-left lane as passing only. South Carolina passed such a law in 2021. It brings a $25 fine and no points.
“In a growing number of states — especially Texas, Washington, and Ohio — police are engaging in an aggressive program to ticket violators,” the law firm said.
“Do-gooders and know-it-alls driving the speed limit in the left lane, albeit slower than the flow of traffic, believe they are teaching faster drivers a lesson. In fact, they are breaking the law and endangering those around them.”
Other states with a left lane law are Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.