One of the most common questions about highway driving is also one of the most counterintuitive: why should a driver who is obeying the speed limit move aside for someone who is speeding? When introducing the "Keep Right, Let Others Pass" legislation, the Province explained that the objective was to improve traffic flow and reduce risky passing manoeuvres on higher-speed highways—not to change the enforcement of speed limits.
Imagine you're driving on a multi-lane highway at exactly the posted speed limit. You're in the left lane, overtaking slower traffic. Suddenly, another vehicle appears in your rear-view mirror, closes the gap quickly, and begins following much too closely. The driver wants to pass.
Your instinct might be to stay where you are. After all, you're already driving at the legal limit. Why should someone who is speeding have any expectation that you'll move over?
In British Columbia, the law generally requires you to move to the right when it is safe to do so. At first glance, that seems to reward illegal behaviour. In reality, it is intended to reduce risk for everyone on the highway.
What the Law Actually Says
British Columbia's "keep right" requirement isn't found in a single rule. It comes from two related sections of the Motor Vehicle Act that work together.
Section 150(2) — Slower Traffic Keeps Right
Section 150(2) requires a driver who is proceeding at less than the normal speed of traffic, at the time and place and under the existing conditions, to drive in the right-hand lane available for traffic or as close as practicable to the right edge of the roadway. There are exceptions for overtaking another vehicle and for preparing to make a left turn.
Section 151.1 — Keep Right, Let Others Pass
Section 151.1 builds on that principle for higher-speed multi-lane highways. It applies where there are two or more lanes travelling in the same direction, the posted speed limit is at least 80 km/h, and traffic is moving at least 50 km/h. Under those conditions, a driver in the leftmost lane must leave that lane when another vehicle approaches from behind, provided it is safe to do so. The law includes exceptions for overtaking another vehicle, allowing traffic to merge, preparing for a left turn or exit, and moving over for an official vehicle.
The important point is this: neither section says the approaching driver must be travelling at or below the speed limit before you move over. The obligation to keep right and the obligation to obey the speed limit are separate legal requirements. A speeding driver may still be violating the law, but that does not remove your obligation to comply with the lane-use rules when they apply.
Removing the Conflict
Choosing not to move over rarely slows the speeding driver for very long. Instead, it often changes how they pass. An impatient driver may begin tailgating, weave through slower lanes, or attempt a pass on the right. Every additional lane change creates another opportunity for a collision.
By moving to the right when it is safe, you are not approving of the driver's speed. You are simply removing yourself from a developing conflict. The speeding driver remains responsible for obeying the law and may still encounter police farther down the road. Your responsibility is to drive defensively and avoid contributing to an increasingly hazardous situation.
Why This Seems Contradictory
The apparent contradiction arises because two different traffic laws are operating at the same time. One law regulates how fast you may drive. Another regulates where you should drive. Although they appear to conflict, they serve different purposes. One regulates speed; the other reduces conflicts between vehicles travelling at different speeds.
Traffic laws often recognize that drivers do not all behave perfectly. Rather than assuming everyone will obey every rule, they are frequently written to minimize the consequences when someone does not.
What Traffic Engineers Have Learned
Although lane discipline and speed limits are separate legal issues, both have been influenced by changing ideas about road safety.
For many years, engineers commonly relied on the 85th percentile speed when evaluating appropriate speed limits. The idea was straightforward: most drivers naturally choose a speed they perceive to be reasonable for the road, and the speed travelled by 85 percent of drivers was considered one useful measure when setting limits.
Today, that approach is no longer viewed as sufficient by itself, particularly on urban streets. Many transportation agencies now place greater emphasis on surrounding land use, pedestrian activity, cycling facilities, crash history, and the potential severity of collisions.
This shift reflects the principles of the Safe System Approach and Vision Zero, which recognize that people make mistakes and that roads should be designed to reduce both the likelihood and the consequences of those mistakes.
Highways Are Different From City Streets
The distinction between highways and urban streets is important.
On city streets, reducing vehicle speeds usually takes precedence over facilitating overtaking. Road design often encourages slower operating speeds through narrower lanes, traffic calming measures, and lower speed limits.
On controlled-access highways, the primary concern is different. There are few intersections or vulnerable road users, but vehicles travel at much higher speeds. Here, reducing unnecessary lane changes and allowing overtaking traffic to pass in the left lane helps keep traffic flowing more predictably and reduces conflicts between vehicles travelling at different speeds.
Safety Over Principle
It is understandable to feel that moving aside for a speeding driver somehow rewards bad behaviour. It does not.
Moving right is a defensive driving decision, not a moral judgement. It separates two vehicles before an unsafe situation escalates into tailgating, aggressive passing, or road rage. The speeding driver remains accountable for breaking the law. Enforcement is the responsibility of police—not other motorists.
In the end, the law asks you to move over not because the speeding driver has earned the right to the lane, but because separating two vehicles is usually safer than allowing the conflict to continue. Yielding the lane doesn't excuse speeding—it simply reduces the risk that one traffic violation will lead to another.
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