Traffic would improve a bit, if drivers followed laws of the road

The last couple of weeks it seems that traffic has been horrendous. If everyone did their part and followed some “rules of the road,” it might help.

I turned to Miami-Dade Police Department's Motorcycle Unit to help educate our drivers. Even I learned a few things, thanks to Sgt. Chad Murphy and Lt. Jorge L. Montero.

Here are some of the often-violated traffic laws that drivers in South Florida either don’t know or just don’t follow, just a few of the more than 900 traffic statutes on the books in Florida.

▪ One of the most violated laws in South Florida is turning right on a red light. Florida law says you must come to a complete stop, yield the right of way to any pedestrians or other vehicle traffic, then you may make the right turn on a red light. A violation of this section could cost you $277.

The same rule can be used for stop signs too, you must come to a complete stop and look for pedestrians and vehicles before proceeding. “Rolling” a stop sign could cost you $179.

▪ When it comes to having respect for other drivers, you have to realize that many laws are designed to let the people around you know what you intend to do. Florida law requires that you use your turn signals anytime you intend to turn or change lanes.

You must signal that you are going to make a turn at least 100 feet before turning. This lets the drivers around you prepare, and maybe even let you in to their lane. I know someone is laughing about this, but violating this statute could cost you $179.

▪ Drivers are reminded that when traveling on expressways, the far left lane should be occupied by faster moving traffic, and vehicles that are overtaking other slower moving vehicles in the right lanes.

State law says that if vehicles are traveling faster than you and are overtaking you on the right, you must move to the right and allow the faster vehicle to occupy the far left lane. If you continue to drive in the left lane slower than the traffic around, you could pay a fine of $179.

These are only a few of the laws that if followed, could make the commute in South Florida much smoother.

This story was originally published April 11, 2018 at 2:02 PM with the headline "Traffic would improve a bit, if drivers followed laws of the road."