Circulating in an orderly manner, respecting the lines, without sudden or unnecessary lane changes, is essential to guarantee driving safety. This common sense practice allows for predictable and fluid traffic, which reduces the risk of accidents and contributes to a more harmonious coexistence on the roads.
On motorways and expressways, where high speeds and traffic density increase the importance of responsible driving, it is essential to respect these rules to ensure the safety of all road users. Unfortunately, more often than not, we see that impatience or lack of consideration can lead some drivers to ignore these principles, whether driving in the left lane or weaving between vehicles.
The General Traffic Regulations are clear in this sense. Article 30 establishes that on roads, highways and highways you must always drive in the right lane, using the rest for overtaking and other traffic circumstances. In fact, occupying lanes other than the right ones, hindering the progress of other drivers, is a serious infraction that is punishable by a 200-euro fine without loss of license points.
In urban areas, where there is usually a greater concentration of traffic and frequent turns, drivers have the flexibility to use the lane that best suits their destination as long as there are two lanes - or more - in each direction and they are delimited by lines. As the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) highlights in its publications, in the city lane changes are made to overtake, park or prepare for a turn or stop, not to zigzag between vehicles and move faster.
The DGT warns of these negligent attitudes behind the wheel in a publication on X (formerly Twitter) where it highlights the importance of responsible driving. Traffic points out that 'snaking' between vehicles "causes inconvenience to other drivers, causes braking and even overtaking due to lack of separation."
The message is accompanied by an animated infographic showing a red car zigzagging between other vehicles. The maneuvers of the car driver, recreated by the DGT, are unfortunately comparable to real situations that we have all witnessed.
An example of this is the case of a taxi driver caught circulating between lanes on the streets of Barcelona. In the images, recorded from another vehicle and shared by SocialDrive on social networks, you can see how the professional driver advances other cars performing zigzag maneuvers.
For all these reasons, the General Directorate of Traffic urges drivers to drive “on track.” That is, selecting the lanes where they are going to travel in advance and maintaining them respecting the road markings, especially with regard to right or left turns.
This issue is of great importance when we refer to the urban environment, since it is common to find specific lanes for turning right or left. On the road, however, the exits are usually on the right.
Traffic emphasizes that complying with these regulations is equivalent to “safe driving” minimizing the risks of accidents. Reach impacts tend to be the most common when driving in the urban environment, so we must also maintain a safe distance, both frontally and laterally, from the vehicles we are driving next to.
