Why you may want to avoid one common traffic violation

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – How often do you pull into a median before entering the turn lane? That action could land you a ticket.

“If it’s really dangerous—if you really want people to stop doing this, people should be made aware, so they understand the rule.”

Sometimes, wanting to make a left turn can drive you crazy. Picture it: you’re sitting here behind a long line of cars going straight. So, you jump into the median early and glide into the actual turn lane to make your left turn.

But did you know that’s illegal? One News 2 viewer didn’t – and wound up with a ticket. So, this week, we’re brushing up on the rules of the road, so you don’t end up with a ticket.

Nathan Welch was preparing to turn left from Maybank Highway onto River Road on Johns Island. To get around traffic, he passed over the double yellow line to turn left – but then he saw blue lights in his rearview mirror and wound up with a ticket for “passing unlawfully in a no-pass zone.”

“I was pretty upset about it. I was like, man, I didn’t know this was a rule. I see people do this every single day,” he said. “And as I talked to more people, I realized nobody knows that this law is enforced.”

Welch asked News 2 to spread the word about the penalty for crossing double yellow lines. So, we sat down with Sgt. Kyle Ryan from the Charleston Police Department who said their agency is cracking down on this dangerous driving behavior for a good reason.

“We’ve had a lot of complaints in this area, Maybank and River, in the last few weeks, or couple months even, with drivers passing other cars unlawfully in these areas. We see this a lot of times, too, on Savannah Highway, or Highway 61, where drivers are utilizing parts of the road where they’re not supposed to,” Sgt. Ryan said.

He also reminds drivers – while it’s illegal to pass cars in both directions when there’s a double yellow line, when there’s a dashed yellow line on your side, you can pass other cars traveling in the same direction.

What’s driving you crazy on the roads? Send an email to mfee@wcbd.com and explain your issue.

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