Transportation and Vehicle Safety: right turn from left lane, objective principles, spirit of the law

Question
2 lanes going north,  2 lanes going south  with a centerlane for left/right turns
A 54 foot truck with trailer was stopped in the left lane, to turn into a driveway on the right.   Ofcourse he had to cross over the other lane (right) IS that legal?

Answer
Hello Evelyn and welcome to AllExperts!

The quick answer to your question is, TECHNICALLY, no it's not legal.

The letter of the law is based on objective principles of right and wrong, without allowance for mitigating factors.

A good example is actually based on your question. Most large/long vehicles physically cannot make a legal right turn from the right lane. If the tractor (the cab of the vehicle where the driver sits) negotiates the turn, keeping the tractor lined up with the perpendicular road on which it is entering, the tail-end of the trailer will encounter something known as 'Rear-Wheel-Cheat'.  This is where the rear end of the trailer travels over anything that is in the way.

Remember that a vehicle will pivot on the rear axle. If the front of a tractor is approaching the point of a turn, then the trailer which is 28 feet behind the entry point will pivot there. This means the right rear tire will roll over whatever is in the way (sidewalk, fire hydrant, signs, parked cars, etc) 28 feet before the turn. If the driver tried to place the rear end of the trailers pivot point at the entry point of a turn, then the tractor will roll over whatever is in the way (sidewalk, fire hydrant, signs, parked cars, etc) 28 feet after the entry point of the turn.

This means that large/long vehicles cannot physically negotiate right turns from the right lane, or left turns from the left lane, unless there is an extremely wide lane available. To safely negotiate a turn on standard roadways, a wide approach is necessary. Because of these physical limitations, the law moves from the letter of the law to the spirit of the law, mitigating the technical violation and allowing this maneuver to be negotiated without penalty.

I hope this answers your question Evelyn!

Have a great day!

Terry