Does Maine law require highway drivers to keep right except to pass?

Under Maine law, drivers on major highways with a speed limit of at least 65 mph — such as the Maine Turnpike — must remain in the right‑hand lane except when actively passing.

Drivers who “camp” in the left lane — or the middle lane on three-lane highways — may be subject to a citation, although Maine State Police do not publish ticketing data specific to this offense.

In 2021, Sen. Anne Carney, D-Cumberland, proposed a bill to make traveling in the center lane legal, noting in testimony that it’s common for cars to cruise in that lane, despite the law. The bill died after the Legislature’s Transportation Committee determined it ought not to pass.

The left-lane law was created in 1993 as part of an overhaul of the state’s motor vehicle laws. It was amended in 2011 to accommodate a 75 mph speed limit on part of Interstate 95.