How long must you be in a lane before you can change again?
03/24/2025 03:00 PM
Whether you're about to miss your turn-off or you're in a hurry to overtake, you may be tempted to dart across the freeway. However, changing multiple lanes at a time could be illegal.
Darting across multiple lanes of traffic can be dangerous, but it seems to be a common occurrence on our roads in Australia.
RELATED: When two lanes merge into one, who gives way?
We are talking about the drivers on multi-lane roads who start from the inside lane and make their way over to the outside in one swift movement, or vice versa.
Not only is it dangerous for the driver who doesn't have enough time to head check before leaving the lane, but it is also dangerous for other motorists who may not expect them to enter another lane without proper indication.
While it is dangerous, is it illegal? We investigate how long you need to be in a lane before you can change again.
Is it illegal to change multiple lanes at once?
In Australia, there is no specific road rule that prohibits changing multiple lanes at once; however, darting across lanes may violate a number of other road rules.
This leaves the fine you will receive up to the officer pulling you over, which could range from a few hundred dollars to several demerit points.
One of the fines you could receive when changing multiple lanes at once is for violating Rule 46 (changing lanes to the left) and Rule 48 (changing lanes to the right) of the Road Rules 2014 legislation.
"Before a driver changes direction to the left (or right for Rule 48), the driver must give a left change of direction signal in accordance with Rule 47 for long enough to comply with subrule (2)."
That doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, but essentially, it means you must use your indicator every single time you change lanes on the road. Also mentioned is a subsection of the road rule that our question could fall under.
"The driver must give the change of direction signal for long enough to give sufficient warning to other drivers and pedestrians," as written in subsection two.
That means that changing multiple lanes at a time could be perceived as not giving sufficient warning to other drivers.
While there is no law stating how long you must indicate before making a lane change, driving schools around the country recommend that you have your signal on for at least three seconds before leaving your lane.
Because there is no set time written into the legislation, it will be completely up to the police officer pulling you over to determine whether you have indicated for the correct length of time to warn other motorists that you are going to change lanes.
New South Wales specifies a $198 fine and two demerit points, while Victoria tops the board with a $593 fine.
Also written in Australian traffic laws is "not stop change of direction signal after change," meaning that after you change lanes, you must switch your signal off and then back on again to change into the next lane. This is the same fine amount (minus the demerit points in NSW) and can be stacked on top of your other fine.
While it might not exactly be illegal to cross multiple lanes of traffic at once, you are breaking other road rules that could leave you a few hundred dollars lighter in the pocket.
The post How long must you be in a lane before you can change again? appeared first on Drive.
