COLORADO — The Colorado State Patrol cracked down on 2,540 drivers in 2025 for camping in the left lane and slowing traffic flow. CSP announced the numbers on March 17, 2026, renewing its push to remind drivers that left-lane camping is illegal on Colorado roads posted at 65 mph or higher.
The enforcement spread across the state’s busiest corridors. The top roads for left-lane stops in 2025 were:
- I-70 — 962 contacts
- I-25 — 564 contacts
- Highway 50 — 297 contacts
- Highway 160 — 190 contacts
- E-470 — 149 contacts
Under Colorado law, the far-left lane on multi-lane roads posted at 65 mph or greater serves as a passing lane only. Once a driver completes a pass or allows a vehicle to merge, they must move right. Staying put creates bottlenecks and triggers dangerous reactions from other drivers — including unsafe passing, tailgating, and light flashing.
CSP Chief Col. Matthew C. Packard drove the point home. “Even if you are driving the maximum legal speed limit, the left lane is not intended to be a permanent travel lane on roadways 65 mph or greater in Colorado,” Packard said. “Drivers are not legally allowed to obstruct traffic lanes in Colorado, so even if you don’t like the speed of other drivers, interfering with traffic flow is also unsafe driving behavior.”
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