{"id":15605,"date":"2026-06-27T20:45:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-28T03:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/27\/what-is-the-zipper-merge-law-and-why-are-so-many-drivers-getting-it-wrong\/"},"modified":"2026-06-28T00:15:43","modified_gmt":"2026-06-28T07:15:43","slug":"what-is-the-zipper-merge-law-and-why-are-so-many-drivers-getting-it-wrong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/27\/what-is-the-zipper-merge-law-and-why-are-so-many-drivers-getting-it-wrong\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is The Zipper Merge ‘Law’ And Why Are So Many Drivers Getting It Wrong?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n <\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n F Armstrong Photography\/Shutterstock<\/span>\n <\/div>\n
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Data from Inrix.com found that American drivers in 2025 will on average spend nearly 50 hours a year sitting on the bumper to keep up with other drivers, up from 44 hours in 2024. Something people who live in places like Chicago, and other US cities with bad traffic know very well. According to the US Department of Transportation, besides bad weather, congestion is the biggest enemy of traffic flow.<\/p>\n
In an effort to reduce bottlenecks, several state-level agencies have been promoting something called “zippering.” In practice, vehicles in the merging lane must wait to cross until they reach the end of the lanes, with drivers in the merging and open lanes taking turns. But there is a lot of confusion about this practice. It requires drivers in an open lane to allow merging and is usually reserved for specific situations such as lane closures. Also, consistent speed from the assembly line is important. Rushing forward and hitting the brakes at the intersection goes against the zip line.<\/p>\n
To be clear, there is no national law that mandates this practice. Some states require drivers to use it in certain situations and include it in public education campaigns. However, others such as Utah, have a statute (41.6a-903.1) that specifically calls for the “Zipper method.” It is also mentioned in the publication of the Illinois Rules of the Road and there is a possible penalty if it is ignored. You should confirm your locations zip code with your local DMV.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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Why use a zipper?<\/h2>\n
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When two lanes merge into one, the zip line asks drivers to use the entire lane that ends (rather than the immediate pass). This allows speeds to match in both lanes of traffic, improving efficiency. Slowing down affects everyone equally, which can reduce anger among drivers. Some statistics, such as a 2013 Minnesota study, reported by AAA.com, say this practice can reduce traffic by 40%. According to the Missouri Department of Transportation, congestion could see a drop of up to 50%. Zip lining is not the only way speed is used to regulate traffic flow, as other methods such as a smaller speed limit sign help reduce congestion by reducing the speed difference between drivers.<\/p>\n
The concept is not new and has been around for years in some European countries. Belgium made it legal back in 2014, and Germany included it in its driving laws in 2001. Some Canadian provinces have been campaigning for its use, with examples such as British Columbia, placing signs encouraging the practice. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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Why zip lining has struggled to gain traction among US drivers<\/h2>\n
Zip fastening often goes against some unwritten rules that many drivers have followed for years. Kevin Gutknecht of the Minnesota DOT summed up the problem in an interview with NewsChannel5.com, “From kindergarten on we are told that we need to stand in line and stay in the right place.” A driver who successfully merges when he gets the first chance, can feel disrespected when another driver continues to pass them in the closing lane, because it can be interpreted as cutting ahead in line. <\/p>\n
The zipper method can cause frustration from both the initial assembly and those who follow it correctly. A driver following a zip line may be very upset that others do not want to allow them to merge, holding them in their place. Situations like this can cause anger, especially if drivers become aggressive in trying to force a merger. Surprisingly, Louisiana has the most road rage in America, according to Consumer Affairs.<\/p>\n
Some states have taken a step back from the idea of \u200b\u200bzip lining, such as Tennessee. According to a statement from the Tennessee Department of Transportation published on Fox17.com, “It requires a significant amount of public education not only, but also public compliance. According to our traffic section, some states have had problems getting the public to comply with the direction of the “interchange.” Some law enforcement officials in Arizona have expressed their opinion that the zip method can work well in a naive community, but the reality is different. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
F Armstrong Photography\/Shutterstock Data from Inrix.com found that American drivers in 2025 will on average spend nearly 50 hours a year sitting on the bumper to keep up with other drivers, up from 44 hours in 2024. Something people who live in places like Chicago, and other […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":15606,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-15605","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-smartphones-tablets"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15605","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15605"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15605\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15607,"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15605\/revisions\/15607"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15606"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15605"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15605"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.runwayritz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15605"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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