HB 809: Motor vehicles; minimum speed limit of 50 miles per hour on certain highways; provide

Current Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-184) already bans driving so slowly that it blocks normal traffic flow, and lets transportation officials post minimum speed limits where slow driving causes problems. This bill adds a specific new rule: on controlled-access highways that are part of the interstate system, or on Georgia Highway 400, where the posted speed limit is 65 mph or higher, drivers could not go slower than 50 mph. The bill also cleans up the existing 'passing lane' rule, which already bars drivers from lingering in the left lane once a faster car approaches from behind, by renumbering subsections and rewording the definition of 'passing lane' without changing its meaning. The same list of exceptions (bad weather, traffic congestion, tolls, emergency vehicles, construction, needing to exit or turn) still applies. The changes would take effect July 1, 2027.

• Adds a new minimum speed limit of 50 mph on interstate highways and Georgia Highway 400 where the posted limit is 65 mph or higher.
• Keeps the existing ban on driving so slowly it impedes normal traffic flow, unless slower speed is needed for safety.
• Renumbers and slightly rewords the passing lane rule and its definition of 'passing lane' without changing its substance.
• Preserves the seven existing exceptions to the passing lane rule, including weather, congestion, tolls, and emergency and construction vehicles.
• Sets the effective date for all these changes as July 1, 2027.

Drivers on Georgia's interstate highways and Georgia Highway 400, especially those traveling well below the flow of traffic on high-speed segments. It also affects the Georgia Department of Transportation and Department of Public Safety, which oversee posted speed limits and traffic engineering studies.

Drivers who go noticeably slower than 50 mph on these high-speed highways could be violating the law even without a posted minimum sign, once the highway's limit is 65 mph or higher. This could affect enforcement and ticketing on interstates and Georgia 400 starting in mid-2027.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 40-6-184 by adding new subsection (c), setting a 50 mph minimum on controlled-access interstate highways or Georgia Highway 400 with posted limits of 65 mph or more.
• Section 1 also renumbers the existing passing lane rule to new subsection (d) and updates the definition of 'passing lane' to mean the most left-hand lane other than a high occupancy vehicle lane.
• Section 1 preserves the seven listed exceptions to the passing lane rule, such as congestion, weather, tolls, exiting, emergency vehicles, and highway construction work.
• Section 2 sets the effective date of the Act as July 1, 2027.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-02-20House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
2. 2025-03-25House Second Readers (House)
3. 2025-03-21House First Readers (House)
4. 2025-03-20House Hopper (House)

• John Carson (R, HD-046)Primary sponsor
• Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
• Alan Powell (R, HD-033)
• Brad Thomas (R, HD-021)
• Clint Crowe (R, HD-118)
• Eddie Lumsden (R, HD-012)

• speed limits
• traffic laws
• interstate highways
• Georgia Highway 400
• driving rules