The 20 Most Bizarre Traffic Laws In America

Most laws are made to protect the population and help life run a bit more smoothly for everyone. But due to the bizarre nature of our legal system, outrageous local ideas sometimes sneak through the cracks of reason and become solidified as law.

Here are some of the most bizarre traffic laws in the United States. And yes, there will be a quiz. Given by the police. If you speed. So print this out.

1. You must have a lantern attached to the front of your vehicle...

if you're gonna drive the wrong way down a one-way street and not be considered a law breaker in Alabama.

 

2. Hit a pedestrian in Sarasota, Florida? No big deal.

Just pay a tiny $78 fine.

3. Do NOT get pulled over with a Gorilla in the back seat

If you're in Massachusetts, whether you own it or not. Trust us. 

 

4. Want to drive around with CLOSED beer in your car in Rhode Island?

If it's in Scituate, nice try bucko.

5. Mercifully, Alabama has outlawed blindfolds while driving

Frankly we're surprised the call had to be made.


6. You are legally not allowed to run out of gas...

in a congested district in Youngstown Ohio.

7. It's illegal to honk someone else's horn

If you're in University City, Missouri. And no, that's not a euphemism.


8. Never jump out of a car going 65 mph in while in Glendale, California

Because if you survive: you're going to jail.

9. In Illinois, they're very picky about who can claim possession of roadkill deer 

Only residents who don’t owe child support and who have not had their wildlife privileges suspended anywhere in the United States can claim possession of roadkill with the Department of Natural Resources.


10. Your backfiring hooptie is not welcome in Rutland, Vermont

If your tailpipes pop and disturb the peace, you may be slapped with a fine.

11. The police in Fort Thomas, Kentucky have a thing about dogs molesting vehicles

So keep your puppy on the leash if you catch him eyeing the tires on your neighbor’s Subaru.


12. No honking near a sandwich shop or cold beverage stand

In Little Rock, Arkansas after 9 p.m.

13. You can spit from a truck—but not from a car or a bus

In Marietta, one of the largest suburbs in Georgia.

14. Pray that your house in New Britain never ignites

Because apparently fire trucks in this Connecticut town are not allowed to drive faster than 25 mph, even when responding to a call.


15. In Eureka California, you're just not allowed to sleep on the road

No matter how warm and inviting the asphalt looks.

16. You can’t drive your camel on the highway

Even though the Nevada desert might feel like Abu Dhabi.


17. There is a law that says you can't drive on a playground in Dublin, Georgia

We're terrified to imagine the incident that precipitated this law.

18. In Pennsylvania, “any motorist who sights a team of horses coming toward him must pull well off the road...

...cover his car with a blanket or canvas that blends with the countryside, and let the horses pass. If the horses appear skittish, the motorist must take his car apart, piece by piece, and hide it under the nearest bushes.” Oh my god.


19. It's ironic that in a place called Derby Kansas...

You can be jailed for 30 days for screeching your tires.

20. The phrase "keep your pants on" is taken literally in Sag Harbor New York...

where disrobing in your car may result in a hefty ticket.

Andrew LaSane is a contributor to Supercompressor. He still owns hundreds of VHS tapes and awaits the medium's triumphant return. Witness his misguided nostalgia on Instagram and Twitter.

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