Beware! While you are driving your RV in a few states, there are some laws you will be interested to learn. Here are a few I came across that were very surprising!
Surprising driving laws in 9 states
- It is illegal in Alaska to drive your rig while your dog is tethered to it. I know, sometimes we forget to tie something down or pick something up when we leave our spots, but you should always double-check if you have a pooch along for the ride.
- Don’t drive in reverse on public roads in Arizona. While some RVers are experts at backing up, a large percentage of us are not. We are in luck because Arizona favors our lack of expertise.
- I hope you don’t have a black RV as it is not allowed for you to drive it on Sunday in Denver, Colorado. Besides, that might make for a very hot RV if it is totally black. But if you do have a black RV, you don’t want to be a Sunday driver.
- Watch your gas gauge because it is illegal to run out of gas in Youngstown, Ohio. Well, I don’t want to run out of gas anyway, but it would sure be worse to get a ticket on top of it!
- And if it wasn’t challenging enough, don’t attempt to drive an RV blindfolded in Alabama. It is absolutely against the law.
- For the daredevil RV drivers, it is illegal to jump from an RV going over 65 miles per hour in Glendale, California. I’m not sure if that means you should be going a little faster or a little slower when you attempt it…
- Any hunting fans? Well, don’t shoot that deer or turkey from your RV. Step out to take that shot because it is illegal to hunt from your vehicle in Connecticut.
- Campgrounds are OK for driving through but do NOT attempt to take a leisurely drive through the playgrounds of Georgia. If you want to enjoy the swings you should probably stop outside the park.
- And lastly, my favorite… If you are riding solo (or if you no longer want your partner in the front seat by you), Massachusetts is the place to drive. You cannot drive with a gorilla in your backseat. The front seat is okay if the gorilla is wearing a buckled seat belt.
These laws are still on the books and make for some interesting “how did they come to be” stories. You might make it a game at your next RV campground—see who has the best story on how the law came to be. Just make sure the state you are in does not have any “sitting outside your RV telling stories” laws.
You should be aware of current laws that are on the books that are relevant to your current RV travels. Depending on what you carry with you in your rig and how you transport items from state to state may result in fines or imprisonment. Here are some of the top laws these days that are relevant and vary per state:
- Transporting liquor
- Carrying weapons and can they be concealed
- Legal and illegal drug storage
- Number of tows you can pull
- Commercial license requirements based on RV weight
And we all know ignorance of the law will not get us out of the resulting penalties. At least we can laugh at some of the laws still on the books that will never be enforced… maybe? Have you read about any crazy driving laws? Tell me about it in the comments below, please!
(*Thanks to The Lawyer Portal for some of these weird laws!)
RELATED
##RVT1099
You needed to check out some of the road laws in Montana. Ex; You have to have someone in front and behind you with lanterns while driving.
I’d like to see an article on the legal requirements for trailer brake controllers by state. I’d guess there are many RV’ers that are violating state laws that don’t know it.
Hi, Tal. I just Googled “Trailer brake controller laws by state” and the first suggestion was Trailers.com. I clicked on it and it popped up with “Washington Trailer Laws & Trailer Regulations” (because I’m in Washington). It looked pretty thorough. Here’s a link to their Trailer Laws & Regulations by State page: https://trailers.com/state-laws/ I’ll pass along your suggestion for a possible post on this topic for a future newsletter. Thanks! Have a good night. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
Cute article but you might want read this link explaining that there is no law regarding gorillas in the back seat. Another urban myth example.
https://www.mass.gov/news/no-gorillas-allowed-in-the-back-seats-of-cars
I really liked your food bank story. We live in a senior mobile home park and I understand there are a number of seniors in this park who are needing food. Unfortunately — the only people I know who are going to the food bank are two couples who have plenty of money to buy their own food and readily admit it. You can argue politics but you can’t argue people into having higher ethical standards.
Remember we make one of the biggest mistakes of our life every election when we elect lawyers to represent us. Have you ever met a lawyer with common sense? It’s bad enough when a high school graduate goes off to college and they spend the first year deprogramming them of common sense so they can fill their brain with book learning. But a lawyer spends several more years learning double speak that only they understand. Lol
Not aware of any entertainingly screwy laws, but do have a for-pay application on my phone called “State Lines” by Two Steps Beyond. It is a current list of requirements/prohibitions by each state for a variety of things such as gun laws and alcohol sales. I have this application for exactly for the reasons you highlight.
The hunting law is current and necessary…and law all over. Not only can’t you “road hunt” and shoot from the vehicle, normally you have to be a certain number of feet off the roadway. This is in place because there are slob hunters that do this unethical practice. Many times it’s done at night while “shining” game with bright lights. Not a practice done by legal, ethical hunters.
As previously mentioned, there are exceptions, with the proper permits, for those with physical disabilities. Many of those individuals still don’t shoot from “active” roadways; rather, may be on a field road or little used country dirt road but still shoot from the vehicle, which is OK, if following all other laws.
It is pretty well illegal to hunt from inside a vehicle in most if not all States. here in Maine it sure is.
You are allowed to hunt deer from a vehicle in PA if you are disabled. Not sure how you get the deer after you shoot it.
In Saskatoon Saskatchewan Canada if you are crossing the Victoria bridge a flagman must precede you to warn horses that you are coming.
Illegal to hunt from a vehicle in many states.
The drivers license your state has to be accepted in all 50 states so a special license to drive in say Texas can’t be enforced on a driver from any other state. Speed limits, weight limits, vehicle width and double towing can be enforced but licensing requirements can’t. Same with Motorcycle drivers license requirements. My state can’t enforce their requirement to have a valid motorcycle endorsement on any out of state rider if their home state does not require it. Motor cycle equipment and helmet laws can be enforced.
We could have let Darwin handle most of these instead of writing worthless laws. Speaking of brilliant lawmakers and Darwin…..
😂 👍
😂 👍