Georgia · Handbook chapter 4 · 4 min read

Chapter 4: Other laws: DUI, phones, belts and headlights

Georgia laws on controlled-access roads, coasting, DUI limits, reckless and aggressive driving, trailers, headphones, headlights, seat belts, child restraints, distracted driving, the Hands-Free law and littering.

Why this chapter matters

These laws are easy to break without thinking: holding a phone, coasting downhill in neutral, leaving the high beams on. Each one can appear on the Road Rules test.

Controlled-access roads

• Enter and leave only at authorized entrances and exits.
• Backing up is prohibited.
• Tolled Express Lanes require a registered Peach Pass. Never enter reversible lanes when the gates are closed or closing.

Other driving laws

• Coasting: never coast downhill with the transmission in neutral.
• Median strips: do not drive across a median or barrier except at an authorized crossover.
• Headphones: you may not drive wearing a headset or anything that blocks your hearing or vision.
• Overloading: passengers or cargo must not block your view or your control of the car.
• Opening doors: do not open a door on the traffic side unless it is safe, including for bicyclists.
• One-way streets: never drive against the posted direction.
• Sudden stops: give a hand or brake-light signal.
• Trailers: no riding in a house trailer or any towed trailer, and no trailers wider than 8 feet 6 inches. Trucks and trailers outside towns must leave room for others to pass between them (no caravanning).

Alcohol and drugs

Certain drugs also make you legally "under the influence," and a prescription is not a defense if the medicine impairs you. Penalties include fines up to $1,000, up to 12 months in jail and mandatory suspension of your license. Refusing the state's chemical test suspends your license for at least one year (see Chapter 9).

Reckless, aggressive and racing

• Reckless driving is driving with reckless disregard for people or property: fine up to $1,000 and up to 12 months in jail.
• Aggressive driving means driving to annoy, harass, intimidate, injure or obstruct someone, such as tailgating or blocking another car. It is a high and aggravated misdemeanor.
• Racing includes competing against another car or against time, or speeding up to stop someone passing you.
• For drivers under 21, a conviction for any of these suspends the license.

Headlights

You must use headlights from half an hour after sunset to half an hour before sunrise, whenever it is raining, and when visibility is poor. Use high beams only on rural roads with no other cars nearby. Dim them when:

• you are within 500 feet of an oncoming vehicle;
• you are following within 200 feet;
• you are on lighted roads, or in rain, fog, snow or smoke;
• you can see less than 200 feet ahead.

At night, do not overdrive your headlights, slow down for oncoming traffic and curves, and use the edge line as a guide if visibility drops.

Safety belts and child restraints

• Everyone in the front seat must wear a lap and shoulder belt.
• Every occupant under 18 must be belted, in any seat.
• Children under 8 must ride in a child restraint suited to their height and weight (taxis and public transit are exempt).
• Georgia has a primary belt law: an officer can stop you for a belt violation alone. Belts cut the risk of death in a crash by about 45 percent.

Distracted driving and the Hands-Free law

You may not hold or support a phone or electronic device with any part of your body, write, send or read any text-based message, or watch or record video while driving. You may use a phone hands-free, with a mount, earpiece or wireless connection.

Littering

Throwing anything from a vehicle violates the Litter Control Law: a misdemeanor with fines up to $1,000 and up to 12 months in jail, and the court can order you to pick up litter.