{"id":705876,"date":"2026-05-31T13:42:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-31T13:42:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/705876\/"},"modified":"2026-05-31T13:42:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-31T13:42:09","slug":"is-it-legal-to-cross-a-yellow-solid-double-line-in-ontario","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/705876\/","title":{"rendered":"Is it legal to cross a yellow solid double line in Ontario?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

A pickup towing a boat drives on The Trans-Canada Highway just north of Sault Ste-Marie on June 21, 2023.Mark Richardson\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

I was surprised to read about a proposed law in Ontario that would make it illegal to cross the solid yellow double lines that are painted on the highway. I\u2019ve lived in Ontario for nearly 20 years and I thought it was already illegal to cross them \u2013 although I see other drivers do it fairly regularly. Isn\u2019t that the rule everywhere else in Canada? So what exactly is Ontario\u2019s rule now? \u2013 Diane, North Bay, Ont.<\/p>\n

In most of Canada, when you cross that yellow solid double line, you\u2019ve crossed the line. <\/p>\n

Every province except Ontario bans crossing the double line<\/a> that separates traffic going in opposite directions on a highway.<\/p>\n

In Ontario, there\u2019s no specific law against crossing that line into the oncoming lane, but you could face other charges if you do, said the Ontario Provincial Police.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe double lines are there for a reason,\u201d said Sgt. Kerry Schmidt, with OPP Highway Safety Division. \u201cYou\u2019re not going to get charged for crossing a double line \u2026 but you may be charged with careless driving or unsafe passing. There are all kinds of different offences.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Ontario\u2019s current law doesn\u2019t specifically ban crossing the solid yellow double line, it states that<\/a> drivers can\u2019t cross into oncoming traffic if they\u2019re approaching the crest of a hill, a curve or are within 30 metres of a bridge, viaduct, tunnel or railway crossing. If you do, you could face an $85 fine ($150 in a community safety zone) and three demerit points<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Those are all places where you can\u2019t always see oncoming cars and there\u2019s usually a solid yellow double line there as a warning, Schmidt said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe lines are there for your safety,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Often, where there are double lines, there will be signs saying you can\u2019t pass. If you do, you could also be charged with disobeying a traffic sign<\/a> \u2013 an $85 fine ($120 in a community safety zone) and two demerits.<\/p>\n

You could also face more serious charges, including careless driving<\/a>, especially if you cause a collision.<\/p>\n

While the rules vary by province, generally, you\u2019re allowed to cross into the oncoming lane to pass when there\u2019s a broken yellow line \u2013 but only if it\u2019s safe.<\/p>\n

Blurred lines?<\/p>\n

Because all the lines can get confusing, here\u2019s a quick Lines 101. Generally, yellow lines separate traffic going in opposite directions and white lines separate lanes of traffic going in the same direction.<\/p>\n

If there\u2019s a broken line, you can cross it to pass. If it\u2019s solid, you shouldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Sometimes, you\u2019ll see a double line that\u2019s solid on one side and broken on the other. In that case, you obey the line that\u2019s in your lane of traffic \u2013 if you have the broken line, you can pass if it\u2019s safe.<\/p>\n

Most provinces other than Ontario treat a solid line the same, whether it\u2019s single or double \u2013 it\u2019s illegal to cross.<\/p>\n

But, there are a few exceptions for single solid lines. In British Columbia and Nova Scotia, for instance, the law states you can cross a solid single yellow line to pass \u2013 as long as you can do it safely.<\/p>\n

Also, in some provinces, including Ontario, high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes have thick solid white lines or white barrier zones painted on the road \u2013 they are illegal to cross<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Clearer rules?<\/p>\n

In November, Ontario NDP MPP Guy Bourgouin introduced a private member\u2019s bill<\/a> to specifically make it illegal to cross the yellow solid double line when passing another vehicle.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the second time<\/a> Bourgouin, who represents the northern Ontario riding of Mushkegowuk-James Bay, has tried to pass the law. The first attempt<\/a>, in 2023, didn\u2019t pass before the last provincial election.<\/p>\n

The bill proposes a $400 fine and three or more demerit points.<\/p>\n

We reached out to Bourgouin but did not get an immediate response.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re seeing a lot of accidents happening and people taking chances passing on a double solid line on highways,\u201d Bourgouin told CBC News in 2023<\/a>. \u201cAnd in Ontario the two solid lines are a suggestion, not law \u2013 unlike other jurisdictions, other provinces, where it\u2019s law.\u201d<\/p>\n

If the bill passes and becomes law, it could make the rules clearer for drivers and easier for police to enforce, said Angelo DiCicco, chief executive officer of the Ontario Safety League, a non-profit focusing on driver education.<\/p>\n

But it likely wouldn\u2019t prevent some drivers from still trying to pass when it isn\u2019t safe.<\/p>\n

Often, drivers are in a hurry \u2013 and they often underestimate how close oncoming traffic actually is, whether there are double lines or not, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you can\u2019t see far enough ahead to complete a pass and return safely to your lane, you shouldn\u2019t try,\u201d DiCicco said. <\/p>\n

You also shouldn\u2019t count on an oncoming car seeing you in time to slow down, he said. <\/p>\n

In 2023, the most recent year with numbers available, there were 439 deaths in head-on crashes on Canadian roads, according to Transport Canada\u2019s National Collision Database. <\/p>\n

\u201cEntering an oncoming lane is one of the few routine driving actions where a small error in judgment can have catastrophic consequences,\u201d DiCicco said.<\/p>\n

Have a driving question? Send it to globedrive@globeandmail.com<\/a> and put \u2018Driving Concerns\u2019 in your subject line. E-mails without the correct subject line may not be answered. Canada\u2019s a big place, so let us know where you are so we can find the answer for your city and province.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: A pickup towing a boat drives on The Trans-Canada Highway just north of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":705877,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[49,48,44,30296],"class_list":["post-705876","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-news","tag-ordid10000"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/705876","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=705876"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/705876\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/705877"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=705876"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=705876"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=705876"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}