Who has the right of way in a parking lot collision between a feeder and thru lane?

· 3 min read

The vehicle in the thru lane generally has the right of way over a vehicle in a feeder lane, and a driver leaving the feeder lane typically must yield. Parking lots are usually private property, so the rule comes less from a single traffic statute and more from how Georgia treats lane hierarchy and the duty of ordinary care.

Thru lanes and feeder lanes

Most lots are laid out with two kinds of lanes. A thru lane (sometimes called a main aisle or arterial lane) runs the length of the lot and carries the steady flow of traffic. A feeder lane is a smaller aisle that runs between rows of parking spaces and “feeds” cars into the thru lane. Drivers traveling the thru lane reasonably expect uninterrupted passage, so a feeder-lane driver entering or crossing the thru lane carries the duty to yield, much like a driver entering a roadway from a lesser way.

That allocation mirrors the principle in Georgia’s public-road rule that a driver entering a roadway from a place that is not itself a through roadway must yield to traffic already on the road, found in O.C.G.A. § 40-6-73. While that statute governs public roads rather than private lots, the same logic of yielding to established traffic typically guides how lot collisions are analyzed.

Why right of way does not end the inquiry

Having the right of way is not a shield against all fault. Georgia still requires every driver to exercise ordinary care, so a thru-lane driver who was speeding through the lot, cutting across at an angle, or not keeping a proper lookout can share blame. Likewise, a feeder-lane driver who had already established their vehicle well into the thru lane before the impact may carry less responsibility than the position alone suggests.

Key facts that shape the outcome include:

  • The point of impact and which vehicle struck which.
  • Each driver’s speed and attention.
  • Whether the feeder-lane driver stopped and looked before entering.
  • Surveillance footage, which most commercial lots maintain.

How shared fault is handled

Once both drivers in the lot turn out to have contributed, O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33 assigns each a percentage, pares the injured driver’s recovery down by that driver’s own figure, and shuts recovery off at the 50% mark. So even if the feeder-lane driver had the duty to yield, a speeding thru-lane driver could still absorb a meaningful percentage.

The bottom line

In a Georgia parking lot, the thru-lane vehicle usually has the right of way and the feeder-lane driver usually must yield. But right of way is only the starting point: a thru-lane driver’s own carelessness can shift part of the blame under the state’s comparative-fault rules, and lot video often settles who did what.

This article is for general educational and informational purposes only and is not legal advice. It does not create an attorney-client relationship, and Georgia law may change. For advice about a specific situation, consult a licensed Georgia personal injury attorney.

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