Mont. Code Ann. » TITLE 61. MOTOR VEHICLES · CHAPTER 8. TRAFFIC REGULATION · Part 3. Vehicle Operating Requirements
Montana Code Annotated

Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-326 (2026)

No-Passing Zones

✓ current as of May 2026
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  1. MCA Contents
  2. TITLE 61
  3. CHAPTER 8
  4. Part 3
  5. 61-8-326 No-passing zones

TITLE 61. MOTOR VEHICLES

CHAPTER 8. TRAFFIC REGULATION

Part 3. Vehicle Operating Requirements

No-Passing Zones

61-8-326. No-passing zones. (1) The department of transportation and local authorities may determine those portions of a highway in their respective jurisdictions where overtaking and passing or driving to the left side of the center of the roadway would be especially hazardous, and they may by official traffic control devices on the highway indicate the beginning and end of these zones. When the official traffic control devices are in place and clearly visible to an ordinarily observant person, an operator of a vehicle shall obey the directions of those devices.

(2) (a) Except as provided in subsection (2)(b), where official traffic control devices are in place to define a no-passing zone as set forth in subsection (1) an operator of a vehicle may not drive on the left side of the center of the roadway within the no-passing zone or on the left side of a pavement striping designed to mark the no-passing zone throughout its length.

(b) Subsection (2)(a) does not apply to the operator of a faster vehicle passing a bicycle when:

(i) the bicycle is traveling at less than half the posted speed limit;

(ii) the faster vehicle is capable of overtaking and passing the bicycle without exceeding the posted speed limit; and

(iii) there is sufficient clear sight distance to the left side of the center of the roadway to meet the overtaking and passing requirements in 61-8-325.

(3) The provisions of this section do not apply under the conditions provided in 61-8-321(1) or to the operator of a vehicle that is turning left into or from an alley, private road, or driveway.

(4) A person who is convicted of violating this section is subject to the penalties provided in 61-8-724.

History: En. Sec. 54, Ch. 263, L. 1955; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 97, L. 1957; amd. Sec. 60, Ch. 316, L. 1974; R.C.M. 1947, 32-2157; amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 512, L. 1991; amd. Sec. 10, Ch. 352, L. 2003; amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 255, L. 2015; amd. Sec. 4, Ch. 161, L. 2023.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 6 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1988–2026 · leading case: Contreras v. Fitzgerald, 2002 MT 208, 54 P.3d 983.
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Contreras v. Fitzgerald, 2002 MT 208, 54 P.3d 983. · cites it 46× “The dispute centers simply on whether both signs and markings must be in place and clearly visible in order to designate a no-passing zone under the plain language of § 61-8-326, MCA. Montana law defines no-passing zones as follows: No-passing zones.”
Brohman v. State, 749 P.2d 67 (Mont. 1988). · cites it 3× “) Section 61-8-326, MCA. No evidence was presented at the District Court level that any accidents had occurred at this particular spot on Highway 12 prior to the Brohman accident.”
Murray v. Steinmetz, 2026 MT 89. · cites it 13× “Montana Code Annotated § 61-8-343: Vehicle entering roadway from private road or driveway. The operator of a vehicle about to enter from a private road or driveway shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles approaching the roadway.”
State v. Crasco, 2003 MT 250N. · cites it 4× “¶2 Luther Joe Crasco (Crasco) appeals from the March 15, 2001 order of the Seventeenth Judicial District Court, Phillips County, denying his Motion to Suppress and Dismiss the charges of Driving a Vehicle While Under the Influence of Alcohol, first offense, § 61-8- 401, MCA…”
State v. Brennan, 373 Mont. 85 (Mont. 2013). · cites it 3× “te Prison for a period of Twenty (20) years, with Five (5) years suspended; Count II: Criminal Endangerment, a felony, in violation of Section 45-5-207, MCA, to the Montana State Prison for a period of Ten (10) years, with Five (5) years suspended, Count II shall run…”
State v. Wilson, 2003 MT 325N. · cites it 2× “The court’s sentence and judgment resulted from a bench trial held before the District Court on March 18, 2003, wherein the judge found Wilson guilty of the offense of “no passing zones,” a misdemeanor, in violation of § 61-8-326, MCA. The court sentenced Wilson to pay a fine of…”
Mont. Code Ann. § 61-8-326(1): 2 cases
Contreras v. Fitzgerald, 2002 MT 208, 54 P.3d 983. “The dispute centers simply on whether both signs and markings must be in place and clearly visible in order to designate a no-passing zone under the plain language of § 61-8-326, MCA. Montana law defines no-passing zones as follows: No-passing zones.”
Murray v. Steinmetz, 2026 MT 89. “Montana Code Annotated § 61-8-343: Vehicle entering roadway from private road or driveway. The operator of a vehicle about to enter from a private road or driveway shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles approaching the roadway.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.