Traffic jam.

Traffic jam.

A Senate panel followed our speedy lead and determined that five cars does not a traffic jam make.

The Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee led by Republicans drove the bill by Democratic Sen. Mike Merrifield of Colorado Springs off a cliff after a party-line vote.

It would have categorized five car backups on two-lane mountain roads as traffic jams, and required that drivers pull over to let others pass.

The Durango Herald reported that Greg Fulton of the Colorado Motor Carriers Association pointed out that what the bill really targeted was recreational vehicles and trucks.

Pulling over for a truck is not as easy as it is for a car, said Greg Fulton, president of the Colorado Motor Carriers Association. He said many trucks are so large that they couldn’t even successfully pull onto a narrow shoulder to let cars pass.

“When we’re pulling over, we’re still going to be in the lane of traffic,” Fulton said.

We said recently that pulling over would only create safety issues and further slow traffic. This bill was a non-starter that would only further aggravate Coloradans on mountain roads, and confuse tourists.

It’s death was quick and the smart thing to do.