The lane in the middle of the road bounded by a solid yellow line outside and a broken yellow line inside is the two-way left-turn lane. Drivers from both directions use it for the last stretch before a left turn into a driveway or side street, and for finishing a left turn onto the road.
It is a staging lane, not a travel lane: enter it shortly before your turn, slow there, and wait for a gap without blocking a driver from the other direction using the same pavement. Traveling along it, passing in it, or using it to merge into traffic beyond a short distance is prohibited everywhere, with the exact wording varying by state.
The tested mistake is treating it as a passing or cruising lane, or entering it far too early and meeting an opposing driver staged for their own turn. Enter late, turn once, and be gone.
This situation appears in 4 questions across 4 of our state banks, on Driver License practice tests. Start with your state:
How may a center left-turn lane be used?
Why: A center left-turn lane is for preparing for a left turn or U-turn, not for regular travel or passing, and a driver may travel in it for no more than 200 feet. Therefore, the supported response is "For up to 200 feet to prepare for a left turn or U-turn".
Every practice test explains its answers this way. Pick your state and take one free; no sign-up.
Choose your stateLeft turns only, from both directions: you enter it shortly before turning left into a driveway or side street, and drivers turning onto the road may use it to finish their turn.
Solid yellow line on the outside of the lane, broken yellow line on the inside, usually with curved arrows painted in the lane facing both directions.
No. It is not a travel or passing lane in any state. It exists to stage a turn, and using it to move past queued traffic is a violation.
Shortly before the turn, far enough to slow down out of through traffic but not so early that you travel along the lane. States phrase the distance differently; the principle is enter late, wait briefly, turn.
A driver from the opposite direction staging their own left turn. Watch for them before you enter, since you share the same strip of pavement from opposite ends.