Lane Splitting

[Sherman]

You would never survive this shit around Chicago. They'd be putting the squeeze on you.

Lane Splitting

My apologies if this has been posted here before.

 

[VMax_03]

That looks more like riding in teerex51's area (Italy) ... you try that here in NC and some Bubba would put your ass in a ditch ... especially if you passed him on the right and cut back in. :glare:

JW

 

[Scab]

He obviously left the bags at home.

In AL, there is an actual legal defense called "He needed Killing".

Bubba would be using it.

 

[TriggerT]

No F'ing way I would try that around the Northern IL, area where I live. They would be scraping you off of the front, side, of back of a truck within your first 5 miles.

 

[zzkenoman]

Its Legal in california, and thats mild lane splitting in northern california compared to los angeles and southern california where grid lock and bumper to bumper can be 20 miles long. Our law says you can lane share for speeds under 45mph, but you can also be ticketed for reckless driving, unsafe speeds, crossing yellow lines etc etc, road rage possibly too. California drivers most of the time do move over and let you thru, its the ones not paying attention, on on the cell, or just plain can't see you in there mirrors that don't move. I don't like lane splitting at all, but if you got a semi behind you, in stop and go traffic, what would you do?

 

[UberKul]

It may just be me but I see nothing wrong with the above. Rolled through the Bay Area earlier this week and if you want to get from A to B you split.

 

[Scab]

It's not that we see anything wrong with it, it's just that we know our neighbors. And there lies the problem.

 

[Bounce]

i'd split in a hearbeat if it were offered in tx. as it is, i take advantage of their "developed shoulder" rule all the time.

 

[jdog109socal]

Quilty as charged....lol I fear for his life my friends....It is a chance we take here in Cal. I do it but scared all the time.. Beats sitting in hot smoggy traffic anyday.

Jdog

 

[Bike Effects]

That is WAY beyond lane splitting. That would not be tolerated by the LEO that will most certainly nail this guy sooner or later, unless a cager nails him first.

 

[Bounce]

You would never survive this shit around Chicago. They'd be putting the squeeze on you.
Lane Splitting

My apologies if this has been posted here before.

Now that I'm off the office proxy server:Nice. I'm less concerned about the lane sharing than the choice of tracks within lanes when not splitting. track 1 when in the far left lane, track 3 in the far right lane, track 2 at stops. Sub-optimal for visibity by and of the rider. The lane sharing was mostly pretty mild and exactly what I'm looking forward to once Texas passes their pending legislation.

 

[madmike2]

That is WAY beyond lane splitting. That would not be tolerated by the LEO that will most certainly nail this guy sooner or later, unless a cager nails him first.

BUT, that is the way that some San Francisco bay area riders do it. Passing across a solid white line to get into a turn lane is less than smart. I've seen it done by many riders while heading to the Int'l Bike Show in San Mateo...and I mean 5-10 bikes pushing in between the cars. It scared me and I DO lane share. Weaving back and forth across multiple lanes of traffic is not lane-sharing, its reckless driving, and as Jeff said, is a ticketable offense if the gendarmes see it. That footage on the Bay Bridge heading from Oakland to "The City" was a little gnarly for me, the lanes on the bridge are a bit narrow and crowded.

As other CA riders have attested, sitting in a 10-20 mile long traffic jam when its 100 degrees is not fun. Knowing the cagers around you are talking on their cell phones or reading a book while driving makes it plain dangerous to remain in their path. The rider must have his wits and thought processes about him and fully operational. And you must realize that the cagers out here KNOW we lane-share. There are a few who will block us, but for the most part, the citizens make way and let me by...and I always wave a thank you at them.

 

[Toecutter]

If we here in CA ever do lose our privelege of lane sharing, it will be the fault of the careless few who don't follow the guidelines of safety, such as max 10mph faster than the traffic being passed and not above 30 in any case. That's also when I'll sell my bike. I can't go back, man, I just can't go back!

 

[madmike2]

If we here in CA ever do lose our privelege of lane sharing, it will be the fault of the careless few who don't follow the guidelines of safety, such as max 10mph faster than the traffic being passed and not above 30 in any case. That's also when I'll sell my bike. I can't go back, man, I just can't go back!

I asked a CHP officer about that "30 MPH" rule. He siad there was no such thing, but if it looked reckless, they coud write you. I asked him about splitting @ higher speeds, say 50MPH, again he said that if the opportunity was there to safely split the cars and accelerate to a 65MPH speed limit, there was no law against it.

Perhaps the obvious problem is the interpretation of what constitutes "reckless" or what might be included in a "safety guideline", but there is no written law against it. Admittedly, this question was posed 2 years ago and the law might have changed since then.

He did point out that should there be an incident, the burden would be on the motorcycle to prove the car (or truck) intentionally infringed on our right of way....in other words, it'd be our fault.

 

[GalaxyBlue]

He did point out that should there be an incident, the burden would be on the motorcycle to prove the car (or truck) intentionally infringed on our right of way....in other words, it'd be our fault.

Soo, As long as you videotape ALL your rides, and if someone DOES try to kill you, Is that good enough proof?

 

[teerex51]

That looks more like riding in teerex51's area (Italy)

Dang, I can't see the video... :angry2: It's supposed to be "private". Whatever.

Lane splitting here is the norm, as Jim said, but it's extremely chaotic and dangerous as there really is no order to the process.

While you navigate a beefy FJR between two lanes at a reasonable speed, some asswipe on a skinnier bike

will be zooming through straddling the white line at 70MPH and weaving between lanes with inches to spare. To him, you too are in the way...

While it's often necessary to lane split in order to avoid baking in a gridlock, I hate it and sweat bullets all the time because the potential for disaster is obviously very high.

As for the cagers' and truckers' attitude, however, they are on the whole pretty cooperative and most will make room for you.

Legal? Naw, it's not legal -- but it's tolerated. Just don't do it in front of the LEOs or, worse still, smoke one of their side mirrors while you buzz'em...

Stef

 

[Brodie]

Don't know what the video shows, I'm locked out. Typically any video about lane splitting would show some squid testing Darwins theory of evolution.

When the traffic gets heavy here in Norcal I take my Venture down the motorcycle lane. On a bike that size with hard parts in back you tend not to weave much. If it gets moving around 40 I tend to stay put, or at least wait for an offset between the cars. Moderation is the key. Don't even think about threading the needle between a pair of 18 wheelers!

Brodie