[Lurch71]

Check this one out. Nice article about lane splitting. Ride safe my friends.


Let motorcycles drive between lanes, and give them room, California Highway Patrol says - Los Angeles Times

 

[tommyvous59]

good article.

 

[Buffalo_Bob]

I particularly like the the quote from the DMV-

"Motorcycle safety studies have said that lane splitting, though unnerving to some drivers and apprentice motorcyclists, is safer than not splitting when done intelligently — principally because it reduces the risk of a rider being hit from behind while stopped in freeway traffic."

I'll add that it works exactly the same for surface streets.

 

[Fastoman]

when done intelligently and responsibly..Be safe..

 

[duffyduck1]

when done intelligently and responsibly..Be safe..

+1

I understand the meaning even if I cannot read the article, it isn't available from Europe :frown2:

 

[hawkerjet]

Being a resident in Communist Kalifornia I get to enjoy this law and lane split often. My venture into lane splitting began when I was still living in Santa Barbara. It was very helpful when traveling on highway 101 which would turn into a parking lot during commute times.

Now living in Fresno I don't get on the freeway very often but still employ lane splitting fairly often as I head out of town on surface streets en route to the fun roads in the mountains.

What I find interesting is how often motorists get pissed off that some dude on a bike has now assumed their "pole position" for the start of the race to the next traffic light. Man it has gotten crazy out there on the road these days.

I think I encountered less competition back in my flat track days racing at Ascot Park in Gardena.

Bee safe out there fellas cuz the competition is heating up.

 

[Kyle E]

I'm frequently in San Diego and LA for work.

On the freeway its WONDERFUL. I'm a bit more cautious than the normal biker I see. 40mph is about where I am comfortable doing it, bit slower mostly. I will split single pair of road blocking cars at freeway speeds if they are just staying next to each other at or near the speed limit. But it has to be worth it for me, as in no cars in front of them going to make me just have to do it again.

Surface streets, generally only in a long line will I bother to split, or coming up on the freeway entrance so Ill want to be first.

 

[RobMontana]

I don’t believe in lane splitting. It leads to too much variance in speeds between vehicles. Its not the actual speed that is dangerous, its the variance in speeds that is dangerous.

I think the chances of rear end collisions is less than collisions caused by lane splitting. I’ll go with the flow and get there when I get there like everyone else.

 

[Fastoman]

vehicles. Its not the actual speed that is dangerous, its the variance in speeds that is dangerous.

I agree to the first part ; "Its not the actual speed that is dangerous" as speed is relative to your action. assuming you are turning into a right hand turn and you are drifting away from your intended turning angle. your drifting is because of your entry angle and lean angle of the bike rather than your speed.

 

[weljo2001]

I don’t believe in lane splitting. It leads to too much variance in speeds between vehicles. Its not the actual speed that is dangerous, its the variance in speeds that is dangerous.

I think the chances of rear end collisions is less than collisions caused by lane splitting. I’ll go with the flow and get there when I get there like everyone else.

Coming from Texas i didn't think I'd care for lane splitting either. But with the traffic here in California i grew to love it real quick. Heres a morning commute for most people while I'm heading up to Angeles Crest Highway for a weekday ride. As you can see most people in the video are use to motorcycle going by and stay to the left of the lane or move over when they see you.......

 

[RobMontana]

I don’t believe in lane splitting. It leads to too much variance in speeds between vehicles. Its not the actual speed that is dangerous, its the variance in speeds that is dangerous.

I think the chances of rear end collisions is less than collisions caused by lane splitting. I’ll go with the flow and get there when I get there like everyone else.

Coming from Texas i didn't think I'd care for lane splitting either. But with the traffic here in California i grew to love it real quick. Heres a morning commute for most people while I'm heading up to Angeles Crest Highway for a weekday ride. As you can see most people in the video are use to motorcycle going by and stay to the left of the lane or move over when they see you.......

Yeah i get it. Saves a lot of time, but its not for me. I ride pretty conservatively. But then again, I avoid congested roads like that at all costs. I wish more towns would put in designated motorcycle only lanes. That’s something I could enforse for sure.

 

[weljo2001]

Yeah i get it. Saves a lot of time, but its not for me. I ride pretty conservatively. But then again, I avoid congested roads like that at all costs. I wish more towns would put in designated motorcycle only lanes. That’s something I could enforse for sure.

I've been saying for years they should make a motorcycle only lane. More people would ditch their cars for a bike....:grin2::grin2:

 

[healthylife2]

Healthy Life Recovery

Thanks for sharing the article, it is a good read. I always try to avoid congestion. I think that both speed and variance of speed can both be dangerous. The variance of speed is dangerous when around other cars. Speed can be dangerous when there are no cars around. Be safe out there!

-Healthy Life Recovery

 

[twowheeladdict]

I don’t believe in lane splitting. It leads to too much variance in speeds between vehicles. Its not the actual speed that is dangerous, its the variance in speeds that is dangerous.

I think the chances of rear end collisions is less than collisions caused by lane splitting. I’ll go with the flow and get there when I get there like everyone else.

I have to respectfully disagree with your first statement. You state it as an absolute, but it isn't. A motorcyclist can choose to create too much variance in speeds between vehicles just like a car can on a flowing freeway. Or, the motorcyclist can chose pass the cars in a safe manner. This is no different than if you are riding down a multi-lane road and the cars in the right lane slow for someone turning right into a parking lot. If you ride by at the speed limit, you are in greater risk than if you slow down to decrease your variance in speed. I have had several times where the car wanting to turn right into the parking lot is partially blocked by someone wanting to turn left out of the parking lot, and the idiot signals for them to pull out with no knowledge of someone coming down the left lane. Then the idiot in the parking lot takes the word of the idiot in the car because he can't see the traffic, and pulls out.

Personally, when I rode in California, I was there to enjoy roads, and not freeways, but I did have to ride through some towns where I definitely filtered to the front of the stopped cars at traffic lights. I wish that was legal in all states with a white stop line for cars, and a line ahead for bikes.

 

[allstatecons]

Thanks for sharing

 

[jpd]

Not sure how it is now but 30 years ago the RECOMMENDATION was to not go more than 5 MPH faster than the traffic you were splitting. My personal limit was I would not split if traffic was moving at 40 MPH or higher. I would wait until the gaps in traffic allowed normal lane changes or just go with the flow. As speed increases the following distances between cars go up and can make aggressive drivers want to shoot into those gaps, many times with no warning. The most safe time to split is when the cars you are splinting don't have anywhere to go.