Should Motorcycles be able to lane split?

LOS ANGELES — Let’s say you’re stuck in traffic in Los Angeles, which is a frequent and annoying experience, but also the price you pay for living in one of the greatest cities on earth, or visiting here.

Suddenly, a motorcycle roars past, so close to your car that you think his kneecap is going to whack your side view mirror. You watch with amazement as this helmeted daredevil threads through two lines of cars, sometimes weaving as traffic shifts lanes. Then you look in the rear view mirror and see a line of motorcycles coming your way, about to do the same thing. You wonder where the cops are. And then you see a California Highway Patrol motorcycle officer zipping through traffic the same way.

This is lane-splitting, California-style. Also known as lane-sharing, filtering, or stripe-riding, lane-splitting allows motorcyclists to cut through slow-moving traffic by cutting between cars. It’s wild, it’s scary, it’s fascinating and – despite how crazy it looks – it’s legal in the Golden State. The big surprise is that, within limits, it’s also safe, at least according to one of the few studies that’s looked at the practice.

And that’s why the Washington region area should consider allowing it here.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...ting-lanes-maybe-we-should-follow-their-lead/

 

So with everything going on in the world, this is what your worried about?

 

HEy, I ride a racing bike. I have to keep moving, or overheat.

 

As long as the roads are wide enough, and the traffic is slow, then yes. It absolutely shouldn't be allowed when traffic is moving, though.

 

Yeah, basically this. I totally understand that your vehicle doesn't have a radiator fan and will overheat if you sit still for too long, so that aspect of lane sharing I get. Seems extremely dangerous for everyone involved if you do it in moving traffic, though.

 

As long as they pay a $250 lane-split tax for this privilege. Color-code the plates between those who paid the fee and those who did not.

 

THE LAW IS, you must stay MOSTLY in your lane, you cannot go faster than a 15 MPH disparity. You cannot exceed 35 MPH. You must do so in a safe fashion.

So, moving is allowed, but carefully.

 

I saw a guy doing it on I-35 between San Marcus and Austin. He was driving at least 120 mph, lane splitting, and weaving through traffic. Oh, and he had a passenger.

In my opinion, that should be a serious felony.

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Sounds reasonable to me.

 

Also, having bikes potentially moving between cars, makes cars aware they share the road, so the stupid jackrabbit lane changes without signaling or looking, are kept down to a dull roar.

 

Like suggested above, a particular license and regulations would be in order(for their safety as much as ours), but I'd be okay with it. Frankly, I dislike motor bikes as I find them to be a safety hazard and if I were driving, I wouldn't want to be responsible for the biker's life.

 

Take it out on the track then. You don't get to magically break traffic laws because you're driving a smaller vehicle.

 

Worth noting that lane splitting is pretty standard around the world, safer for motorcyclists, and a study indicated that if 10% of commuters rode motorcycles and lane splitting is allowed then commute times for everyone decrease by 40%.

 

The thing is, motorcycles can play a pivotal role in moving to a more affordable way of living. I think it is a good thing to encourage their use. In China, a lot of people use them, and it works quite well, honestly.

 

No you don't.

 

I'd feel a bit better if they had half of a hood on. Like something of a mini-car or something. A seatbelt and a helmet doesn't count it for safety, Make the mini-roof retractable if that's what it takes to appeal to them lol. I'm sorry, because of my over-caring attitude(and not wanting to be sued or charged), I want more safety measures for the motor bikes.

 

I magically followed the law, and was stopped by crooked cops. I was doing about 7 MPH. The judge convicted me. I FOUGHT their invented law.

Kamala Harris enjoined me, and RUINED THE SCHEME the corrupt judge and cops conspired to do. I likely ruined the careers of all the crooks involved.

 

Huh. I wonder how we could encourage this. You know, I noticed it in China, but I never gave it much thought as a traffic-reduction measure. Thanks for the info!

 

So its suddenly legal to take up both lanes of traffic simultaneously? Do tell.

I highly doubt anyone was fired over your moving violation.

 

Fair enough, we are permitted to disagree on some things lol. The gains in efficiency are massive, and in places where public transportation is inherently inefficient (America has many such places because our cities are so sprawling), I think encouraging the use of motorcycles could go a long way in reducing transportation costs and commute times--this stuff adds up.

 

This seems to be the one possible fly in the ointment. You can't legislate stupid. People will be continuously making random unpredictable and un-signaled lane changes. Combine this with high relative speed lane splitting (or any high speed differential, actually) and you get the conditions for instant death. That's why I make it a practice to travel at the same speed as other traffic, and make the fewest number of lane changes possible.

 

And one open door will ruin your life.

 

Or those jack rabbit lane switches he's also complained about in the thread.

 

All I can say is I will not be looking for them nor care to look for them if I make a lane change and they go flying over the hood.

 

Painted concrete can get slippery when it rains, be aware of that if you ride the lane stripes.

It's illegal in Missouri but as long as it's done in a safe way, I have no issue with it.

Every motorcycle I have owned, starting with a Honda VF-500, has had a radiator. I even went so far as to bypass the fan switch with a toggle switch so I could manually turn it on to run continuously in stop n' go situations.

 

Just gotta spread the word. The biggest problem is the whole "crab bucket" thing where people stuck in traffic want everyone else to be stuck in traffic too. That and for some reason people think motorcycles are "death machines" and such. There's a bit of a wall to climb.

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And you're the kind of psychopath I have to look out for every day on my commute, and why I wear a go pro. No idea why you think it's OK to kill other drivers by merging without looking.