Close call - would have been my fault

[ElevenFifty]

Saturday morning, 9am - riding home from New England to Atlanta, 2-up. Great weather, 2 lane road in southern New York state.

 

Small 'one-stop light' town. I'm 2nd in traffic at a red light behind a rural mail carrier in an old Jeep Scout. Light turns green and we roll through the light about 20 yards ... he stops and signals left turn. There is adequate 'shoulder' on the right ... it's a small shopping area, and there is a line of on-coming traffic so the left turn will take a while.

 

I have second thoughts, but see no immediate danger and decide to swing around him on the right. As my front tire comes along side his rear wheel, he spins the wheels to the right and starts to turn into the shopping area.

 

I don't have much confidence in my 'slow riding' ability but in this case I have no choice - I manage to keep the revs up, hand and foot off the brake, feet on the pegs, and execute a very tight right turn inside his radius ... all is well - he is white as a sheet and very apologetic. He had just changed his mind, and didn't see me ... he had decided to park on the right since there was so many cars coming the other way.

 

Had we collided it would have been my fault. Lesson learned:

 

NEVER believe the indication - only the action. Turn signals lie. If he turns one second later, my day, my ride home, and my wife's confidence in my ability to keep her safe, are all shot to hell. The minute or two lost waiting for the guy to clear the road are easily made up on open asphalt. Stay in the flow - don't do the unexpected.

[Blue Beemer Dude]

Glad you hit the gas instead of hitting the brakes (like most people do). Just yesterday I was waiting to turn left onto a road, and a car coming from my left had their right turn signal on. Most of the time, I just pull out when I see this but they seemed to be going a bit fast, so I waited. Good thing, as they were signalling to park on the curb, 10 ft. past the intersection to pick up a "house for sale" brochure.

 

People change their mind and do the unexpected. Eyes up!

 

Glad you are both OK and arrived home safely.

 

Michael

[Lawman]

Not sure why you think you were at fault..In Texas it is legal to pass in that situation. It is not legal to turn without signaling.

[johnt650]

My wife was ticketed for that here in NC after a UPS truck made teh same right turn after signalling left and hit her front fender. The officer who responded said that there was only one lane on that street and she was not in it.

[smiller]

Not sure why you think you were at fault..In Texas it is legal to pass in that situation.

I run into this situation frequently, and beyond the need to be very careful (as this thread demonstrates) I do wonder about the legality. Per your comment I guess passing on the right under this circumstance is legal (in Texas anyway) but what if there is a white line delineating the edge of the right lane and the shoulder (that you have to cross to provide enough room for a safe pass)? Does crossing the painted white line make a difference or is it still a legal pass?

[Carnadero]

Had this happened here in CA, there's this from the Vehicle Code:

 

21754. The driver of a motor vehicle may overtake and pass to the right of another vehicle only under the following conditions:

 

(a) When the vehicle overtaken is making or about to make a left turn.

[NEOHMark]

.....The minute or two lost waiting for the guy to clear the road are easily made up on open asphalt. Stay in the flow - don't do the unexpected.

 

This is most excellent advice. I try to take a more relaxed mindset with me when I'm on the bike - staying in a slower, but more open and predictable, space often to avoid situations like what happened to you. A great lesson learned and glad you handled it well.

[tobyzusa]

Not sure why you think you were at fault..In Texas it is legal to pass in that situation. It is not legal to turn without signaling.

 

Billy, there's a lot of things that are legal here that are frowned on in other states . God bless Texas.

[Lawman]

Not sure why you think you were at fault..In Texas it is legal to pass in that situation.

I run into this situation frequently, and beyond the need to be very careful (as this thread demonstrates) I do wonder about the legality. Per your comment I guess passing on the right under this circumstance is legal (in Texas anyway) but what if there is a white line delineating the edge of the right lane and the shoulder (that you have to cross to provide enough room for a safe pass)? Does crossing the painted white line make a difference or is it still a legal pass?

 

I'm not an accident investigator and never have been but it's my understanding that so long as you are driving on pavement it is legal..I'm not sure it is legal on unimproved shoulder.

[Ken H.]

Well first off, good job of salvaging the situation.

 

ISFA passing a left hand turning car on the right being legal or not, it's a good question. I got ticketed once for doing so on a bike (in Iowa). I suspect I did cross over the fog line into the (paved) shoulder, so maybe that was the difference. I was ticketed for improper passing though, not for driving/riding on the shoulder.

 

I still do once in awhile. It would be interesting to know the true legality of it though.

[Lawman]

In Texas this is addressed in section 545.057 and 545.058 of the Texas Transportation Code

§ 545.057. PASSING TO THE RIGHT. (a) An operator may pass

to the right of another vehicle only if conditions permit safely

passing to the right and:

(1) the vehicle being passed is making or about to make

a left turn; and

(2) the operator is:

(A) on a highway having unobstructed pavement not

occupied by parked vehicles and sufficient width for two or more

lines of moving vehicles in each direction; or

(B) on a one-way street or on a roadway having

traffic restricted to one direction of movement and the roadway is

free from obstructions and wide enough for two or more lines of

moving vehicles.

(b) An operator may not pass to the right by leaving the main

traveled portion of a roadway except as provided by Section

545.058.

 

Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.

 

 

§ 545.058. DRIVING ON IMPROVED SHOULDER. (a) An operator

may drive on an improved shoulder to the right of the main traveled

portion of a roadway if that operation is necessary and may be done

safely, but only:

(1) to stop, stand, or park;

(2) to accelerate before entering the main traveled

lane of traffic;

(3) to decelerate before making a right turn;

(4) to pass another vehicle that is slowing or stopped

on the main traveled portion of the highway, disabled, or preparing

to make a left turn;

(5) to allow another vehicle traveling faster to pass;

(6) as permitted or required by an official

traffic-control device; or

(7) to avoid a collision.

(b) An operator may drive on an improved shoulder to the

left of the main traveled portion of a divided or limited-access or

controlled-access highway if that operation may be done safely, but

only:

(1) to slow or stop when the vehicle is disabled and

traffic or other circumstances prohibit the safe movement of the

vehicle to the shoulder to the right of the main traveled portion of

the roadway;

(2) as permitted or required by an official

traffic-control device; or

(3) to avoid a collision.

© A limitation in this section on driving on an improved

shoulder does not apply to:

(1) an authorized emergency vehicle responding to a

call;

(2) a police patrol; or

(3) a bicycle.

 

Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.

 

 

 

[Cycledude]

I had a similar situation that I'll share. It was in south west Wisconsin on a two lane road. The cage in front of me displayed is left turn signal. Down the road is a intersection. My observation is he is turning left. As we approached the intersection the case brakes and slows some. Both myself and my father, ridding staggered behind, make a move to the passing lane on the right. This just became an option as we got to the intersection. I’m now directly next to the cage, and I notice he is not slowing down for the turn!!! At this intersection is a gas station on the left. The cage displayed his signal not for the left turn on the road, but the left into the gas station, which is seemingly after the passing lane ends. So there we were (me driving with passenger, and my father somewhere behind me) next to this car and going through the intersection. Now the passing lane is ending and a gravel shoulder is directly in front of me. I first wanted to stop, but I didn't know exactly where my dad was. I dropped a few gear and added power, finally cage slowed that we could make it around him.

 

Dad I talked about that situation later and he didn’t fault my judgment for going to the right of the car, there was a lane there. The point is cage drivers, remember we all drive cages also, can be unpredictable.

 

The question of whose at fault, well, I’m going to try not to have an accident and not ask that question. If I'm in the situation again I surly have a different plan in mind.

 

Snowy.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

Legal shmeagal,

I ain't stopping in the middle of the roadway, possible obscuring oncoming driver's vision of the left turn indicator on the vehicle in front of me. Not to mention the chronically unaware/distracted drivers out there. If there is room on the right, I'm passing.

 

Kudos to the OP for swift thinking and good execution leading to a satisfactory solution to the potential disaster. Avoidance moves are almost always better than stopping, IMHO.

[DOK]

Well done for avoiding him but a question - it seems to me that the problem was not that he changed his mind but that he didn't realise you were there, so why not give a short sound of your horn before you attempt the passing maneuver, just to let him know you're there.

[DOK]

lawman, sometimes being "in the right" just doesn't matter.

[tobyzusa]

lawman, sometimes being "in the right" just doesn't matter.

 

Thought this was a motorcycle forum, not marriage counseling .

[RevRay]

"I manage to keep the revs up, hand and foot off the brake, feet on the pegs, and execute a very tight right turn inside his radius"

 

Nice bit of riding, excellent accident avoidance, revolutions are your friend.

[outpost22]

Legal shmeagal,

I ain't stopping in the middle of the roadway, possible obscuring oncoming driver's vision of the left turn indicator on the vehicle in front of me. Not to mention the chronically unaware/distracted drivers out there. If there is room on the right, I'm passing.

 

Kudos to the OP for swift thinking and good execution leading to a satisfactory solution to the potential disaster. Avoidance moves are almost always better than stopping, IMHO.

 

BIG +1

[11101110]

I wonder if passing on the right of a car turning left could be considered lane splitting. It wasn't untill the late 90s when emergency vehicles could legally pass in the right while responding in VA. God only know how screwed up the current laws are now.

 

I had the option of doing that today but didn't because: 1. I a new rider & B it might be lane spitting. Had I been in a cage it would have not been an option as there was not enough room but for a bike there was plenty.

 

About a half mile down the road I passed a local LEO in a car comming from the oppisite direction and making a right hand turn onto a side street. He saw me in my HiVis roadcrafter on an EX CHP bike (I think it was the Hi Vis that he noticed) and and watched as I went by. Shoudl have looked where his vehicle was going because out of the corner of my eye I saw him hit the curb with his right rear tire. No matter what you are driving look and SEE where you are going.

[Carnadero]

...it seems to me that the problem was not that he changed his mind but that he didn't realise you were there, so...

The problem is that the dimwit in the Jeep apparently didn't bother to check that there wasn't somebody already in the vicinity or coming up quickly that might be adversely affected by his sudden change in plans. Since he had already signaled a particular intention, only to change it entirely, it was his responsibility to make sure that before performing his revised maneuver, it could be carried out safely.

[Silver Surfer/AKAButters]

Lesson learned:

 

NEVER believe the indication - only the action.

 

Even expecting the unexpected, I have put myself in a few tight spots. Learn and live another day.

[DOK]

...it seems to me that the problem was not that he changed his mind but that he didn't realise you were there, so...

The problem is that the dimwit in the Jeep apparently didn't bother to check that there wasn't somebody already in the vicinity or coming up quickly that might be adversely affected by his sudden change in plans. Since he had already signaled a particular intention, only to change it entirely, it was his responsibility to make sure that before performing his revised maneuver, it could be carried out safely.

 

But put yourself in the driver's position - and pretend for a moment that you aren't also a biker - would he be expecting anyone to come up the inside?? That's exactly why, IMHO, sounding the horn would have been a good idea - to alert him to the fact that there was someone about to pass on the inside.

[Carnadero]

But put yourself in the driver's position - and pretend for a moment that you aren't also a biker - would he be expecting anyone to come up the inside??

Being a CA resident, where passing is allowed to the right of people turning left, that is always my expectation. If I'm going to suddenly change my mind as to where I want to go, it's my responsiblity to make my new intentions clear, and to execute the maneuver safely. That means checking to see if the coast is clear before carrying it out.

 

But disregard for a moment the question of legality of passing on the right in regard to cars or motorcycles. What if there was a bicycle coming up instead? No one is going to argue that a bicyclist should wait behind someone making a left turn. If the driver of the Jeep then quickly decides to go to the right instead, fails to look, turns, and strikes the bicyclist, would he be at fault? I would think so.

[Boffin]

But put yourself in the driver's position - and pretend for a moment that you aren't also a biker - would he be expecting anyone to come up the inside??

Being a CA resident, where passing is allowed to the right of people turning left, that is always my expectation. If I'm going to suddenly change my mind as to where I want to go, it's my responsiblity to make my new intentions clear, and to execute the maneuver safely. That means checking to see if the coast is clear before carrying it out.

 

But disregard for a moment the question of legality of passing on the right in regard to cars or motorcycles. What if there was a bicycle coming up instead? No one is going to argue that a bicyclist should wait behind someone making a left turn. If the driver of the Jeep then quickly decides to go to the right instead, fails to look, turns, and strikes the bicyclist, would he be at fault? I would think so.

 

There is a difference between 'fault = breaking the law' and 'fault = placing ourselves in a high-risk position'. We have a responsibility to ourselves and our families to assume the fallible humans in the vehicles around us will make mistakes. The first definition of 'Fault' only becomes relevant in a court of law when things have gone wrong. Failure on our part to consider the second definition makes the need for the court to consider the first more likely.

 

Andy