Lane Splitting

[Tony_K]

Odd however, I never see modulators on LEO motorcycles..

 

Often viewed by unknowing civilians a wig wag or code 3. No reason to be on a duty bike, they have the real thing!

[duckboy]

until you've been rear ended by a car, you'll never appreciate the benefit of lane splitting.

[Francois_Dumas]

until you've been rear ended by a car, you'll never appreciate the benefit of lane splitting.

 

Oh, you'll also appreciate it when all traffic is stalled for then next 20 miles or so, and it is over 100 F and you're waring ATGATT (what else!!??). AND you're sitting on a quickly heating Airhead at that.....

 

If it wouldn't be allowed here (in Europe) I bet there'd be either a lot less bikes in the southern regions, or a lot more traffic violations

[Paul In Australia]

Hi

In Australia, generally speaking , no one is sure if it is legal or not, but strictly speaking it is NOT Illegal.

We have lane filtering ( cager's are stationary) which is definately legal and Lane splitting ( cager's moving) which no one is really sure about.

 

I lane Filter on commutes every day. Otherwise why ride a bike. Lane splitting has to be low speed for me but I know others who have done it for years at over 100 KMPH.

I think this is one of those things that if you don't do it, you will hate it and talk it down. I f you do it, you will defend it to the death.

I am unaware of any deaths from lane splitting, but I know of lots of deaths from running a curve to hot or running a lite.

 

LEO's here lane filter all the time. So why not. I do agree it is a risk, but no more so than a million other things you can do, like drive a cage and text or paint your nails.

 

The real answer is , if you feel " comfortable" doing this, you probably have the right experience to safely do it.

No right or wrong answer and definately no authoritative answer.

 

best regards

PCH

[dba]

Lane splitting threads are like loud exhaust, tires and oil threads. Everyone has an opinion.

I've been splitting safely for 20 years. The concentration needed to split makes you a better and safer rider. Splitting is the #1 reason for owning a bike in Ca..car pool lane privileges/free toll crossings is second.

 

What free toll? Is it only during commute hours? Everytime I've left the bay area by either the Benicia or Antioch Bridge, I've had to pay my $4.

[Tony_K]

Wrong bridges... scoot over to GG or Bay Bridge at the right times and you get FREE...

 

Golden Gate Bridge Carpool Policy

Vehicles eligible for free toll passage between the hours of 5 am to 9 am and 4 pm to 6 pm, weekdays, except on seven observed holidays – New Year's Day, Presidents' Day (third Monday in February), Memorial Day (last Monday in May), Independence Day (July 4), Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day – include:

Vehicles with three or more persons

Motorcycles, as defined and designated by the CA DMV, which includes three-wheeled motorcycles

Buses

--------------------

Bay bridge

Monday through Friday between 5 a.m.- 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.- 7 p.m.

 

Note: Any bus, inherently-low-emission vehicle (ILEV) with DMV-issued decals, or 2-axle vehicle, without trailer(s), designed by the manufacturer to be occupied by no more than two persons, carrying two persons, may cross toll-free in designated lane(s) consistent with the above referenced hours of operation. Motorcycles without a passenger may cross toll-free in designated lane(s) consistent with the above referenced hours of operation.

[MAT2CHI]

What free toll? Is it only during commute hours? Everytime I've left the bay area by either the Benicia or Antioch Bridge, I've had to pay my $4.

 

You need to have someone on the back...........

[Mister Tee]

What free toll? Is it only during commute hours? Everytime I've left the bay area by either the Benicia or Antioch Bridge, I've had to pay my $4.

 

You need to have someone on the back...........

 

There is a bus lane across the Bay Bridge to San Francisco. It bypasses the toll booth. During normal commute hours, it can be used as an HOV lane.

 

That's the only one I know of. Other than that, yes, I pay my four bucks.

 

Bloodsucking leaches.

[ghaverkamp]

There is a bus lane across the Bay Bridge to San Francisco. It bypasses the toll booth. During normal commute hours, it can be used as an HOV lane.

 

That's the only one I know of. Other than that, yes, I pay my four bucks.

 

All of the Bay Area bridges are free for motorcycles during commute hours.

 

Most of them have toll-free lanes.

[Shaman97]

XXXXX

[scaudy]

Speaking of free tolls. I have parked in the parking garage in Hollywood just past Chinese theater on more then one occasion and they let me just go around the gate and not pay for parking (about 2 years ago). Then it actually had someone collecting the money and now it is electronic so I am not sure if the same rules apply. I have also parked at the Ontario CA airport and when I was leaving they let me go around the gate and not pay.

 

And yes I lane split every day. When I first moved to CA I would not and then one day I got cought up in traffic from an accident. Sitting in traffic moving very slowly in 100+ heat the RT hit the red on the heat indicator. I ended up shutting down the engine and pushed the bike for a bit. I assume that was less safe then splitting.

[bvaughan]

coming back to to forum after a while away and, good grief, . . . another lane splitting thread!-)

 

the horse is pretty well dead, but i gotta ask, being an ignorant californian not privileged to have spent any time in recent memory riding in other states,

 

what do those of you who don't split do when you get stuck in stop and go traffic? stop and go? maybe that'd work in omaha where's there's no traffic, but in chicago or new york or some other benighted place east of the mississippi, do you actually just inch along with the other traffic? don't your bikes overheat? don't you overheat? how do you keep from going postal? is there a stop and go equivalent to russell's zen and the art of splitting mindset?

 

i gotta ask, because really, the only bikers who don't split in the la basin are the weekend two up harley crowd. it's hard to imagine riding and not spliting, unless it's in the sunday predawn hours or out among the soybeans somewhere. what do you guys do if you don't split?

[vizhip]

In Atlanta you basically work off hours so you don't get caught in that mess... or try and work from home a lot... )))

 

Regards -

-Bob

[Francois_Dumas]

coming back to to forum after a while away and, good grief, . . . another lane splitting thread!-)

 

the horse is pretty well dead, but i gotta ask, being an ignorant californian not privileged to have spent any time in recent memory riding in other states,

 

what do those of you who don't split do when you get stuck in stop and go traffic? stop and go? maybe that'd work in omaha where's there's no traffic, but in chicago or new york or some other benighted place east of the mississippi, do you actually just inch along with the other traffic? don't your bikes overheat? don't you overheat? how do you keep from going postal? is there a stop and go equivalent to russell's zen and the art of splitting mindset?

 

i gotta ask, because really, the only bikers who don't split in the la basin are the weekend two up harley crowd. it's hard to imagine riding and not spliting, unless it's in the sunday predawn hours or out among the soybeans somewhere. what do you guys do if you don't split?

 

Been wondering about that too. I don't mind being patient, but my body temperature can get too high... OR my clutch temperature or engine temperature. Then it is time for evasive action. Now, if that's illegal, what do you do?

[Robyn]

If you mean riding between the lanes and the stopped cars I have to disagree. Mainly becasue just last week I was about to change lanes when a bike was doing that and happen to be in my blind spot at the time. Luckily he was loud enough that I heard him instead of seeing him and we did not collide. In traffic there are some aggressive drives changing lanes constantly and that is a risk you take if your riding in between them.

 

Now if you mean sitting in the middle of cars as oppose to an open lane where you can get rear ended, that shoulds like a good idea.

 

 

[Robyn]

Been there done that...traffic in HotLanta is a mess!!!

[skinny_tom (aka boney)]

I've split lanes in CA- where I do it often, and also in WA, AZ, TN & AR and St. Louis.

 

Here in CA it's an "everyday thing." You get used to it, and good at it. Sometimes I think I can tell what a car is going to do before the driver does. You learn to predict the movements of traffic, and individual cars.

 

In Washington I only encountered 1 blocker who thought I should not be doing it. Everyone else drove just like they do in CA. (It's probably because they're from CA, but that's a different topic.)

 

In AZ I split, blatently, past a Sheriff who looked at me and watched me go by.

 

In TN we split through all the FedEx trucks getting on the highway. They made room for us as we crossed the bridge into Arkansas.

 

St. Louis, now that was a different story... We got stuck in ballpark traffic and you'd think we were riding through town on horses shooting up the place old western movie style. People were freaking out! It was truly dangerous.

[Islipfd]

Living on Long Island I have task of riding though NYC. I have lane split every crossing and all of "Satin Island". Traffic is only some what clear from 3am-5am if the construction is not in the way. A few drivers will move out of your way most won’t even know you went by. There is always someone ready to cut you off and “say” your #1 with them. Law’s and tickets happen even when you are doing the right thing. Try using the HOV lanes.

[upflying]

Only had one cage driver complain about my lane splitting. He yelled at me and said I was riding too close to his car and almost scratched it. What is it about Corvette drivers? Could the Corvette driver feel belittled and disrespected because I was doing something he cannot do? Or did the Corvette driver feel a need assert his masculinity and machismo due to a repressed libido?

And yes, I was on my blk and whi scooter.

Moral: Remember, some cage driver's get really angry at lane splitters and they may make an effort to ruin your day.

 

[russell_bynum]

If you mean riding between the lanes and the stopped cars I have to disagree. Mainly becasue just last week I was about to change lanes when a bike was doing that and happen to be in my blind spot at the time. Luckily he was loud enough that I heard him instead of seeing him and we did not collide. In traffic there are some aggressive drives changing lanes constantly and that is a risk you take if your riding in between them.

 

Now if you mean sitting in the middle of cars as oppose to an open lane where you can get rear ended, that shoulds like a good idea.

 

 

If the rider was doing their job, it makes absolutely no difference whatsoever if you saw/heard them or not.

 

People who don't split just don't seem to get that. It doesn't matter that the cars aren't expecting you there or that they can't see you there. The rider is not depending on the drivers to see them and react. You're not riding WITH traffic like when you're sitting there in your car. You're riding THROUGH it.

 

Before I started riding (and splitting), I had all those same thoughts...they're too close, drivers can't see them, blah blah blah. Once I started doing it, I discovered that IT....DOESN'T.....MATTER. There's a completely different mindset at work here. You're not riding along looking for escape routes and planning what you'll do when that guy over there does this or that. Instead you're constantly on the move...your path IS those "escape routes". You are in a continuous state of evasion. It requires a complete shift from "I hope that guy over there doesn't run over me, but I'll have a backup plan just in case.", to "There's an open spot, Go."

 

 

[russell_bynum]

Only had one cage driver complain about my lane splitting. He yelled at me and said I was riding too close to his car and almost scratched it. What is it about Corvette drivers? Could the Corvette driver feel belittled and disrespected because I was doing something he cannot do? Or did the Corvette driver feel a need assert his masculinity and machismo due to a repressed libido?

And yes, I was on my blk and whi scooter.

Moral: Remember, some cage driver's get really angry at lane splitters and they may make an effort to ruin your day.

 

OK, Here's my funny "asshat in a cage trying to mess with me while splitting" story...

 

I started riding street bikes because I got a job that was 60 miles and LOTS of traffic away from home. It was winter time and the morning temps were often in the 40's. Since I didn't have any real gear to speak of, I just layered up under my leather jacket until I looked like the Michelin Man rolling down the road on my Suzuki Bandit.

 

I was going through an interchange where the connector went from 2 lanes down to 1 and then merged onto another freeway. (Caltrans apparently thinks that removing a lane and then forcing a merge within a couple hundred yards is a good way to handle high-density traffic...but I digress.) I ususally would just split up to the point where the two lanes came together and then sit and then just slip into traffic on the ramp. As I was coming up to that point, I saw a guy in a White (now I can't remember if it was a Lexus or an Infinity...I think Infinity) Infinity with paper plates (i.e. brand new car) eyeing me in his rearview. It didn't look "right", so I was half expecting what happened next...as I got almost to him, he suddenly lunged over, blocking my path. Well...like I said, I was expecting this, and it was only about 2 cars from where I would have had to stop anyway, so it was no big deal. I just stopped...didn't even acknowledge that he was there. Popped the bike into neutral and sat up since I knew I'd be there 60 seconds or so and wanted to rest my hands.

 

At this point, the driver, in his white business shirt and tie, rolls down the window and starts screaming at me. This guy's REALLY pissed. I mean REALLY pissed. He's going on and on about how I don't have any right to do that, etc, etc. I'm already eyeing a gap to my left that I can take if things get ugly. Anyway...I just stare at him through my faceshield as he rants and raves at me. Then it got good...he reached over and threw an unopened can of Hawaiian Punch from his drink holder at me. With all the layers I was wearing, he could have hit me square in the chest with a 2x4 and I wouldn't have felt it, so this can just hit my arm and fell to the tank, lodging between my leg and the tank.

 

I picked it up and pondered the situation. What to do: Drop the can and ride away? Say "thanks! Pop it open and have a drink"? throw it back at his head?... I knew this would be one of "those moments" in life were you just have to have the right reaction.

 

Then I remembered the joke about what do you do with the hand grenade that the Polish army threw at you? Pull the pin and throw it back!

 

I popped the can open and tossed the can with a flick of my wrist back through his open window. As it tumbled, RED Hawaiian punch went all over everything. Then it hit the passenger seat and red exploded up the seat and the passenger door. I did mention this was a brand new car with white interior (light beige, really), right?

 

 

Knowing that things were likely to get ugly if I stuck around, I snicked the bike back into gear, executed a sharp left, slid between the two stopped cars to my left, swerved back right, and cruised up the left shoulder to merge onto the freeway.

 

As soon as I got on the freeway, I started laughing, and I didn't stop for a good 4-5 miles.

 

To this day, I can't see a can of Hawaiian Punch without getting the giggles.

[vizhip]

He yelled at me and said I was riding too close to his car and almost scratched it. What is it about Corvette drivers?

 

He was probably worried if you scratched it, the fiberglass would shatter... )))

 

Regards -

-Bob

[Beemer_Nancy]

Great story Russell!! I hate the ones that put their hands out to greet me....I'm trying to figure out how to start taking watches!

 

[jaytee]

Then I remembered the joke about what do you do with the hand grenade that the Polish army threw at you? Pull the pin and throw it back!...To this day, I can't see a can of Hawaiian Punch without getting the giggles.

 

LOL!!!

 

I think this is the funniest story I have ever heard on BMWST.com

 

Thanks, Russell, it's been a tough day and I needed that laugh-out-loud moment.

 

 

JT

[g_frey]

Very good you solved what could have been a bad littering problem and an attitude problem at the same time.

[ghaverkamp]

Very good you solved what could have been a bad littering problem and an attitude problem at the same time.

 

I love the story. I've even repeated to others. I'd be happy stealing it and making it my own.

 

That said, I doubt that this guy, who apparently already had a problem with motorcyclists, thought much more of them after this episode.

[russell_bynum]

Very good you solved what could have been a bad littering problem and an attitude problem at the same time.

 

I love the story. I've even repeated to others. I'd be happy stealing it and making it my own.

 

That said, I doubt that this guy, who apparently already had a problem with motorcyclists, thought much more of them after this episode.

 

Probably not.

[Dave_C]

Only had one cage driver complain about my lane splitting. He yelled at me and said I was riding too close to his car and almost scratched it. What is it about Corvette drivers? Could the Corvette driver feel belittled and disrespected because I was doing something he cannot do? Or did the Corvette driver feel a need assert his masculinity and machismo due to a repressed libido?

And yes, I was on my blk and whi scooter.

Moral: Remember, some cage driver's get really angry at lane splitters and they may make an effort to ruin your day.

 

OK, Here's my funny "asshat in a cage trying to mess with me while splitting" story...

 

I started riding street bikes because I got a job that was 60 miles and LOTS of traffic away from home. It was winter time and the morning temps were often in the 40's. Since I didn't have any real gear to speak of, I just layered up under my leather jacket until I looked like the Michelin Man rolling down the road on my Suzuki Bandit.

 

I was going through an interchange where the connector went from 2 lanes down to 1 and then merged onto another freeway. (Caltrans apparently thinks that removing a lane and then forcing a merge within a couple hundred yards is a good way to handle high-density traffic...but I digress.) I ususally would just split up to the point where the two lanes came together and then sit and then just slip into traffic on the ramp. As I was coming up to that point, I saw a guy in a White (now I can't remember if it was a Lexus or an Infinity...I think Infinity) Infinity with paper plates (i.e. brand new car) eyeing me in his rearview. It didn't look "right", so I was half expecting what happened next...as I got almost to him, he suddenly lunged over, blocking my path. Well...like I said, I was expecting this, and it was only about 2 cars from where I would have had to stop anyway, so it was no big deal. I just stopped...didn't even acknowledge that he was there. Popped the bike into neutral and sat up since I knew I'd be there 60 seconds or so and wanted to rest my hands.

 

At this point, the driver, in his white business shirt and tie, rolls down the window and starts screaming at me. This guy's REALLY pissed. I mean REALLY pissed. He's going on and on about how I don't have any right to do that, etc, etc. I'm already eyeing a gap to my left that I can take if things get ugly. Anyway...I just stare at him through my faceshield as he rants and raves at me. Then it got good...he reached over and threw an unopened can of Hawaiian Punch from his drink holder at me. With all the layers I was wearing, he could have hit me square in the chest with a 2x4 and I wouldn't have felt it, so this can just hit my arm and fell to the tank, lodging between my leg and the tank.

 

I picked it up and pondered the situation. What to do: Drop the can and ride away? Say "thanks! Pop it open and have a drink"? throw it back at his head?... I knew this would be one of "those moments" in life were you just have to have the right reaction.

 

Then I remembered the joke about what do you do with the hand grenade that the Polish army threw at you? Pull the pin and throw it back!

 

I popped the can open and tossed the can with a flick of my wrist back through his open window. As it tumbled, RED Hawaiian punch went all over everything. Then it hit the passenger seat and red exploded up the seat and the passenger door. I did mention this was a brand new car with white interior (light beige, really), right?

 

 

Knowing that things were likely to get ugly if I stuck around, I snicked the bike back into gear, executed a sharp left, slid between the two stopped cars to my left, swerved back right, and cruised up the left shoulder to merge onto the freeway.

 

As soon as I got on the freeway, I started laughing, and I didn't stop for a good 4-5 miles.

 

To this day, I can't see a can of Hawaiian Punch without getting the giggles.

 

Russell-

I had a similar thing happen to me, I was unable to respond though. I have had many incident free miles of lane splitting in so. cal. One afternoon on the way home in rush hour on the 5 fwy., some rube in the passenger seat of a work truck saw me coming up behind him on my bike. He thought it would be funny to dump his big gulp on me as I passed. I was pretty angry, but no damage was done and I was unable to 'get him back' as you did. Some people are just plain mean, and jealous of the biker.