Lane splitting discussion on Sacbee.com

[Bay Arean]

True, this is hilariously funny



Ouch, it is bad that you were in this collision. Just curious, why did you have to cross the double yellow? You said the lady made "a right" with her wheel... yellow lines are only on the left side. Keep in mind, sometimes if drivers start signaling with the flasher, that means they might be intent on taking you out.

Sorry, I wrote that WRONG! For this one time, I will blame the concussion (which left me double-visioned for a day and a half) and kinda out of it.. She made a sharp LEFT, pushing me over the double yellow into oncoming traffic, which mercifully was open at the moment.. I don't know where I landed because I was knocked out and people helped me up and rolled my bike away. I think that I landed on my right side, because that's where the most damage to me is, and the repair guy (it ended up back at Hattar, where I bought it) said that the rear right footpeg and axle nut are twanked back pretty good.

I was lane-sharing to her LEFT with plenty of room and had passed two other cars. As I approached about her driver's side door, she veered into me. No time to do anything. While driving home yesterday and passing spot from opposite direction, I saw her brake skid marks running an angle out of her lane and over into incoming traffic. I have the laceration on my leg from her car. No, no flasher, nothing. No place for her to turn, like a road or turnaround. She was either trying to see ahead, or showing me she wasn't going to be passed, or she just panicked and steered the wrong way when she saw me. I was too woozy to talk to her. A VERY nice man came his business car and said "if you need a witness, here's my card." I keep thinking he must be a rider even tho' he was in a car.

To be clear, I NEVER lane share to the right on this two-lane road. I reported here a while back seeing a guy doing that, in the bicycle lane, only to be ticketed when he hit Orinda.

 

[TommyWillB]

...All to often when I am lane splitting, I see all to often the people talking texting, reading the book, putting on the make-up, etc and they are not paying attention to the road in front of them.

We've all see it. The woman putting eye liner on. The guy shaving. The kid with a coke in one hand, a Big Mac in the other, a cigarette in his mouth, and steering with his knee.

But my favorite to date was the guy I saw with a bowl of cereal (with milk)in his left hand and steering with a spoon in his right hand. I was tempted to swerve just to see the milk fly.

Seriously, you couldn't finish your breakfast before rushing to work?

 

[Ogg]

Seriously, you couldn't finish your breakfast before rushing to work?

Playing woodwind > eating breakfast on the scale of crazy.

 

[MikeL]

Are you speaking of the lane departure warning system on many Infiniti and some new domestic vehicles?

Or laser cruise control that lifts the throttle and may do a tiny bit of braking on ... well, most luxury cars?

... or the auto-braking systems on Mercedes and (iirc) Volvos?

Maybe it was Mercedes. I was just joking how they make all these idiot-proof dumb-driver proof vehicles, truthfully its just covering up the fact some people shouldn't drive if they NEED these features to be safe. But I guess added safety is never a bad thing.

 

[Starshooter10]

what a load of bull, and FYI there is almost no statistics on lane sharing.

IIRC there is one inconclusive study thats like 40 years old and another from great brit that said the only trend they noticed was something like 80% less rear ended motorcycles

 

[RRrider]

what a load of bull, and FYI there is almost no statistics on lane sharing.

IIRC there is one inconclusive study thats like 40 years old and another from great brit that said the only trend they noticed was something like 80% less rear ended motorcycles

I wish that 80% fewer rear ended MC stat would get a lot more coverage!

 

[codger]

Since lane sharing is practiced in most of the world and it doesnt seem to be a problem does this mean our drivers are not as competant as those in Korea,Thialand,Japan,France etc? its a matter of conditioning. they are really on the wrong track every bike on the highway means there is one less 4000 lb mass of metal transporting in most cases one human. We use less highway space less parking space and less fuel. If drivers gave it any thought they would look at the positive side of motorcycling we have a positive effect on traffic and parking. Then theres the other alternative stop your bitching take an MSF course and get yourself a motorcycle. I have a much better attitude on days I can ride to work unless some anus trys to kill me. maybe drivers in other countries dont use cell phones,text,masturbate etc. while driving.

 

[Bay Arean]

Since lane sharing is practiced in most of the world and it doesnt seem to be a problem does this mean our drivers are not as competant as those in Korea,Thialand,Japan,France etc? its a matter of conditioning. they are really on the wrong track every bike on the highway means there is one less 4000 lb mass of metal transporting in most cases one human. We use less highway space less parking space and less fuel. If drivers gave it any thought they would look at the positive side of motorcycling we have a positive effect on traffic and parking. Then theres the other alternative stop your bitching take an MSF course and get yourself a motorcycle. I have a much better attitude on days I can ride to work unless some anus trys to kill me. maybe drivers in other countries dont use cell phones,text,masturbate etc. while driving.

Our drivers are "soft" because they are used to such wide shoulders, etc etc. Kinda lulled into expectations. Then they get surprised at encroachment (requiring more acuity), which lane sharing represents. The posts are correct, in much of the world, traffic is incredibly diverse and somehow, people manage to get through it. I guess one another main difference is our rate of speed, which is higher in congested areas. I saw all kinds of whack stuff when I lived in India, where buses, cars, cycles, autorickshaws, cows, pedestrians, etc etc literally swarm and the painted lines are like some kind of joke. But I never saw an accident in town, though I think I saw a guy fall off of the bus he was hanging onto bu a window grill...

I still am processing how the woman took me out on Monday, I don't get it and I got a lot of pain and hassle to deal with yet. But I sure wish we had our own lanes, especially on the freeway, complete with raised curb, pylons, whatever. But there is a cyclical aspect to all this; as long as people don't allow for motorcycles in their driving perceptions, motorcycling is dangerous, no matter how skilled we are. I have all these people around me doing "i told you so" because I rejoined the cycling world and now, 11 months later, my bike is wrecked and I'm hobbling around...I've never been injured in a car, though I was hit a few times. So I have to ask myself, what did I sign up for??? The same idiot who would dent my car put my body in the hospital...

 

[iehawk]

Our drivers are soft because there are no standard in drivers' ed. When a driver is taught by the driver before him/her, all the bad habit is transferred. Then along with new ones acquired, all get taught to the next generation. Guess what, we end up with worse and worse drivers... the prove is what we can see on the street now.

Gotta admit though some of us aren't exactly on our best behavior when we ride either.

What have we done to keep it civilized? How many times have you seen other bikes cutting through in high speed? Or cutting it too close? You want to do it that way for fun? Why not take a tour/trip and visit Jakarta, Manila, or Bangkok... among other places.

There are no rules or laws on lane splitting (which I'd rather refer to as lane sharing). I personally would rather to keep it between lane 1 and 2. Main reason: I see most drivers seem to be used to seeing us there than between the other lanes. I'd rather keep it simple like that for the cagers.

Second: have you ever had 2 bikes splitting between 3 lanes with you in the middle? It can get confusing and dangerous. Suddenly you can't move to the other side of your lane to give space, since now there's another one coming through there.

It happened to me once when a bike was coming through to my left while I was on lane 2 on 880S. I moved to the right to let him through only to find out another bike was coming fast between lane 2 and 3.

I'm not saying we can't do it between the other lanes. But is it really necessary to do that? Between lane 1 and 2 is plenty of space for us to go through.

Can we somehow regulate ourselves? Maybe that way we can keep the regulations out of our way... and prove that we are the better group out there on the street.

 

[DataDan]

A letter from AMA spokesman Pete terHorst countering last week's illogical rant from Foon Rhee appears in today's Bee: Another View: Lane splitting helps save lives of motorcyclists. Way too polite.

 

[DataDan]

I was lane-sharing to her LEFT with plenty of room and had passed two other cars. As I approached about her driver's side door, she veered into me. No time to do anything.
...
To be clear, I NEVER lane share to the right on this two-lane road. I reported here a while back seeing a guy doing that, in the bicycle lane, only to be ticketed when he hit Orinda.
...
I still am processing how the woman took me out on Monday, I don't get it and I got a lot of pain and hassle to deal with yet.

The relative safety of lane splitting comes from riding between two lanes of bumper-to-bumper traffic. You don't have to rely on being seen because the presence of other vehicles keeps drivers in their lanes and out of the lane-splitting corridor. But when you are between a lane and the centerline, curb, turn lane, etc., etc., you don't have that protection. Instead, you're relying on drivers' expectation of a motorcycle passing on that side and on their keen observation skills. Not a good chance to take.

A crucial reasoning error made by novice lane splitters these days goes something like this:

• Lane "sharing" is legal.
• Therefore, lane "sharing" is safe.
• Therefore, it's OK to "share" anywhere there is enough room (except where Orinda PD writes tickets).

Just because it's legal, that doesn't mean it's safe. And a rider needs experience to understand where it's safer and where things can go wrong in a hurry.

Part of the problem is that insipid term, "lane sharing".

"Sharing" implies mutual knowledge and consent. That's wrong. They usually don't see you and probably wish you weren't there. Ride accordingly.

"Sharing" the lane applies equally to the dangerous position you were in, between a vehicle and the centerline, and a safer position between two lanes of bumper-to-bumper traffic.

So quit thinking of it as "sharing" and start thinking of it as splitting, riding between two lanes of traffic moving in the same direction. And while you're gaining experience, restrict yourself to slow-moving, tightly spaced traffic with a wide lane-splitting corridor.

 

[Razel]

Part of the problem is that insipid term, "lane sharing".

"Sharing" implies mutual knowledge and consent. That's wrong. They usually don't see you and probably wish you weren't there. Ride accordingly.

"Sharing" the lane applies equally to the dangerous position you were in, between a vehicle and the centerline, and a safer position between two lanes of bumper-to-bumper traffic.

So quit thinking of it as "sharing" and start thinking of it as splitting, riding between two lanes of traffic moving in the same direction. And while you're gaining experience, restrict yourself to slow-moving, tightly spaced traffic with a wide lane-splitting corridor.

Dan, you're just going to have to deal with "lane sharing". There's nothing wrong using that term, and some folks prefer it over your preference. It's semantics.
Outside of your definition, you're advocating using a term that is specifically prohibited by the CVC. No sense in making the uphill battle a bit steeper.
Live and let live. We're all aiming for the same goal.

 

[Lovedoc]

There is some data from countries where FILTERING is legal. I was reading the links to various studies on motorcycle crashes on the Wikipedia article on lane SPLITTING. Overall there isn't any really convincing evidence that it has a great impact on motorcycle injuries overall, possibly some effect on rearend motorcycle kills maybe roughly balanced by splitting incidents themselves.

More importantly though, there appears to be little benefit to motorists. Arguably on the Bay Bridge and some other situations there might be a positive impact on congestion, but statewide and nationally there just aren't enough riders to argue there is anything in it for drivers. Does anyone think that US widebodies and SUV commuting culture are going to take to moto commuting? The belief that we will change driving habits is misguided.

As noted, I'd say our destiny is partly in our hands. A quiet bike ridden respectfully at reasonable speeds through slow or stopped traffic is not so irritating. Splitting is a privilege, abused, it may be taken.

 

[DataDan]

Dan, you're just going to have to deal with "lane sharing". There's nothing wrong using that term, and some folks prefer it over your preference. It's semantics.

It's my white whale. :laughing

Outside of your definition, you're advocating using a term that is specifically prohibited by the CVC. No sense in making the uphill battle a bit steeper.

No it isn't. You're inferring that by "splitting" I mean riding on the line (which is illegal). No one does that because the reflectors and paint are annoying and dangerous. I'm using it to distinguish a postion between two lanes of vehicles moving in the same direction, as opposed to a position between traffic and the curb or centerline, which "sharing" fails to distinguish.

 

[RRrider]

I interpret Dan as saying, you're hella close to probably unfriendly and unobservant large pieces of metal when you lane share/split, so as a rider, you need to be extra aware, alert, and prepared! I agree with this 100%. That said, the term lane sharing sounds better, and I think politically, we're likely to have more success if we use it.

 

[Gabe]

All I can say about this is the level of intellect displayed by Sac Bee posters makes BARF look like a room filled with elderly Talmudic scholars.

I think it's great the profoundly retarded in the Sacramento area have computers, but surprising they can type as well as they do.

 

[TheRiddler]

A letter from AMA spokesman Pete terHorst countering last week's illogical rant from Foon Rhee appears in today's Bee: Another View: Lane splitting helps save lives of motorcyclists. Way too polite.

I'm going to be a critical ass, but it didn't read very well. Motorcyclists have very limited interactions with the general public, meaning everything counts. That article has solid points and good information, but it read like a scripted speech.

I have the personal, unsubstantiated belief that car drivers hate bikes lane splitting because they feel like it's cutting. Yet no where was it mentioned (in the rebuttal) that lane splitting reduces traffic and makes it so everyone has to wait less. If you want to appeal to drivers, you need to emphasize the benefits they get out of it.

 

[Angel-be-Good]

Outside of your definition, you're advocating using a term that is specifically prohibited by the CVC. No sense in making the uphill battle a bit steeper.

What's with the myth that "splitting" is illegal but "sharing" is kosher? http://www.chp.ca.gov/html/answers.html

And ugh, that published rebuttal stinks. Why even mention the 30% decrease in moto fatalities in 2009 when it has nothing to do with splitting, as admitted by the statement that follows the stat. Combat bogus reasoning with more bogusness?

 

[Razel]

No it isn't. You're inferring that by "splitting" I mean riding on the line (which is illegal). No one does that because the reflectors and paint are annoying and dangerous. I'm using it to distinguish a postion between two lanes of vehicles moving in the same direction, as opposed to a position between traffic and the curb or centerline, which "sharing" fails to distinguish.

What's with the myth that "splitting" is illegal but "sharing" is kosher? http://www.chp.ca.gov/html/answers.html

Ok, from memory, I recall "lane straddling" or "lane splitting" were terms used in defining a prohibited movement in regards to CVC 21658, where vehicles, pretty much four-wheeled vehicles, couldn't occupy two lanes, "straddling" the white broken/dashed lane designation. A motorcycle could do this, by riding just to the side of the bots dots/reflectors, and still have parts (bars, side cases) on the other side. It's a stretch, sure. But not so far that an officer and/or traffic commissioner in a grumpy mood could find it in violation.
There is this in BARF, though. Kind of just the opposite of where Data Dan is coming from, but since I can't find the verbiage in the CVC, I'll meekly submit this instead.