2015 Anti-Lane Splitting Bill (Assembly Bill 51)

[HeatXfer]

Regarding AB 51 as referenced here:

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/15-16/...introduced.pdf

I'm a long time motorcyclist and lane splitter, and feel fortunate California is with the rest of the world in allowing it. I urge you to oppose this and any related legislation, and remind your colleagues that law enforcement already has the appropriate discretion and tools to ensure public safety.

Thanks you for your time.

That's a great one: short and to the point. :thumbup

 

[budman]

Hit my rep and Senate dude as well.

Along the lines of what MLM said with a nudge about being on the committee that helped create the guidelines and an office to meet and discuss.

Hope others are emailing!!

 

[moto-rama]

I didn't read all 17 pages, but one point worth making...

Rather than having a bunch of people go talk to and pester Quirk, each of us that cares about this issue should write our own district assembly member. Quirk will not pay the tiniest bit of attention to anyone who doesn't reside in his assembly district.

Exactly! Contact your own representative and ask them to vote against it. You may want to point out a couple of good reasons in your letter.

 

[moto-rama]

No, he is not looking out for us. First it starts with this law then someone will come along and add more regulations, etc. It is the reason why the NRA opposes all regulations so vehemently.

And we all know how reasonable they are. But the "reasons" are not so noble.

 

[MysterYvil]

And we all know how reasonable they are. But the "reasons" are not so noble.

I have trouble taking any "news article" seriously when it contains misspellings ("Sturm Rugar").

 

[GAJ]

Wow, I am at once shocked, impressed, and grateful. Thank you to everyone who is using your own good intentions and making a difference on your own. I believe that even those that create noise in support this bill can be useful to the cause of revising it on its first pass.

Opinionated individuality in opposing the bill (as it is currently written) is the exact response I hoped to elicit in calling attention to this bill, even if my own admittedly extremist stance is at times not well garnered. Some of you might say that the thread title was deceptive, or that another person may have handled it more to the liking of reasonable, helpful people who do not wish to be propagandized. I don't disagree with those criticisms.

I believe that we as a community should ride responsibly, and that rider education is key. All these loud pipes, stunting on the freeway, and lane splitting at high speed... its all just illegal fringe activity. I don't participate in any of it, but I don't need new laws that force me to ride within limits that someone else's irresponsibility has forced into place. In that way I stand with those riders, and in staunch opposition to those that wish to see those riders stopped. I wholeheartedly believe that this is a right and just path.

My father taught me to know which side my bread is buttered on. This bill, if it passes, won't really hurt anyone, but it won't help anyone either. It's just more red tape written by another miserable cager. I hope to see AB51 disintegrate and eventually disappear, and if you agree, the brotherhood puts our money where your mouth's are.

Nicely clarified and summarized. :thumbup

 

[metrorollah]

Well, just picked up this month's issue of CityBike, and was surprised to see some of my quotes in there. Interesting that Mr. Gish has no taste for "sword-rattling", but does have a taste for negotiation. So here's a place to start. How about stop blaming lane-splitters for bills limiting lane splitting, IE "anti-lane splitting" bills.

You can scream until your red in the font-face, but people are always going to ride with sandals on, and smack mirrors while lane-splitting. Its not a nice practice to begin with. Anyone that doesn't ride hates the fact that we can move through traffic and they have to wait in line in their cars.

You need to rethink your rider magazine's role and consider that your attitude should be pro-rider. Blaming people for not acting responsibly and causing this bill is like blaming our president for causing terrorism. The fact that you blame anyone shows your inexperience in general problem-solving. The response is what matters. Nobody on here or at any MRO in the state has contacted Mr. Quick in any way other than with respect for his role as our representative. I believe freedom of speech will cover opinion any said on BARF or in your rag, neither of which anyone at his office would ever read. How about you stop blaming the rider community for the conflict that we didn't start?

 

[Drone]

Well, just picked up this month's issue of CityBike, and was surprised to see some of my quotes in there. Interesting that Mr. Gish has no taste for "sword-rattling", but does have a taste for negotiation. So here's a place to start. How about stop blaming lane-splitters for bills limiting lane splitting, IE anti-lane splitting bills.

You can scream until your red in the font-face, but people are always going to ride with sandals on, and smack mirrors while lane-splitting. Its not a nice practice to begin with. Anyone that doesn't ride hates the fact that we can move through traffic and they have to wait in line in their cars.

You need to rethink your rider magazine's role and consider that your attitude should be pro-rider. Blaming people for not acting responsibly and causing this bill is like blaming our president for causing terrorism. The fact that you blame anyone shows your inexperience in general problem-solving. The response is what matters. Nobody on here or at any MRO in the state has contacted Mr. Quick in any way other than with respect for his role as our representative. I believe freedom of speech will cover opinion any said on BARF or in your rag, neither of which anyone at his office would ever read. How about you stop blaming the rider community for the conflict that we didn't start?

If there's anything that can bring members of this site together, now is the time.

 

[metrorollah]

If there's anything that can bring members of this site together, now is the time.

:thumbup ... except that 12/23/2014 at 5:03 is not really the time. But that day will come :afm199 :teeth

 

[Surj]

Well, just picked up this month's issue of CityBike, and was surprised to see some of my quotes in there. Interesting that Mr. Gish has no taste for "sword-rattling", but does have a taste for negotiation. So here's a place to start. How about stop blaming lane-splitters for bills limiting lane splitting.

You can scream until your red in the font-face, but people are always going to ride with sandals on, and smack mirrors while lane-splitting. Its not a nice practice to begin with. Anyone that doesn't ride hates the fact that we can move through traffic and they have to wait in line in their cars.

You need to rethink your rider magazine's role and consider that your attitude should be pro-rider. Blaming people for not acting responsibly and causing this bill is like blaming our president for causing terrorism. The response is what matters. Nobody on here or at any MRO in the state has contacted Mr. Quick in any way other than with respect for his role as our representative. I believe freedom of speech will cover opinion said on BARF or in your rag, neither of which anyone at his office would ever read. How about you stop blaming the rider community for the war that we didn't start.

:laughing:laughing:laughing

You're giving yourself too much credit, man. While you are certainly one of the people who say stuff like "anti-lane splitting bill" you're not alone and you're certainly not breaking new ground.

"Mr. Gish has no taste for "sword-rattling", but does have a taste for negotiation." I have no taste for bullshit, and the extreme position you took initially smelled and tasted of such. Have you even spoken to your lobbyist? I have, and I daresay he's closer to my position than yours, at least your initial position.

"How about stop blaming lane-splitters for bills limiting lane splitting." You simply cannot deny that the minority that split like assholes contributed to bills about lane splitting. Seriously.

"You need to rethink your rider magazine's role and consider that your attitude should be pro-rider." Sorry to do this again, but this deserves another :laughing. CityBike is absolutely pro-rider. That doesn't mean we support assholishness just because motorcycles are involved.

It's silly to say things like "stop blaming the rider community for the war that we didn't start" when certain members of the "rider community" actually do bring this sort of thing down on the rest of us.

As previously stated in this very thread, stuff like this that you (and others) say is a perfect example of why I no longer give money to ABATE.

 

[metrorollah]

As previously stated in this very thread, stuff like this that you (and others) say is a perfect example of why I no longer give money to ABATE.

...and a perfect example of why you asked to be pardoned for any confusion about your magazine being pro-AB51. Need to clarify do you? MY posts don't need ANY clarification by you or anyone else. Got it? This bill limits lane-splitting pure and simple, and people have responded to that. You want limitations, then how about you limit you magazine to something besides responses to MRO propaganda. You'll be better off not lowering your standards. "We've raised our standards so up yours."

 

[rodr]

Dunno if staunch opposition or negotiation will work better, but I'm quite sure that certain members of the riding community are responsible for bringing the battle upon us. We should have better things to do than cleaning up messes like this.

 

[metrorollah]

Dunno if staunch opposition or negotiation will work better, but I'm quite sure that certain members of the riding community are responsible for bringing the battle upon us. We should have better things to do than cleaning up messes like this.

Well Rod, remember when I lead a ride down to Big Sur Coast Road a few years back. I think you came on that ride. Did we lane split illegally? I don't remember, but I would not be surprised if the 8 or so of us on that ride passed a car or two on Route 1 during the ride at some point. I rode with a certain person that used to be the editor of CityBike on rides where we passed dozens of cars on Route 1, probably tourists. We just can't turn on ourselves, ever. This bill won't stop us from acting that way, whether it passes or not.

That's really all I have to say. I'm really disappointed with your response. This "certain members" is all of us.

 

[Surj]

...and a perfect example of why you asked to be pardoned for any confusion about your magazine being pro-AB51. Need to clarify do you? MY posts don't need ANY clarification by you or anyone else. Got it? This bill limits lane-splitting pure and simple, and people have responded to that. You want limitations, then how about you limit you magazine to something besides responses to MRO propaganda. You'll be better off not lowering your standards. "We've raised our standards so up yours."

Where did I ask to be "pardoned for any confusion about your magazine being pro-AB51?" I reiterated that I (and CityBike) was not in support of the bill or new laws in general because I knew folks like you (and BOLT and whoever else jumps in) will immediately accuse me of being pro-AB51. Which I'm not, but thanks for behaving as expected.

As for CityBike covering things "besides responses to MRO propaganda" I have to guess you don't read much of what we do. We attend and cover CMSP meetings, the so-called "unification" rallies, legislation, and so on. There's actual coverage of AB51—at least the limited real details that exist so far—in the same issue, coverage derived from talking to Quirk's office several times, James Lombardo, CHP and OTS. So maybe read the mag rather than engaging in ad hominem attacks on me and the CityBike?

Talking openly and candidly about issues isn't "turning on each other," and you being disappointed in us (as you said to Rod) isn't even a thing. :wow

Since I'm being taken to task here, I'm posting the article in question, my Uneasy Rider column from our January 2015 issue. Note that this is not intended to be an attack on any particular person, but rather a way of thinking.

Modest Proposals

The month of December saw not just the unleashing of Stormageddon 2014 (AKA “some rain”) but also yet another lane splitting bill. Here we go again.

I’ve talked myself blue in the face, repeating things like “If we don’t educate our fellow riders and self-regulate somehow, the assholes that feel the need to split way too fast are going to ruin it for all of us.” Some riders agree and try to split nicely, and some riders keep splitting like assholes. So here it is—more lane splitting legislation. Again.

But I’m not interested in talking (even more) about the “let’s stop splitting like jackasses so we can keep splitting” thing again. Right now, I’m more concerned with how certain factions in the motorcycling community respond to this kind of stuff, and specifically how they’re responding to AB51.

I know it’s quite fashionable to sing these pseudo-libertarian, inspirational classics like “we don’t need no stinking new laws” and “let me make my own choices!” While I certainly don’t want a law that regulates lane splitting, I want lane splitting to stay around. I’ve long said the concept of a “grey area” on lane splitting was complete horseshit—what’s not illegal is legal—but there are real reasons having an actual law on the books would probably make it harder to outlaw splitting. If you’re about to say something really smart like, “They just want this law so they can outlaw it! First they regulate speed, and then they take it away!” I urge you to please shut the fuck up, because that’s nonsense. Seriously—lane splitting motorcyclists are such a tiny, poorly organized minority that if anyone really wanted to ban splitting, we’d have a hell of a fight on our hands already.

Want proof? Check out the whopping 6,000-ish signatures on the current petition to legalize splitting—oops, I mean sharing—nationwide. Nationwide, people: six thousand signatures. We may as well pack our panniers and move to France, where—whatever your position on Freedom Fries—you must agree that the motorcyclists give a shit and actually act.

So how do we respond when a legislator proposes a bill that would explicitly legalize lane splitting? We—incredibly—call it an ANTI lane splitting bill. We call Quirk names, nice ones like “miserable cager,” as well other not-so-nice ones, as if that’s gonna engender some discussion and make Quirk (and other legislators) feel like sitting down with us to talk things over.

The MROs that supposedly represent us immediately start with bullshit extremist “cold dead hands” kind of talk, saying the bill must die by any means necessary, and then just days later are talking about how they’re meeting with Quirk to discuss amendments. I’m 100% on board with meeting Quirk to see if we can work something out; I’m not on board with asinine sword-rattling when everyone knows nothing will come of that.

Note that I say “we,” because just as with splitting, where the average driver remembers the turd that clips their mirror at 70+ MPH, legislators probably remember the loud-mouthed caricatures of activists, so eager to take the hard line immediately to “prove a point.”

I’ll say it again, because I know some of you are already getting ready to accuse me of traitorous support of AB51—I’m not in favor of a law. But AB51 is a modest proposal from Assemblyman Quirk, one we should look at and discuss without rancor and insult. And here’s my modest proposal: motorcyclists, please stop being such fucking assholes, on the road and in general.

 

[metrorollah]

Note that this is not intended to be an attack on any particular person, but rather a way of thinking.

Ok, let me get this straight... so you take issue with me calling Quick a "miserable cager" (cager being a very typical motorcyclist term to describe a non-rider) but you think its ok to call other riders "such fucking assholes?" Your "way of thinking" is not pro-rider, by my definition.

 

[Marcoose]

Ok, let me get this straight... so you take issue with me calling Quick a "miserable cager" (cager being a very typical motorcyclist term to describe a non-rider) but you think its ok to call other riders "such fucking assholes?" Your "way of thinking" is not pro-rider, by my definition.

You know, Jason, if said riders are riding like assholes, they then earn the moniker. Just sayin'.

 

[rodr]

Well Rod, remember when I lead a ride down to Big Sur Coast Road a few years back. I think you came on that ride. Did we lane split illegally? I don't remember, but I would not be surprised if the 8 or so of us on that ride passed a car or two on Route 1 during the ride at some point. I rode with a certain person that used to be the editor of CityBike on rides where we passed dozens of cars on Route 1, probably tourists. We just can't turn on ourselves, ever. This bill won't stop us from acting that way, whether it passes or not.

That's really all I have to say. I'm really disappointed with your response. This "certain members" is all of us.

Pretty sure it wasn't me. But honestly, I'm not a moto community insider and can't tell who you are from your profile.

As for "certain members"... we have two problems here. One is them, the other is AB 51. The first of these is the more basic one, and we have to be able to talk about it openly and honestly before there can be any hope of a unified front for #2. We're in the minority and we're not gonna get anywhere while pissing off the majority.

Just my humble opinion, even before reading Surj's piece (not much CityBike around Fairfield).

 

[metrorollah]

You know, Jason, if said riders are riding like assholes, they then earn the moniker. Just sayin'.

Literally everyone, in my 30 years of riding, that I have ever ridden with, has earned that moniker at least once. This self-righteousness is what I have a problem with.

 

[Marcoose]

Literally everyone, in my 30 years of riding, that I have ever ridden with, has earned that moniker at least once. This self-righteousness is what I have a problem with.

Ever met a veteran rider that rides like an asshole day in, day out? For example, obnoxious loud pipes "saving lives" and walking up entire neighborhoods, or splitting very annoyingly everyday, same place, same time? The assholes are consistent in their deed. The others aren't.

 

[boney]

I'm just gonna put this out there and see where it lands;

I don't know you metrorollah, I don't know if we've ever crossed paths and who knows, maybe we have a lot in common, but the more you post in this thread the less likely it is that I'll ever support ABATE if you are an example of that organization. This thread was your chance to gain support for ABATE and instead I find myself turned off by your rhetoric and vitriol. We don't don't have to agree on everything or even much to gain my support, I mean hell, I even joined the AMA a couple of years ago after a lifetime of motorcycling... But I don't see any reasonableness coming from your posts. I see someone who draws a line and tells people 'it's my way or the highway. ' And that sir, is no way to gain support for your cause.