Posted on 09/28/2009 7:54:26 AM PDT by SmithL
HAYWARD — So-called "lane-splitting" on a motorcycle is perfectly legal, but Officer Cristina Tagle of the California Highway Patrol asks, "Is it really worth it?"
Bikers have an obvious advantage when it comes to the daily commute, but Tagle said splitting lanes — riding alongside other vehicles, between lanes — carries significant risk, as exemplified by three deaths this year in the Hayward-San Leandro area.
"California does not have a law that prohibits (lane-splitting)," CHP Sgt. Kevin Briggs said. "But you're still subject to all the laws in the Vehicle Code. Everything still applies."
That means if traffic is moving at 65 mph, a motorcyclist splitting lanes can be cited for speeding. "But catching them is a different matter," Briggs said.
Lane-splitters also can be cited for "unsafe speed," which Briggs said is "a judgment call."
Briggs, a motorcycle officer for 10 years, said he has encountered all manner of danger while on the job.
"You have people that don't use a blinker that pull out right in front of you, people that are angry and will block your way, people opening doors," he said. To avoid the dangers, "You have to use sound judgment."
Fernando Camilli, 35, is a motorcycle enthusiast who knows the risks. Camilli is president of the Hayward chapter of the Bay Area Delinquents — the motorcycle club that Troub previously led.
Camilli was friends with Troub. He said I-238, where Troub was killed, is a particularly notorious spot because of narrow lanes and the large number of trucks that leave little space between lanes for a motorcycle.
"When I drive through there, I think, Jeremie, man, why here?" Camilli said.
Camilli has been in two motorcycle accidents in the last four years, suffering road rash, bruises and a concussion. But splitting lanes on his Yamaha R6 is not something he is going to give up.
"We split lanes every day, commute time, night time," he said. "In 60,000 miles on a sport bike, I just don't think there's a class they could give that could teach an awareness while you're lane-splitting. You can't re-create that environment. It is something you learn from experience."
He said inexperienced motorcyclists can make unsafe decisions, but even for experienced riders, the danger is always there from drivers who are not paying attention.
"Everybody knows the risks. We know it every day, the minute we stick that leg over the bike. Everybody knows the consequences. You never hope it's going to be your time, but it can be any time."
Even so, he hopes no laws are passed to prohibit lane-splitting, as has been done in other states.
In these days of crowded freeways and heightened environmental awareness, Camilli asks that drivers see motorcycles not as a dangerous nuisance, but as a green, fuel-efficient alternative to cars.
Camilli says Troub's death affected him deeply, but he did not consider giving up his bike.
"It's a freedom," he said. "It's a lifestyle. It's a way of life that I've been accustomed to."
Very nice ride. Is that a Road King?
I now ride in WA, where its consdidered bad form to show
rudeness to your fellow drivers. Still, one has to be careful of the grannies, texters, and self-appointed traffice cops!
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2000/10/30/MN87097.DTL
Streetglide
In Rome and Paris, you can get at least 10 motorbikes in 4 lanes and maybe 6 cars.
...and in Manilla 6 jitneys.
I hate splitting lanes, but when you are stuck in a traffic jam, especially in the heat, and you see that wide open zone between cars, its hard to resist.
Used to live in the Berdoo/Riverside area and split lanes also. Only in stopped or very slow moving traffic. My biggest reason though was to prevent over heating the engine.
I lane split...a few times.
But here's the ONLY times I would do it:
When traffic was bumper to bumper...and stopped or barely moving. IOW, there was virtually no chance of someone changing lanes in front of me...or into me. And I never went very fast....
That said...I still had people intentionally squeeze me.
How do I know that...? I made eye contact with them in their side mirrors. They saw me coming...and didn't like the fact that I was moving ahead..and they weren't. I also had people act like they were going to open their doors when they saw me splitting lanes.
Agreed........
The 91 was/is brutal....
I always give bikers extra room. They can stop faster than cars and don’t have a protective wrapper around them like car riders.
Still, its pretty d@mn scary when some bikes blow by at 100 mph.
Glad I moved back east to get out of that armpit!
I commute from Port Washington to Milwaukee WI at 5am, so I rarely have occasion to encounter the bumper-to-bumper traffic that occurs during normal rush hour. On the few occasions that I have run into this kind of congestion I’ve been tempted to ride the shoulder in order to reach my exit from the freeway. The only thing that prevented me from attempting this was the idea that some oblivious fool in a Chevy Suburban ahead of me would decide the same thing.
((((((((((I lived and rode in Cali, and The only way I ever did it was when traffic was at a stand still, and then I never went over 10 or 15 miles per hour while doing it, because like this article points out. You never know what folks in cars are going to do.))))))))))))
Exactly what I did as a rider when I was younger. I see idiots going 40 to 50 miles an hour with traffic stopped. Soon to be road kill.
“Let these people have their freedom to risk their lives in any way they wish”
The car they smack into could be yours. What other traffic type laws do you want wiped so people can live in “freedom.” Red lights? Stop signs?
A lane splitting motorcyclist probably does not endanger your life. But he does endanger your property. And it doesn’t feel very good to be part of a motorcyclist’s death, even if it wasn’t your fault.
I’m not sure whether I oppose lane splitting or not - another poster said a CHP study showed lane splitting is safer than sitting in traffic - but to support it just on “freedom” grounds implies the motorcyclist is driving in a vacuum, which he is not.
And that's something I am not prone to do....
BTW...I don't have a MC anymore. I've thought about it....but probably will not own another one.
FRegards,
I lived in California about 18 years ago and I was really surprised that this was legal. We would be riding along at 20 mph in a freeway traffic jam and suddenly a biker would whiz by between rows of traffic, only inches from the car. I saw one biker get really angry because a woman hadn’t left enough room for him to squeeze between her and the car in the other lane and he started beating on her trunk lid.
“I always give bikers extra room.”
Thank you.
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