Should Lane Splitting be legal in all 50 States

Right, Exactly, Bullseye.............
And yet......You dumbasses still think it's a good idea.
Remember the original poll? 50 United States.
The poll said nothing about CA, it asked nothing about Europe or Asia, yet every illiterate moron on this damn forum has told me my opinion isn't valid because I Haven't ridden in CA (which I have stated that I was stationed there and rode there, but that's ok, because we know you can't read anyway) or Europe.
It's already legal in CA and most of Europe, we know that, the poll isn't talking about that.
I agree with Dummee, and the other stooges, it's not excepted and expected in the other 49 states therefore a bad idea. Thats why riders in 49 states shouldn't do it. I personally won't do it because I think it's rude. Ride your ride, I'll ride mine.
Now, if you mouth breathing moronaphyles feel like exchanging insults just step right up, I don't usually dip into those waters but I can when I feel like it.

I like the part where you take insults which have clearly been hurled at you all your life and try to use them to describe your betters.

And the word you're looking for is accepted.

In the situation I was answering, the rider was passing into oncoming traffic NOT filtering or lane sharing. I know its done in Yurp, but its also expected in Yurp. It won't be expected here. Closest thing I've heard of is rural W. TX where they'll pull over on the shoulder for you to get by.

Now filtering and sharing are different critters. While lane sharing here in the DC area, typically I'm gone before I'm even a thought in the brain of the brain dead commuters. In the 18mos of commuting from outside Manassas to Rockville, I had precisely 3 incidents. All 3 were 'locals' IOW angry rednecks. The rest of the population of drivers? Not a clue I was there till I was well in front of them.

So, while its your *opinion* that its rude, I don't share that *opinion* and will continue to lane share when its safe regardless of legality.

If you wanna exchange insults, take it to Jo Momma.

M

On the way back from the inlaws this weekend, we took Lake Washington Blvd through Seattle, a very scenic park like road on the shore of Lake Washington.

It is clearly posted "yield to bicycles" and "bicycles have right of way".

By your logic, someone may choose to not yield to or respect a bicycles right of way if they can do it safely?
Are you ok with that type of individual picking and choosing of traffic laws when the shoe ends up on the other foot?

I pick and choose. Perhaps I shouldn't be OK with it, but it's what I do.

I always end up breaking the speed limit, just like 90% of people around me.
I always use my blinker, UNlike 80% of people around me.
I always stop at red lights, unless Right On Red is allowed.
I almost never filter, for fear of being assaulted by "yer jumping the line!" people.

As long as its safe, I don't particularly care what you do. Its only when its unsafe that I get riled up. If you've read any of the 'Dear Bicyclists' thread in JM you'll see that I don't waver any from that stance.

In fact, had a 'student driver' car pass me over the crest of a small rise just now. WTF these people are teaching the kids is beyond me. Oh, and did I mention that the kid was riding the brake pedal? Yup. Brake lights on the whole time I could see the car.

If you're trying to catch me in an inconsistency, it won't happen.

...besides... we ALL know that people in cars don't yield to bicycles and we (bicyclists) certainly never have the ROW no matter what the signs say.

Thinking about lane sharing here in the DC area a little more. I'm curious how many people would actually ride something with 2 wheels if it were actually legal...

As it is, where's the benefit? Sit there in your gear alternately freezing or sweating your nethers off to act like a car? No thanks.

Now, if we were allowed to lane share, I'd bet that there'd be an amazing number of motos on the road. ...which would mean a subsequent decrease in the # of cars.

AFAI'm concerned, win-win. I/we get to have fun riding to work and you/they have fewer cars to deal with.

M

I was just woundering how you felt about others "playing on your lawn".

I've noticed that more often than not, folks who take liberties are often the first to cry foul when it's turned about.

While I may disavree with you, I will say kudos for having a sense of fair play.

Private property is rooted in, and protected by, violence and the threat of violence.

I believe in North Carolina lane splitting is allowed like it is in CA, where it is not specifically forbidden.
http://www.americanmotorcyclist.com/Rights/State-Laws.aspx?stateid=33
I don't know if it is common there or not.

I split/filter do whatever I need to to keep moving. I go right by cops, not a fvck is given.

http://www.motohouston.com/forums/showthread.php?t=236421

I know that I'm an obstacle on the road. Note: I didn't say 'in the way.' So I try and make it fairly easy to get around me when its safe If it isn't safe, I'm pretty wide.

I've noticed that the people that kvetch the loudest are the ones that are most likely to do the offending action too so I try and not do the things I kvetch about. Most times it works.

If you've got the cojones to share lanes here in the DC area, I'm gonna make it easy for ya not the opposite. I'm all for it! If more of us did it, more would do it, and we'd ALL win.

M

Ditto and Ditto.

No doubt. After being rear ended on the bike once and twice in my truck I hate sitting in a traffic jam with a target on my back. But road raging assholes scare me even worse than getting rear ended.

So I don't do it. But if I see somebody doing it they get as much room as I can give. Same for intersections. I would love to see more people do it. I just don't care to be an early adopter in this road raging hell.

The one idiot in a truck I mentioned above? He saw me coming from a few cars over and started to hug the lane lines.

I saw him from a few cars back. Its actually pretty easy to spot problems before they're problems if you lane share enough. This one was obvious from a ways back.

So I keep moseying up the middle as this guy's getting closer and closer to the lane lines.

I see him in his rear view mirror looking at me with an evil eye

So I slowed down just to see what he was gonna do.

Mind you, I'm in stop and go traffic. He'll move maybe 10' at a time so I have PLENTY of time to assess the sitation.

So he's all the way over on the line. I could see the daggers in the rear view. He's thinking he's 'teaching me a lesson.'

So I wait till he's darn near over into the other lane

...and just go around him the other way.

I don't remember if I told him he was #1 but I doubt it. IIRC I was too busy laughing and waving at him. After all, I'm around him with very little hassle. He's stuck in traffic. I'm moving. He's pissed off. I'm not.

All in all there was really no need for me to do anything but shake my head in amazement and keep going.

...and this was on a GS-Adv WITH the Adv bags! Point being: there's more room in the lanes than people think.

M

I do the same thing on the motorcycle too. You wanna pass? Great! Let me move over so you can attract the attention.

Be my guest.

...but... If I wanna go round, don't give me a ration of shit about it either. Its MY driving record.

M

I noticed that too and I actually emailed the NC DMV on it and they just replied and said it was illegal. I'm sure you could argue it in court if ticketed. My sister's boyfriend is a cop and I asked him if I could do it and he said that if traffic was stopped or at an almost standstill and you're going through slowly he wouldn't have a problem with it. But that's him. Other police may not think so. They would probably ticket you for reckless driving. Here in Winston Salem, it is backed up on a occasion but not every day. Raleigh and Charlotte are different. Maybe it depends on the city? DC is huge, NYC is huge, Atlanta is huge. Cops got a lot of other stuff going on with traffic than wether or not some guy is filtering the way I described above.

My biggest fear really is not so much riding between the cars because you're gone by the time they see you. It would be getting through and a cop stopping you then you have to stand there all embarrassed as the cars you had gone by earlier honk, wave, and give you the middle finger.

My "betters"?
If that were true you certainly wouldn't be in this conversation, Spanky.

I'd like to say if I met you guys I'd buy you a beer but I think I'd buy you a box of binkies and bandaids because much of what I see here is crying and crashing.
Save a few of those because a year from now when this thread is forgotten and I'm gone, you'll be back here crying about how you "had to lay it down" or how you lost in a game of chicken while splitting.

I've been 'splitting' for 25 years and haven't "had to lay 'er down" yet.

Of course you haven't had to lay her down while splitting but I bet you've taken out your share of other people's mirrors. Those are exceptable losses thou? right?
I was walking through the parking lot the other day and I bumped someones mirror with my arm and felt bad about it, I couldn't imagine being the kind of person that could hit their mirror with my vehicle and not give a damn or better yet, blame them because you hit their mirror, why are they driving on your goddamn road anyway.