2015 Anti-Lane Splitting Bill (Assembly Bill 51)

[fubar929]

You guys are awesome! Somebody tries to defend your rights and your knee-jerk reaction is to kick them in the balls! Bravo!

Remember: lane sharing is currently not explicitly legal in California. It also isn't explicitly illegal.

Remember: the DMV and CHP recently dropped their lane-sharing guidelines under legislative pressure.

What do you think the next step in this progression is? You're doing something that isn't explicitly legal and the state government always needs more money... How long before CHP starts ticketing everybody in the state who shares lanes regardless of the manner in which they do it? If you receive one of those tickets, how are you going to fight it? Please, feel free to cite specific sections of the current CVC that show lane sharing by motorcycles is legally allowed.

I haven't read the text of the bill but from the discussion here it sounds like it would enshrine into law the ability of motorcyclists to share lanes and the prior CHP guidelines for when it is permissible. That would presumably give the CHP (and other LEOs) much less opportunity to ticket those who share lanes. Personally, I would love to see lane sharing become explicitly legal rather than continuing to exist in the current legal gray area...

[rodr]

Originally Posted by rodr

Just sent Quirk an email asking him to explain the reasoning for the bill. Didn't indicate if I support or oppose it. Will post up if/when there is a reply.

Well here's my reply:

Thank you for emailing Assemblymember.Quirk@asm.ca.gov. This is no longer a valid email address. Emails sent to this address will not be processed. In order to expedite our response please submit your comments through our website www.assembly.ca.gov/quirk.

We apologize for the inconvenience. If you need additional assistance please contact my District Office at (510) 583-8818.

And using the form on the web site (which BTW makes no mention of the bill) gives me this:

Address is not in District.
Please contact your District Representative.

[Stormdragon]

Originally Posted by revnort

It looks like this makes the CHP suggestions law. It isn't anti lane splitting bill...Although I agree it should be squashed:

(c)**(1)**A motorcycle, as defined in Section 400, may be driven
line 14 between rows of stopped or moving vehicles in the same lane,
line 15 including both divided and undivided streets, roads, or highways,
line 16 if both of the following conditions are present:
line 17 (A)**The speed of traffic moving in the same direction is 35 miles
line 18 per hour or less.
line 19 (B)**The motorcycle is not driven more than 10 miles per hour
line 20 faster than the speed of traffic moving in the same direction.
line 21 (2)**This subdivision does not authorize a motorcycle to be driven
line 22 in contravention of other laws relating to the safe operation of a
line 23 vehicle.

So if the Officer decides traffic was moving at 36MPH, or that you were passing with an 11MPH differential.....

Currently, if an officer of the law wants to, you can get a lanesplitting ticket written up a number of ways that will hold up in court. Unsafe passing, passing on the right, reckless, etc. No real need to come up with a new law IMHO.

[revnort]

Originally Posted by fubar929

You guys are awesome! Somebody tries to defend your rights and your knee-jerk reaction is to kick them in the balls! Bravo!

Remember: lane sharing is currently not explicitly legal in California. It also isn't explicitly illegal.

There is no law prohibiting it, so it is legal. To use the old, there is no law explicitly saying you are legally allowed to eat a sandwich.

Originally Posted by Stormdragon

So if the Officer decides traffic was moving at 36MPH, or that you were passing with an 11MPH differential.....

Currently, if an officer of the law wants to, you can get a lanesplitting ticket written up a number of ways that will hold up in court. Unsafe passing, passing on the right, reckless, etc. No real need to come up with a new law IMHO.

I agree with you. I am not proposing the law is good.

Although I will say I see enforcement of this being pretty tough. Even if it passed (again, I am all for fighting it), I don't see anything actually changing...assuming that it stayed as it is written now.

[ScottRNelson]

Originally Posted by fubar929

Please, feel free to cite specific sections of the current CVC that show lane sharing by motorcycles is legally allowed.

And maybe you could show us a law that says that breathing air is legally allowed.

You guys that argue that it's "not explicitly legal in California. It also isn't explicitly illegal" have a weak argument.

It is legal if there is no law stating otherwise.

[fubar929]

Originally Posted by revnort

There is no law prohibiting it, so it is legal. To use the old, there is no law explicitly saying you are legally allowed to eat a sandwich.

Luckily, eating a sandwich probably won't get you cited for violating CVC 21658(a). Lane sharing, on the other hand...

[revnort]

Originally Posted by fubar929

Luckily, eating a sandwich probably won't get you cited for violating CVC 21658(a). Lane sharing, on the other hand...

You've been cited for this? You know many people that have?

I'd bet that it is extremely rare, and when it does happen it is easily fought. Assuming that is the only violation.

[fubar929]

Originally Posted by ScottRNelson

And maybe you could show us a law that says that breathing air is legally allowed.

You guys that argue that it's "not explicitly legal in California. It also isn't explicitly illegal" have a weak argument.

It is legal if there is no law stating otherwise.

Sounds great! And when you're cited for violating 21658(a) you're going to tell the judge... what, exactly?

[revnort]

Originally Posted by fubar929

Sounds great! And when you're cited for violating 21658(a) you're going to tell the judge... what, exactly?

Again, is this a huge problem I am unaware of? Tons of motorcyclists getting cited for unsafe lane changes? The CHP is one of the major proponents behind CA riders ability to lane share...except for a few isolated incidents I really have not heard about this crackdown on lanesharers you indicate is a problem.

I don't see the point in creating a law that limits the legality of what we do in order to solve this non-existent issue.

As already stated if you are being a knob then there are plenty of citations you can get.

[fubar929]

Originally Posted by revnort

You've been cited for this? You know many people that have?

I haven't, but if you google for lane sharing it seems to be the most common citation.

I'd bet that it is extremely rare, and when it does happen it is easily fought. Assuming that is the only violation.

How would you fight this citation? Much like speeding, this would seem to be something that it entirely up to the citing officer's discretion and very difficult to beat since they're always given the benefit of the doubt.

[fubar929]

Originally Posted by revnort

Again, is this a huge problem I am unaware of? Tons of motorcyclists getting cited for unsafe lane changes? The CHP is one of the major proponents behind CA riders ability to lane share...except for a few isolated incidents I really have not heard about this crackdown on lanesharers you indicate is a problem.

Work on your reading comprehension: I didn't say this was happening but there is nothing in the current vehicle code to prevent it from happing on a much wider scale.

[revnort]

Originally Posted by fubar929

I haven't, but if you google for lane sharing it seems to be the most common citation.

How would you fight this citation? Much like speeding, this would seem to be something that it entirely up to the citing officer's discretion and very difficult to beat since they're always given the benefit of the doubt.

See my last post. This does not seem to be an epidemic I am aware of. I lanesplit daily and have for years.

I've received one ticket and that was for speeding, and I deserved it. The chippie did not cite me for the split past two people playing the penis game. Only the speed.

[Chill]

Originally Posted by RightCoastBias

There's no reason California needs another law.

Originally Posted by mlm

... Cops already have discretion to issue tickets for reckless driving. While I agree with the CHP guidelines in 90% of circumstances, I don't see the benefit of turning them into law.

+ a whole lot...

Lane Sharing, as it is set up now, are guidelines that are at the discretion of the CHP to enforce or not. This is much better than having laws in place that require enforcement. I can see how people may interpret the law as creating clear and definitive rules for sharing, but it opens the door for more restrictions.

[revnort]

Originally Posted by fubar929

Work on your reading comprehension: I didn't say this was happening but there is nothing in the current vehicle code to prevent it from happing on a much wider scale.

So add a law to prevent it from potentially happening? Again, the CHP is and always have been arguably the largest force behind keeping the practice legal here. If they changed that tune then we might have reason to worry, but I don't see it happening.

Regarding my reading comprehension, I read your posts just fine so keep your BS insults to yourself.

[phocup]

Originally Posted by /dev/null

I was thinking about who would benefit if lanesplitting were outlawed. Then it hit me, it would make self-driving vehicles that much easier to develop if they didn't have to account for motorcycles. Then I ran across this from an article on self driving cars,

From - http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/popu...-driving-cars/

Then you look at who specifically is proposing these bills, SB350 and AB51, it's legislators located in or close to the South Bay. Jim Beall (San Jose) and Bill Quirk (Hayward/Fremont). Then you have Google which is developing self-driving cars close by. I'd like to see how much money those legislators receive from businesses and employees of businesses that are developing self driving cars.

I'm a frequent A&R reader but some how missed that self driving car post. Thanks for linking to it. I definitely could believe there's some big money behind these "initiatives" with the ultimate goal of outlawing lane splitting to smooth out the path to the "robot car" culture.