Can somebody explain rush hour lane splitting?

[ilikefood]

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if you're splitting to save time then you should be somewhat aware of just how much time you're actually going to save:

Traffic averaging 60 mph:
Time for a car to go 5 miles at 60 mph = 5 minutes
Time for a splitter to go the same 5 miles averaging 75 mph (15 mph delta) = 4 minutes

Over the 5 mile distance you save ONLY ONE MINUTE. And that assumes you split from start to finish averaging 75 mph..

When traffic is moving at 45 mph, splitting for 5 miles at 60 mph buys you less than two minutes (1.67 min).

If you're single, no dependents, no wife, then who cares? Have your fun.

If you have people depending on you then you need to grow up. Because you're NOT doing it to save time.

And if you need to continually split for FIVE MILES "to get away from situations" then not only are you immature, but you're probably a jerk as well, i.e. maybe you're the CAUSE of these situations!

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Your calculation doesn't take into account the fact that splitting let's you get past the slow clump of traffic. So if you keep going at 45 mph, you'll ride the whole distance at 45 mph. But if you split past the slow traffic, you can go much faster. That's the main reason why commuting by motorcycle is so much faster than by car. It's not because you are always going 15 mph faster than cars or whatever, it's because when it takes a car 20 min to get past a slowdown, it takes us 5 min.

 

[Hoppalong]

Your calculation doesn't take into account the fact that splitting let's you get past the slow clump of traffic...

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That's an example in which the result is probably worth the risk. I get that.

I'm talking about when thinking gets put on hold because It's more about the adrenaline rush, and the risk becomes irrelevant.

And I bet that sort of adrenaline-fueled high-risk splitting happens much more than we riders will admit to ourselves.

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[GAJ]

Yup, I rarely split over 10mph delta, 5 when traffic is stopped. I CAN when I HAVE to, but I take enough crashes to know better

Have you ever pulled over a splitter you considered overly aggressive?

 

[Cincinnatus]

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That's an example in which the result is probably worth the risk. I get that.

I'm talking about when thinking gets put on hold because It's more about the adrenaline rush, and the risk becomes irrelevant.

And I bet that sort of adrenaline-fueled high-risk splitting happens much more than we riders will admit to ourselves.

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If your adrenaline does NOT go up as you split, you are complacent and a willing participant in your doom.

You'd better have a heightened sense of awareness to enable you to have that necessary 360-degree view of what's around you.

If you can maintain that heightened sense of awareness and achieve a Zen-state of flow with the bike & your environment, you are likely to be smooth and be like water through the rolling roadblocks we call 'cages' for a reason.

 

[GAJ]

If your adrenaline does NOT go up as you split, you are complacent and a willing participant in your doom.

You'd better have a heightened sense of awareness to enable you to have that necessary 360-degree view of what's around you.

If you can maintain that heightened sense of awareness and achieve a Zen-state of flow with the bike & your environment, you are likely to be smooth and be like water through the rolling roadblocks we call 'cages' for a reason.

Whenever I used to split on my commute it was definitely an adrenaline rush even though I split cautiously.

Moreso than even a spirited pace in the twisties.

Part of the charm.

 

[RightCoastBias]

Moto commuting is better than coffee to wake you up in the AM. I've only driven/take BART into work a few times over the last 4 years, but I always get to work groggy when I do.

 

[Hoppalong]

If you can maintain that heightened sense of awareness and achieve a Zen-state of flow

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The only thing flowing there are feel-good, childish rationalizations, and I rest my case.

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[Cincinnatus]

Then you've never been there. I'm sorry for your loss.

 

[SlideSF]

When I'm commuting, I always want to have an escape available from any situation. If you just "go with the flow" , it won't be long before you get boxed in. Cagers get boxed in all the time. It's part of the deal. But another part of that deal is a dulled awareness of your surroundings. On a bike I need a heightened awareness, and "going with the flow", even at the speed limit, isn't going to give me that. I will split when and where I need to to keep moving and out of harms way. I'm never rude unless I need to be to stay safe.

 

[Tharkûn]

Have you ever pulled over a splitter you considered overly aggressive?

Hardly ever, only remember one which was a supermoto and I gave him a warning because I couldn't blame him

 

[sckego]

Wasn't there a study or something that found the safest speed for motorcycles when on the freeway is 5-10% above the average speed of traffic? Maybe I just made that up because that's about what I normally do. If cars are going 60, I'm usually going 65 or so. That's a very reasonable speed delta.

When splitting though, I probably increase that to a 5-10mph delta over traffic.

You're thinking of the Solomon Curve, which applies to traffic in general, not just motorcycles. It basically shows that as you travel much slower or faster than the mean speed of traffic, the odds of you being in a collision increase dramatically, with the minimum usually *just* above the mean speed, around 5-10kph faster, depending on the study... so yes, traveling ever so slightly faster than the mean speed is statistically the safest speed to be at.

 

[sanjuro]

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if you're splitting to save time then you should be somewhat aware of just how much time you're actually going to save:

Traffic averaging 60 mph:
Time for a car to go 5 miles at 60 mph = 5 minutes
Time for a splitter to go the same 5 miles averaging 75 mph (15 mph delta) = 4 minutes

Over the 5 mile distance you save ONLY ONE MINUTE. And that assumes you split from start to finish averaging 75 mph..

When traffic is moving at 45 mph, splitting for 5 miles at 60 mph buys you less than two minutes (1.67 min).

If you're single, no dependents, no wife, then who cares? Have your fun.

If you have people depending on you then you need to grow up. Because you're NOT doing it to save time.

And if you need to continually split for FIVE MILES "to get away from situations" then not only are you immature, but you're probably a jerk as well, i.e. maybe you're the CAUSE of these situations!

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I would not recommend to anyone to put your bike into cruise control during rush hour. However, there is no Bay Area highway which traffic goes at a consistent speed.

I might go from 10mph to 85 (or faster) in just a 5 mile stretch.

And where I do my high speed splitting depends on the roadway as well. I won't split on a bridge with tight lanes and no shoulder.

The question is will I split at 50mph+? Yes, but not as a consistent pattern.

 

[GAJ]

Hardly ever, only remember one which was a supermoto and I gave him a warning because I couldn't blame him

 

[HappyHighwayman]

If I didn't ride and split it would take me 1.5 hours to get to work instead of 50 minutes.

 

[GAJ]

One thing I never have considered, (reading the RIP thread of the lane splitting Sacramento rider from yesterday) is whether I'd lane split 2 up.

I'm guessing no.

And after reading that thread it is a definite no.

 

[sanjuro]

One thing I never have considered, (reading the RIP thread of the lane splitting Sacramento rider from yesterday) is whether I'd lane split 2 up.

I'm guessing no.

And after reading that thread it is a definite no.

I did it during the BART strike to get my GF to work. I was very careful and I split only when traffic was going less than 25mph.

But I am a very experienced commuter and I know to maintain my balance at slow speeds.

Also, other riders were patient when I was going slower than they were. When I would pull over to let them pass, there were many hand waves given and returned.

 

[Tharkûn]

One thing I never have considered, (reading the RIP thread of the lane splitting Sacramento rider from yesterday) is whether I'd lane split 2 up.

I'm guessing no.

And after reading that thread it is a definite no.

I don't ride 2up, and won't until the last kid is 18, but the bigger issue is dont split past anything with dually axles or a weight sticker

 

[GAJ]

I don't ride 2up, and won't until the last kid is 18, but the bigger issue is dont split past anything with dually axles or a weight sticker

Guilty.

 

[SlideSF]

One thing I never have considered, (reading the RIP thread of the lane splitting Sacramento rider from yesterday) is whether I'd lane split 2 up.

I'm guessing no.

And after reading that thread it is a definite no.

I used to, and felt pretty confident I was being careful. But after my last "accident" (not splitting) I decided not to ride my girlfriend on the back anymore. Being carless, it's an inconvenient decision, but regardless of who was at fault, I couldn't live with myself if anything happened to her.

 

[HeatXfer]

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if you're splitting to save time then you should be somewhat aware of just how much time you're actually going to save:

Traffic averaging 60 mph:
Time for a car to go 5 miles at 60 mph = 5 minutes
Time for a splitter to go the same 5 miles averaging 75 mph (15 mph delta) = 4 minutes

Over the 5 mile distance you save ONLY ONE MINUTE. And that assumes you split from start to finish averaging 75 mph..

When traffic is moving at 45 mph, splitting for 5 miles at 60 mph buys you less than two minutes (1.67 min).

If you're single, no dependents, no wife, then who cares? Have your fun.

If you have people depending on you then you need to grow up. Because you're NOT doing it to save time.

And if you need to continually split for FIVE MILES "to get away from situations" then not only are you immature, but you're probably a jerk as well, i.e. maybe you're the CAUSE of these situations!

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I posted the following in a different thread last week, but it seems to fit better here. (Slightly edited):

In 1989 I commuted from Oakland to San Jose by car - 45miles in 35 min.
I moved to Kensington 1yr later - 51miles in 45min.
Over the next 10yrs that 45min commute grew to >1:15:00

Today, in a car, my 31mile commute takes:
- 1 to 1:15:00 on a good day - (25 - 30mph avg)
- 1:30:00 on an average day - (20mph avg)
- 2hrs+ on a bad day - (15mph avg)
- 2:30:00 on a really bad day - (12.5mph avg)

On a 'bad' day on the moto I can save >1.5hrs
On a 'good' day I save about 40min

On the moto, sharing at the CHP/BARF/Sane recommended ≤15mph △ my 31mile commute takes 35min: just about 53mph avg.​