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FINALLY - Lane Sharing is supported in CA

I had to pinch myself on the DMV handbook deal :laughing

Truly awesome.

It will be interesting to compare the new survey vs old given the media stuff. However I still run across moto peeps that did not know he CHP had issued the guidelines. :facepalm

Still looking forward to it.
 
Hoorah. I always try to make an appreciative wave at the motorists who move to the side a little.
 
This is all awesome news!! To all those involved doing the grunt work, thank you very much. It's appreciated. It's great news. :thumbup

I think it's a very positive step forward for us a motorcyclists being recognized and supported on this issue of Lane Sharing/Splitiing by the CHP, the Ca. Office of Traffic Safety and the DMV. The hope that it will be included in Drivers Education is awesome. It will bring written and visual awareness and education to people who drive with a valid California drivers license. The hope that it will be included in their education and testing to receive a California driving license is great for all of us and in turn will probably make them more tolerant of us who lane split knowing for sure it's legal for us to do so.
 
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Sergeant Mark Pope, Statewide Coordinator for the California Motorcyclists Safety Program and the guy who's been quoted in damn near every media mention about the CHP lane splitting guidelines, graciously took some time out this week to have a quick chat with me for LaneSplittingIsLegal.com. Check out the interview here.
 
One thing came out of that interview that I hadn't seen before:
We categorize vehicles moving between traffic in three basic ways:
Filtering – a vehicle slowly moving between stopped traffic to reach the front.
Sharing – two vehicles, moving or static, which are side by side within the same lane.
Splitting – a process whereby a vehicle moves between stopped or slower moving traffic in a safe and reasonable manner.
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It's good to have that clarified.
 
ScottRNelson said:
One thing came out of that interview that I hadn't seen before:

It's good to have that clarified.
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Yeah - I thought so too. I like to just keep it simple and say "splitting" (and have been for many years) but it was really interesting that they segment it out that way.
 
monkeyneck said:
Sergeant Mark Pope, Statewide Coordinator for the California Motorcyclists Safety Program and the guy who's been quoted in damn near every media mention about the CHP lane splitting guidelines, graciously took some time out this week to have a quick chat with me for LaneSplittingIsLegal.com. Check out the interview here.
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That is great info! Thanks.

Would you mind if I shared this Q&A you provided on another motorcycle forum?

I thought it would be good to share.
 
Hutch said:
That is great info! Thanks.

Would you mind if I shared this Q&A you provided on another motorcycle forum?

I thought it would be good to share.
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That'd be great - share away! Just please provide a link to the source. :thumbup
 
From CHP website:
- Riders should not weave back and forth between lanes or ride on top of the line.
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Does anyone know the reasoning behind this? I normally stay on one side of the dotted line UNLESS a wide vehicle forces me to cross over. I personally see nothing wrong with crossing over, nor do I see anything wrong with riding the line, as long as there aren't any raised reflectors on it.

Years ago, LEO's reserved the right to cite you if you crossed the line without signaling. They said lane sharing was OK, but lane splitting wasn't. Flash forward to today, I'd like to know if we can still get ticketed for doing that.
 
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Reli said:
From CHP website:


Does anyone know the reasoning behind this? I normally stay on one side of the dotted line UNLESS a wide vehicle forces me to cross over. I personally see nothing wrong with crossing over, nor do I see anything wrong with riding the line, as long as there aren't any raised reflectors on it.

Years ago, LEO's reserved the right to cite you if you crossed the line without signaling. They said lane sharing was OK, but lane splitting wasn't. Flash forward to today, I'd like to know if we can still get ticketed for doing that.
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Since lane splitting isn't defined in the vehicle code it's tough to say what exactly you can and can't do. There are a whole slew of violations you can be cited for should an officer decide that you're doing it wrong. Everybody, including the LEOs, understand that you can't really split lanes without crossing the line or riding awfully close to it. The best advice is to not draw attention to yourself and for the most part that would be following the guidelines adopted by all the different agencies.
 
boney said:
The best advice is to not draw attention to yourself and for the most part that would be following the guidelines adopted by all the different agencies.
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This
 
monkeyneck said:
Yeah - I thought so too. I like to just keep it simple and say "splitting" (and have been for many years) but it was really interesting that they segment it out that way.
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In San Francisco, I frequently see motorcyclists and "scooterists" passing on the R in the bicycle lane (or when there isn't a bicycle lane) to get to the front of a line of cars at either a red light or stop sign (usually when there is only one lane in their direction). This sounds a *bit* like filtering, but I can't believe it is legal to do so.

Thoughts, anyone?
 
boney said:
Since lane splitting isn't defined in the vehicle code it's tough to say what exactly you can and can't do. There are a whole slew of violations you can be cited for should an officer decide that you're doing it wrong. Everybody, including the LEOs, understand that you can't really split lanes without crossing the line or riding awfully close to it. The best advice is to not draw attention to yourself and for the most part that would be following the guidelines adopted by all the different agencies.
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Makes sense, thanks
 
JPaul said:
In San Francisco, I frequently see motorcyclists and "scooterists" passing on the R in the bicycle lane (or when there isn't a bicycle lane) to get to the front of a line of cars at either a red light or stop sign (usually when there is only one lane in their direction). This sounds a *bit* like filtering, but I can't believe it is legal to do so.

Thoughts, anyone?
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Using the bicycle lane is illegal AFAIK.

But filtering up to the light isn't. I don't see how it makes a difference whether there's 1 lane or 2.
 
Reli said:
From CHP website:


Does anyone know the reasoning behind this? I normally stay on one side of the dotted line UNLESS a wide vehicle forces me to cross over. I personally see nothing wrong with crossing over, nor do I see anything wrong with riding the line, as long as there aren't any raised reflectors on it.

Years ago, LEO's reserved the right to cite you if you crossed the line without signaling. They said lane sharing was OK, but lane splitting wasn't. Flash forward to today, I'd like to know if we can still get ticketed for doing that.
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(all IMHO)

There's nothing wrong with crossing over the line when you need to, but habitually weaving back and forth is bad.

Most lanes do have reflectors. Riding over them constantly will significantly reduce your ability to steer and stop.

Also, the way they do road maintenance here, there are often seams between the lanes due to road maintenance. If a bad seam catches your front wheel, you could be in for a bad day. Best not to ride the line. Even six inches to one side or the other makes a big difference.
 
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