If you’re a motorcyclist in California, you love the freedom to split lanes, which also dissects the amount of time spent on the road. If you do not ride a bike, or you’re a visitor to the Golden State, you’ve likely been startled during your commute by a thundering, lane splitting motorcycle and cursed the rider while wondering how so many bikers get away with it.
Needless to say, the California Highway Patrol gets complaints on the issue along with every imaginable reason why riders should be cited. Hence, here are some things the CHP would like you to know, KTLA reported.
Lane splitting or lane sharing is legal in California. It remains the only state that allows motorcycles the privilege to pass through when traffic has slowed or stopped altogether. Moreover, the CHP wrote the safety guidelines for the practice, which was approved by the governor in 2016.
One reason is that lane sharing has been going on in California ever since motorcycles have been on the freeway, so it was important to set some ground rules, CHP Motorcycle Officer Brian O’Toole said.
However, the major reason is that it makes time spent on the freeway shorter, not only for motorcyclists but for people in four-wheel automobiles as well.
“As motorcycles are moving through, splitting the lanes … that’s one less vehicle occupying that lane,” O’Toole noted.
“It’s saving the average motorist in a car time … If we were to all of a sudden not allow lane splitting anymore, that’s a motorcycle sitting in the lane ahead of them,” O’Toole said.
A veteran rider provided additional thoughts that affirm the CHP’s rationale.
“If I was not allowed to split lanes, I wouldn’t sit in hot, jammed-up freeway traffic on my bike. I’d be in my air conditioned truck,” said one rider who has been splitting lanes for more than 43 years, according to Law Officer. “I recently moved to another state and had to break the habit. It’s horrible. If I know I’m going to hit congestion where I currently live, I’ll drive, not ride since the heat coming off the roadway is considerable hotter than the ambient temperature.”
Nevertheless, just because the motorcyclist has the CHP on their side when it comes to lane splitting or lane sharing, it doesn’t mean they are allowed to do so with reckless abandon.
“It’s still a privilege … We’re the only state left, so it’s a privilege for us to do this,” O’Toole said
The CHP’s guidelines say bikers should only split lanes when the flow of traffic is 40 mph or less, and not travel more than 10 mph faster than the vehicles surrounding them.
However, the rules are not codified, O’Toole said. It is still up to an officer’s discretion as to whether the motorcyclist’s actions are deemed unsafe and a citation is justified.
When lane sharing in the carpool lane, motorcyclists are not allowed to cross in and out unless there is a designated opening, the CHP confirmed, according to KTLA.
“You’re not anymore privileged than a car would be to jump into that carpool lane,” O’Toole said.
Motorcycles are supposed to be sharing a lane on one side or the other. They should not cross over unless there’s a broken line marking an entry and exit point.
O’Toole suggested that drivers can help, too.
“Move over to the left or right, depending on which lane you’re in, and create a little bit of a gap for motorcyclists to safely pass. It’s a win-win situation for both,” O’Toole said.
