Lane splitting/filtering: the legal and commonsense answers

[Snails pace]

Oh yep I wasn't going to start doing it for a while but it was just so tempting!
Completely gridlocked traffic so I had a shot... was easy.

If you are like me, just take it easy. Am no expert by a long shot, but I have been riding rush hour occasionally up the southern and on up to Warkworth. Today on the way up things were sweet and flowed nicely. On the way back home tonight I pushed the envelope a tad and the gap closed and a gentle scrap of the right handle bar weight reminded me to just look before I leap. No damage to either the bike or 5 tonne truck deck. But those gaps that aren't really gaps can close darn quick.

[Pascal]

Oh yeah, just a few days ago I filtered to the front on Main North Road during evening traffic and some chick in the cage already there sat on the horn till the light changed, pissed she lost pole position I guess...

I don't understand that, honestly. Had it happen to me as well on Saturday as I filtered through a queue of cars to sit on the green bicycle bay at the front of the traffic lights. (It crosses the road inbetween the car bay and the pedestrian crossing)

And for some strange reason one of the motorists got all pissy and started honking his horn constantly. I did not touch anything on my way through, wasn't doing anything illegal and on a motorcycle you're gone before they've even managed to put the latte down or put the car into gear.

Weird man, totally weird.

[MarkH]

I don't understand that, honestly. Had it happen to me as well on Saturday as I filtered through a queue of cars to sit on the green bicycle bay at the front of the traffic lights. (It crosses the road inbetween the car bay and the pedestrian crossing)

And for some strange reason one of the motorists got all pissy and started honking his horn constantly. I did not touch anything on my way through, wasn't doing anything illegal and on a motorcycle you're gone before they've even managed to put the latte down or put the car into gear.

Weird man, totally weird.

Some people are just weird, some people are fuckin' stupid, some people are just the slightest provocation from being angry. Why do you think road rage incidents happen?

A couple of years back I was almost in a road rage incident. I was driving the cage and stopped at a set of lights with 2 right turning lanes, I was in the left of those 2. The lights went green and I turned right, there was a car to my right who was along side of me through the turn and along the straight. Then he almost drove into me when I am along side and slightly ahead of him, he realised I was there at the last second and swerved back into his lane. He then followed me and when I had to stop at another set of lights he got out of his car, came up to my car and started to abuse me verbally. He said "didn't you see my indicator?", I told him that I couldn't as I was along side him at the time.

I believe that the guy got a fright when he almost drove into me and that got his adrenaline going, he most likely hadn't realised that I had been beside him from the right turn onwards and thought I had come up and was passing him on the left while he was indicating to change lanes - from his point of view he was doing every thing right and I had no business being there in his blind spot. He will probably cause an accident one day (maybe he already has).

[R-Soul]

My understanding is the right to use the bus lanes on a motorcycle is a decision made by that city's council. The motorways are land transport and they don't allow motorcycles to use their bus lanes.

Yes, because God forbid that they would want to make life safer for us and reduce ACC payouts...

An arbitrary decision made by some arbitrary thoughtless beaurocrat with no idea of biking or traffic.

[R-Soul]

Split to the right of the car in the same lane at a reasonable speed and it should all be good. If you swap lanes, try to indicate at least.
Someone I don't know did a vid yesterday on the way to te job and the problem is you can clearly see traffic in the right hand lane moving over to make room, whereas left laners move to the right (center). Cagers drive on the right hand side they are more comfortable moving over to the right. Spatial perception or some such naff.
Puts us in a bit of a quandary eh?
Its "illegal" to filter past moving traffic on the left, but the only room available is in that lane on the left. We know it, most cagers know it, but the law doesn't.

The biggest and most obvious thing to watch out for is a large gap between cars. Cages dont move quickly into places where there is no gap. If there is no gap, they have to first indicate and plead with other cages first - so you can see them. If there is a big gap, they can make a quick lurch into it.

[R-Soul]

Most cops don't bother as long as you look like you know what you're doing.

In response to lane splitting in the evening traffic, I must say I get a lot more cautious when its dark, because you can't see nearly as well in your rear view mirrors.

I've done some really stupid lane splitting in my past, but by far the scariest was 240kph pillion on my friend's R6 on a freeway in Johannesburg, passing trucks and busses. Fun!

Was it on the main N1 through Joburg? Was that you? Two Ninjas on a sunday morning? Weaving through traffice at ridiculous speeds?

I have another question: The onramp from Onewa road going into the city is part bus lane and part car lane, merging as it joins the motorway.

Now I know that we are not supposed to be using buslanes on the motorway, but until it joins the motorway, its still the local municipality jurisdiction, so we can use it right? Thats my logic anyway...

Actually, another question: The Shelley Road turnoff south of the Harbour bridge becomes a bus lane. immediately after teh turnoff, an overhead sign says itsa bus lane. But then the road goeas around teh corner and the road markings indicate a merging of lanes before it is very clearly marked as a bus lane on the road. So which is it?

I have seen Mr Plod sitting right where the lanes merge (i.e. around the corner) waiting for people to come around the corner, and pulling people off (not sure what for). But to be fair, if the markings are ambiguious, they should have no right to ticket anyone.

[R-Soul]

I don't understand that, honestly. Had it happen to me as well on Saturday as I filtered through a queue of cars to sit on the green bicycle bay at the front of the traffic lights. (It crosses the road inbetween the car bay and the pedestrian crossing)

And for some strange reason one of the motorists got all pissy and started honking his horn constantly. I did not touch anything on my way through, wasn't doing anything illegal and on a motorcycle you're gone before they've even managed to put the latte down or put the car into gear.

Weird man, totally weird.

I had one bloke try and race me from the line (I did not realise he was even doing so, until he screeched to a halt at the next traffic queue 50m down the road). This was after I split to the front of a queue. He then tried to move as far as he could to my side to block me off. Luckily the car in the lane next to me had left lots of room.

I always drive to leave the smallest traffic "footprint" on teh cars around me -I figure if I dont disrupt their drive, they will appreciate that I am taking the accident protection and weather risk, and reducing congestion, and they then would not mind me making my way through the traffic at a faster rate than cages. But this guy was just a resentful prick in a blue Honda Acccord. He is the reason biker gloves have hardened knuckles - to smash side view mirror off!

PS Scooters are not doing bikers any favours by going to the front of queues and then dawdling off the line - not a small traffic footprint. Its also not particularly safe for them.

[R-Soul]

The biggest and most obvious thing to watch out for is a large gap between cars. Cages dont move quickly into places where there is no gap. If there is no gap, they have to first indicate and plead with other cages first - so you can see them. If there is a big gap, they can make a quick lurch into it.

And if you can find a loud bike to follow, this helps a lot. Its not like my mistress is quiet or anything, but if I hear a ear splitting cruiser coming up behind me, I always let them through as cars hear them quicker, and tend to make way. The quicker I can get a decent set of aftermarket 'zorsts, the better....

[MarkH]

PS Scooters are not doing bikers any favours by going to the front of queues and then dawdling off the line - not a small traffic footprint. Its also not particularly safe for them.

Unless they are bigger ones that easily pull away from most cars at the lights - on my four hundy I have no problem with pulling away from the cars. But yeah, the 50cc mopeds are going to piss of car drivers if they filter to the front and then struggle to reach 40kph.

[Tunahunter]

I've noticed this too - twice yesterday morning - I think it might be push-back by car owners who feel they are subsidising us

[Azi Dahaka]

I have to admit whenever i can i lane split and 9/10 i always only travel between 20 and 30 kms/hr above the other cars and that odd 1/10 time i like to travel faster for the thrill and adrenlin rush though i ride a boulevard c50t so it aint that easy but i always watch out.

what realy shocked me once is when i was going over the rimutakas and two sods on small sports bikes wizzed past me and i cannot go that fast arround corners as my bike is too low to the ground overtaking cars around blind corners on the hill.

i mean i ride fast but not dangerious like that. and by the time i got to the bottom of the hill i over took them on the straight so it is not like they saved any time.

[jetboy]

Had it happen to me as well on Saturday as I filtered through a queue of cars to sit on the green bicycle bay at the front of the traffic lights....

And for some strange reason one of the motorists got all pissy and started honking his horn constantly...

Well that explains it! I split to the front of a relatively large traffic queue up the road from work the other day, parked in the green bike bay up front and the car behind me kept beeping periodically. It wasnt someone I knew, so I thought it might have been a problem with the bike but after checking it out there was nothing wrong, so put it down to some random act.

But he was probably annoyed at me jumping the queue as it would have taken him about 3 phases to get to where he was!

On another note...has anyone actually hit a car while splitting?

[Azi Dahaka]

never while splitting on the motorway but when i first started riding i took out someones wing mirror at the lights once. i did no damage merely pushed is out of the way they didnt seem to care.

[ac3_snow]

PS Scooters are not doing bikers any favours by going to the front of queues and then dawdling off the line - not a small traffic footprint. Its also not particularly safe for them.

AMEN!!!

[rphenix]

The onramp from Onewa road going into the city is part bus lane and part car lane, merging as it joins the motorway.

Now I know that we are not supposed to be using buslanes on the motorway, but until it joins the motorway, its still the local municipality jurisdiction, so we can use it right? Thats my logic anyway...

I also use the onewa bus lane, particularly when its crawling along the overpass. Always been a bit dubious about the legality of it though so when mr is stuck in traffic I tend to stay in the regular lane till I see other bikes go past