[AzCal Retred]

Colorado Legalizes Lane Filtering
By Rider Magazine Staff -April 9, 2024

Colorado has passed a bill to allow motorcycles to lane filter between stopped cars, becoming the fifth state to legalize it after California, Utah, Montana, and Arizona.

Lane sharing remains a controversial topic. In his article “Split Decision: Are Lane Splitting and Lane Filtering Safe?” Eric Trow references studies to show the effects of lane sharing in states where it is legal and found that the practice reduces the risk of rear-end collisions and reduces injuries, although it also introduces some new risks. You can find a deeper dive into the topic of lane sharing by reading Trow’s article.  << see link in article >>

The Colorado bill goes into effect on Aug. 7, 2024, and it will allow motorcyclists to filter through stopped traffic at a speed of 15 mph or less. For more information on the bill, read the American Motorcyclists Association’s press release below.

[him a layin]

there are many things which, while legal, do not strike me as smart

[axman88]

I applaud Colorado's new legislation.  I use filtering here in Illinois, and this practice alone typically trims ~30% off my commute time vs traveling the same route in my 4 wheeled vehicles. 

They "sell" any traffic legislation with talk about safety, but there's more to it than that.  Smaller, lighter vehicles, on the road for shorter periods of time use substantially less fuel, and light vehicles produce radically less wear on roads.  Encouraging light vehicle traffic is a much more effective path to win/win economic benefits than regulating and taxing heavier vehicles.

Personally, I think that seeing two wheeled riders slipping by them as they are stuck in traffic, is one of the MOST persuasive arguments one can make to a car driver to get them to buy a motorcycle and it's entirely non-verbal, non confrontational, and takes no effort.  We need more members in our club, if we have any hope of putting up political defenses in future fights for our right to ride.

So, get out there and cut in front of people to save motorcycling!

[zimmemr]

I've split lanes a few times when riding through LA traffic, it's a little spooky at first, especially during rush hour, but once you get the hang of it not too bad and saves an enormous amount of time. Here in CT it's illegal, but there's rarely enough traffic to worry about it. 

Overall, I think it's a good idea, but you have to get the everyone onboard with it. I've seen guys block lanes, open their car doors, you name it to prevent guys from splitting lanes.

[axman88]

Overall, I think it's a good idea, but you have to get the everyone onboard with it. I've seen guys block lanes, open their car doors, you name it to prevent guys from splitting lanes.

I bet that making it LEGAL will do a lot towards reducing that kind of antagonistic activity.  My brother in San Diego who rides says that drivers in CA have now become so conditioned to lane splitting, that they expect and anticipate motorcycles to be BETWEEN lanes, to the extent that if he decides to ride WITHIN a lane, he needs to be super vigilant and protective of the space.

Filtering, (or splitting in the CA model for that matter), involves LOW relative speeds.  At 15 mph, I have no problem stopping or swerving to avoid a car door, or more importantly, a pedestrian crossing mid block between the stopped queue of cars, or a stray dog.  At the slow relative speeds, I've never been doored.  Who wants to open their door and find they can't close it again because a motorcycles front tire is in the space, and there is a pissed off looking, 6 foot guy in a black leather jacket standing right next to them?  Also, by waiting until traffic is essentially stopped before revealing my movement to filter, individual vehicles are left with no ability to maneuver into a blocking position even if they decide they want to.  They can't move sideways.

Big bike guys on their "real" motorcycles may be stuck in the queue, but on the small, highly maneuverable machines I prefer for urban commuting, like my 150cc scooter, or 250cc Suzuki, it's no problem to pass "that one guy" who has decided he needs to block on the parked car side, by circling around on his left side.  Here in the city, one already has to be cognizant of an assortment of different modes of travel.  That space is already populated with bicycles, electric stand-up scooters, and more, all of which have legal right to the road.  Even bicyclists can't legally ride on the sidewalk.  The 4 wheeled folks HAVE to share, no matter how entitled they feel, or ignorant of the rules of the road they are.

What I'd like to see here in Chicago, is law enforcement enforcing the right of way of bicyclists.  The city built 420 miles of bike lanes, but I've never seen, nor heard of any car driver being cited for encroaching on these lanes, using them to pass on the right, parking in them, etc etc.  Meanwhile, hundreds of cyclists have died, in so called "protected" bicycle lanes and bikeways.  The city built the infrastructure, but did nothing to shift the mindset of car drivers away from the car centered culture of 50 years ago.  I hate to say it, but it will probably take an expensive class action judgement to get any change to occur.

[Richard230]

My lane sharing experience in California is that too many motorcyclists split lanes at high speeds, even when the auto traffic is moving at the legal limit. Just today I saw someone splitting lanes and weaving back and forth from one lane to another. At least his sport bike didn't have a loud pipe. The cops never seem to enforce the adopted rules of the practice, likely because it would be too dangerous for them to do so. Of course, every day there are traffic reports of several freeway accidents involving motorcycle riders.

On the other hand, car drivers are not helping matters, either. This weekend there were four "side shows" where drivers take over an intersection and ride around and around, surrounded by a large crowd of onlookers. And one of those events were held on the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge early Sunday morning, completely shutting down one direction of the bridge. Only four people were arrested, two teenagers, who were let go and two adults who were arrested, but the other 70 or so people got away.