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Bay Area Riders Forum official Lane Splitting Guidelines

Turning the question around, if you were splitting at 5 mph and came up behind a rider who was stopped in the split, what would you prefer he do?
 
tzrider said:
Turning the question around, if you were splitting at 5 mph and came up behind a rider who was stopped in the split, what would you prefer he do?
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Honestly I’d probably just wait. If it exceeded a minute or so I might give the rider a little honk to get moving.

But I get your point. I need to speed up when I split or stay out of the way.
 
erok81 said:
Honestly I’d probably just wait. If it exceeded a minute or so I might give the rider a little honk to get moving.

But I get your point. I need to speed up when I split or stay out of the way.
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I really don't think tzrider was recommending that you speed up.

FWIW, I think it is very sensible for you to limit your speed differential to 5-10mph. Stuff can happen, and until you've gained more experience, lower speeds will give you time to react to unanticipated incursions.

But other riders will be comfortable at higher speed, so you have to watch your six and get out of the way when a faster splitter comes along. There are exceptions, of course, but there will usually be a gap to move into so you won't hold up another rider very long.
 
erok81 said:
What are the rules for an upcoming rider thats trying to pass during lane splitting?
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Like anything in life, be courteous and let the faster rider pass when a safe opportunity presents itself. That said, the faster rider also needs to be courteous and not expect that you are able to instantly get out of their way. Don't let the other rider pressure you into taking action that you are uncomfortable with; provided you are not putting the other rider at greater risk, you should not be compromising your safety for the sake of their expediency.
 
I think the proper protocol is acknowledge the rider and look for a gap to allow them by. If they are impatient beyond your safety shrug it off. They can find a way around.

Being aware is step one and stay safe is priority one.
 
Budman and Cal Scott have it right. Look for a gap where you can safely give the other rider the split, and don't needlessly endanger yourself by speeding up past your comfort zone or diving into a bad situation from the split. It's courtesy, and safety has precedence over courtesy.

The other rider may be equally courteous, and is revbombing to ensure that you've noticed him. Or he may be a clown, and have unreasonable expectations. Ignore him, outside of the courtesy.
 
budman said:
I think the proper protocol is acknowledge the rider and look for a gap to allow them by. If they are impatient beyond your safety shrug it off. They can find a way around.

Being aware is step one and stay safe is priority one.
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^ this. It is not your job to accommodate, at speed or slow splitting- unless you can do so safely and within your comfort level. There are plenty of other ways for them to get around, if they can't handle that- they got no business splitting. That said, keep a good lookout and scoot over earlier if its doable.
 
erok81 said:
I usually split really slow. Like 5-10mph (closer to five though) and when traffics moving 30+ I don’t split. So I’m sure this annoys a lot of riders behind me. I’m constantly checking mirrors to make sure I’m not in the way. But occasionally I’ll miss someone.
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:thumbup

cal scott said:
Like anything in life, be courteous and let the faster rider pass when a safe opportunity presents itself. That said, the faster rider also needs to be courteous and not expect that you are able to instantly get out of their way. Don't let the other rider pressure you into taking action that you are uncomfortable with; provided you are not putting the other rider at greater risk, you should not be compromising your safety for the sake of their expediency.
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budman said:
I think the proper protocol is acknowledge the rider and look for a gap to allow them by. If they are impatient beyond your safety shrug it off. They can find a way around.

Being aware is step one and stay safe is priority one.
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NorCalBusa said:
^ this. It is not your job to accommodate, at speed or slow splitting- unless you can do so safely and within your comfort level. There are plenty of other ways for them to get around, if they can't handle that- they got no business splitting. That said, keep a good lookout and scoot over earlier if its doable.
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:thumbup:thumbup:thumbup
 
Attention to these two items from the CHP Lanesplitting Tips...
  • Riding on the shoulder is illegal; it is not considered lane splitting.
  • Be visible -- Avoid remaining in the blind spots of other vehicles or lingering between vehicles.
...and this one under "More Risk" in the BARF Guidelines...

  • Intersections and crosswalks in the city.
...could have prevented a crash yesterday here (Google Maps link) in San Diego:

attachment.php


Stopped eastbound traffic (in the direction of the silver car) had opened a gap to allow a westbound driver to enter the driveway on the right. But an eastbound Harley rider using the bicycle lane passed the stopped traffic and hit the left-turning car. His injuries are not life-threatening.

That isn't what we normally think of as a "blind spot", but it is one--and it may be doubly blind. The driver about to enter your path can't see you, and you can't see the threatening vehicle.
 
DataDan said:
Stopped eastbound traffic (in the direction of the silver car) had opened a gap to allow a westbound driver to enter the driveway on the right. But an eastbound Harley rider using the bicycle lane passed the stopped traffic and hit the left-turning car. His injuries are not life-threatening.

That isn't what we normally think of as a "blind spot", but it is one--and it may be doubly blind. The driver about to enter your path can't see you, and you can't see the threatening vehicle.
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"Blind spot" might not be the usual terminology for that, but it's a gap, and an obvious one, and should be treated as such. I'm not trying to be all victim blame-y, but riding in the bike lane into such a gap without serious caution is a double-dumb move. Gaps in stopped traffic don't happen for no reason—there could be obstacles that you can't see, a person could be walking through there, or a vehicle could be coming through, as in this case.

However, the link you posted doesn't say anything about the bike lane: "The motorcyclist, a 36-year-old man on a Harley Davidson, was heading eastbound in the right lane and was on the right of the stopped vehicles when the bike ran into the Lexus as the car was pulling into the business complex parking lot, Heims said."

Nor does this one, although that one has a note that it was modified. Maybe it was updated and that language removed. Busted tibia and fibula is no fun, though.

Same applies, of course, bike lane or not—gaps are gaps, and gaps are dangerous.
 
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Even before seeing this, I agreed with the "Don't Split Past Trucks" advice. Yeeesh.
 
Lucky to be alive.

I saw one where a truck was stopped and a rider fell over trying to get by and fell under the rear wheel. The trucker had no idea and went as the light just turned green. The outcome was not as good as the above as you can imagine. :(
 
That one did not look survivable. Glad to see the rider was moving around after the truck passed.
Still not sure how.
....and yeah, I most certainly pick my spots when split past those things.
You will never, ever see me between the right side of any vehicle and a curb....ever.
 
Had our first CMSP advisory committee meeting in over a year yesterday. Reminder of helping with the CHP guidelines and the good people that helped make ours.

Good times.

A lot of you are getting back to sharing the lane as traffic comes back. More good times when the guidelines are applied too. ;)

You may be a little rusty with the virally open roads over the last year.

Just :2cents on getting back in the groove with a side of smarts.
 
I'm sure this has been said, but limit your time in the blindspot of drivers, and pay attention to the shape and size of that blindspot as it changes with vehicle type.

I see this very frequently: riders in between lanes, just chilling with their front wheel along side the rear bumper of the cars in front of them. If you're going to ride along with traffic, get back into a safe position.
 
Single lane split : is there such a thing? A single lane /cars are backed up at the traffic light. Can you split the single lane to move forward?
 
It is no longer a split by definition but I think you can share without breaking the law.
 
If I fits, I splits, but threading the needle with oncoming traffic is putting too much faith in drivers abilities to stay in their lane so I tend to avoid it unless I'm working around stopped cars at one of those road construction lights.
 
erok81 said:
I usually split really slow. Like 5-10mph (closer to five though) and when traffics moving 30+ I don’t split. So I’m sure this annoys a lot of riders behind me. I’m constantly checking mirrors to make sure I’m not in the way. But occasionally I’ll miss someone.
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Obviously late to respond, but I'm bored at work.

I would strongly suggest approaching slow, but then speeding up during the actual pass - the less time spent between vehicles the better.

Relatedly, if I'm in a full lane and not splitting but I'm not going much faster than the car on my right, because there's something ahead of me, I will typically speed up briefly to get level with the front of their vehicle, just so they see me. Even if I'm forced to drop back because my lane slows down, that guy to my right knows I'm there. He may forget, but it's better than him never knowing...

@erok81, seven years after you posted your thoughts, what's your lane-splitting tolerance now?
 
senpai71 said:
Obviously late to respond, but I'm bored at work.

I would strongly suggest approaching slow, but then speeding up during the actual pass - the less time spent between vehicles the better.

Relatedly, if I'm in a full lane and not splitting but I'm not going much faster than the car on my right, because there's something ahead of me, I will typically speed up briefly to get level with the front of their vehicle, just so they see me. Even if I'm forced to drop back because my lane slows down, that guy to my right knows I'm there. He may forget, but it's better than him never knowing...

@erok81, seven years after you posted your thoughts, what's your lane-splitting tolerance now?
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I do the same. I try to get out of the split sandwich as quickly as possible which usually means a twist of the throttle. And in non-splitting scenarios I will do whatever I can to get out of the blind spot of vehicles in adjacent lanes which is usually a judgment call between reducing following distance or reducing speed.
 
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