‘Lane Splitting’ by Motorcyclists Called Legal--and Safe

Dear Street Smart:

Is it legal for motorcyclists to ride between cars? So often, I have seen motorcyclists zip between the lanes on both surface streets and freeways. This seems completely unsafe for both the motorcyclist and the car/truck driver. Surely, this can’t be a legal maneuver.

S. A. Kern, Irvine

It’s called lane splitting and, yes, it’s legal, said Sam Haynes, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol in Sacramento. Also, the CHP believes lane splitting is not necessarily an unsafe maneuver, he said.

In 1992, there were two attempts to address the lane-splitting issue legislatively, Haynes said. Neither proposal passed, but if they had, the CHP and Caltrans would have been required to study the safety aspects of lane splitting, he said.

“The feeling generally here is that lane splitting can be done with relative safety and when it is not done safely, there are vehicle code sections already in the book that can be used to cite someone, such as for unsafe passing and unsafe speed,” Haynes said. “There doesn’t appear to be a major need for a law that specifically addresses lane splitting.”

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Dear Street Smart:

Why does the Highway Patrol pull people over in the freeway? This only backs up traffic as people slow down to look. This is also very dangerous for both the patrol officer and the motorist, as they could be hit by another motorist.

Why not exit the freeway at the next exit? The other day I exited Interstate 5 at Crown Valley Parkway and a patrol officer had stopped a motorist at the very end of the off-ramp in the right-turn-only lane. This backed up traffic for a mile or so. All the officer had to do is have the motorist turn right 20 yards and the traffic would not have backed up.

Michael R. Erickson, Laguna Niguel

CHP spokesman Sam Haynes says CHP officers know full well the dangers involved in pulling over a motorist on the freeway. But the CHP issues more than 3 million citations a year in the state, and the sheer volume doesn’t always allow them to shepherd drivers to the nearest off-ramp, which often isn’t so near. It is a matter of convenience, according to the CHP. In fact, most pullovers occur on freeways.

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Dear Street Smart:

The signage and pavement markings at the Stonehill Drive entrance to the northbound Interstate 5 in San Juan Capistrano are confusing. The left-turn sign shows an oblique angle while the turn onto Camino Capistrano is actually a right angle. To add to the confusion, the Botts Dots delineating the freeway entrance lane, immediately to the right, angle off to the left around the corner of a freeway abutment in such a way that the eye is fooled into thinking that the left-turn lane continues around the corner as well.

I have witnessed several near accidents involving drivers who suddenly veer into the freeway lane to avoid running into the abutment. More dots and some striped paint should be added to indicate the correct path to follow and a right-angle turn should be indicated on the sign.

John Phillips, Capistrano Beach

Caltrans’ traffic operations division did a field investigation of the Stonehill Drive entrance to northbound Interstate 5 and agreed that the existing striping should be changed, said Moon Kim, an agency traffic engineer. Caltrans will soon remove the existing Botts Dots and will stripe to redefine the movement of the left-turn lane onto Camino Capistrano.

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Dear Street Smart:

If you ever have available space, I would appreciate it if you could remind your readers how important it is when backing up in an automobile to look in ALL directions before proceeding. I have been hit twice by people who only looked in one direction.

On one occasion I reminded a lady that she should look in all directions before backing up and her reply was, “Oh shut up!” I am very cognizant of this situation and, believe me, there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t see this kind of thing happening.

Donald E. Cook, Mission Viejo

Consider it done.