Legalization of Lane Sharing in the State of Massachusetts
The purpose of this petition is to allow motorcyclists in the state of Massachusetts to, in limited circumstance, be permitted to share single lanes with other motorists. We are calling for regulation similar to that in the state of California which allows for this practice under the following conditions:
- Travel no faster than 10 mph faster than the vehicles you%u2019re lane-sharing with.
- Merge back in with the traffic when they reach 30-35 mph.
- Never exceed the speed limit.
- Lane-sharing between lanes #1 and #2 is preferred. (#1 being the %u201Cfast%u201D or %u201Cinside%u201D lane)
- Stay, more or less, in one lane or the other. Excessive meandering may get you cited.
Source http://www.laneshare.com/
This is needed for a myriad of reasons, the most vital being safety. Motorcycles are low visibility vehicles due to there particularly small cross section. This leads to a reduced distance (and subsequent reaction time) from when a motorist first sights the motorcycle vs. a car. This makes sitting in traffic a dangerous activity for those who ride especially in a time when the commonwealth has yet to enact a ban on the use of cell phones while driving a motor vehicle. Secondly motorcycles are of a different breed than automobiles. With the high performance nature of the engines, and a significant portion of them being air cooled, the possibility of overheating the engine (as well as the rider) in bumper to bumper traffic is greater. If the engine has to be shut down that leads to a possible congestion causing situation until the motorcycle can be cleared from the path of traffic. The purpose of this is not to allow motorcycles an unfair advantage over other motorists but rather to increase the safety and reliability of this form of transportation.
The purpose of this petition is to allow motorcyclists in the state of Massachusetts to, in limited circumstance, be permitted to share single lanes with other motorists. We are calling for regulation similar to that in the state of California which allows for this practice under the following conditions:
- Travel no faster than 10 mph faster than the vehicles you%u2019re lane-sharing with.
- Merge back in with the traffic when they reach 30-35 mph.
- Never exceed the speed limit.
- Lane-sharing between lanes #1 and #2 is preferred. (#1 being the %u201Cfast%u201D or %u201Cinside%u201D lane)
- Stay, more or less, in one lane or the other. Excessive meandering may get you cited.
Source http://www.laneshare.com/
This is needed for a myriad of reasons, the most vital being safety. Motorcycles are low visibility vehicles due to there particularly small cross section. This leads to a reduced distance (and subsequent reaction time) from when a motorist first sights the motorcycle vs. a car. This makes sitting in traffic a dangerous activity for those who ride especially in a time when the commonwealth has yet to enact a ban on the use of cell phones while driving a motor vehicle. Secondly motorcycles are of a different breed than automobiles. With the high performance nature of the engines, and a significant portion of them being air cooled, the possibility of overheating the engine (as well as the rider) in bumper to bumper traffic is greater. If the engine has to be shut down that leads to a possible congestion causing situation until the motorcycle can be cleared from the path of traffic. The purpose of this is not to allow motorcycles an unfair advantage over other motorists but rather to increase the safety and reliability of this form of transportation.
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I work in Boston, ride to work, going home is a major pain since most of the traffic is heading north. Meanwhile sitting in traffic, we inhaling all the carbon from auto exhaust and our engines are heating up.
I fully and strongly support the passing of a law allowing lane-sharing in MA. There is no logical reason why this should not be legal.
This effort is even more important as the price of gasoline and the importance of conserving grow every day. Practices such as lane splitting allow fuel efecient vehicles to become even more so.
This will _help_ congestion problems
It has been proven to work in other states. If we're serious about reducing consumption and emissions we'll give it a shot.
I agree with the statement that while cells phones are not banned in the Commonwealth sitting in traffic on a motorcycle is hazardous to your health. Lane splitting will make it safer for the motorcyclist. Either that or ban cell phones in cars.
IT'S TIME TO VOTE THIS IN TO HELP IN THESE TIMES OF HIGH GAS PRICES.
I am a previous California resident and motorcycle driver. My CA experience validates the value and logic of lane splitting for a number of reasons, such as improved traffic flow, full utilization of public roadways and overheat protection to air cooled motorcycle motors. I strongly support lane splitting in MA.
I already do it so we might as well make it legal. I'm curious as to if there is a law that currently bans this. I've never been cited and I've passed many police cars. I learned to ride with a friend that was from cali and we have always done it. People do get pissed off at you though. lol
I've almost been rear-ended twice by careless people driving cars/SUVs. It seems considerably safer to at least have the option to slowly and prudently proceed through traffic provided it's going slowly, not to mention it decreases traffic.
i am def for it
Lane splitting in reasonable conditions (heavy traffic with cars moving no more than 20 mph) is a safe and ecological maneuver.
I think it will take a while for cages to realize what's going on, I think we can expect some unfortunate accidents till they do, but in the long run this will encourage the use of 2 wheels when drivers see how they can skip the traffic jams and get where they are going faster and with less fuel.
I'm very much in favor of creating some type of lane sharing law. Not only has it been proven in CA and other states to reduce traffic congestion, fuel consuption and emissions, but it will also raise awareness for the motorcycling community in a state that would greatly benefit by an increased awareness for its two wheeled motorists. The more a motorcyclist legally filters through traffic the more he/she is seen & therefore thought about (generally in a positive light) by other motorists.
I ride to work because my motorcycle gets 43mpg, while my truck gets 23. I'm familiar with the CA law, I lived there for 5 years and commuted daily.
