Lane Splitting is Safe in California—SB 350 is Officially Dead

We reported back in October that SB 350, the California Senate Bill that would have regulated lane splitting, was essentially dead. A staffer in bill sponsor Jim Beall’s office told us:

Senator Beall does not plan to take any action on the bill next year in light of the lane-splitting guidelines issued by the California Highway Patrol. He wants to evaluate how well the guidelines work and as well as their effectiveness, which may obviate the need for any legislation.

This was confirmed by Erin Riches, a consultant with the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee:

They have to move it [the bill] by the end of January or it’ll be dead.

We spoke to Riches again earlier this week and she confirmed the bill would not be heard and would therefore be dead at the end of January—today.  It’s officially time to celebrate. The deadline has passed—SB 350 is dead, dead, DEAD!

We lane splitters are in the clear for now, but it’s likely we’ll face this challenge again—lane splitting is an easy target for politicians looking to score points with California drivers who are frustrated with “idiots on donor-cycles” that “come out of nowhere” and “weave in and out of traffic” and “cut in line.” Broken record time: riders must be good ambassadors for lane splitting and motorcycling in general. Pay attention to the CHP lane splitting guidelines: keep your speed differential reasonable, don’t split when traffic is moving too fast, maintain a consistently high awareness of your surroundings on the road. Those of you who split crazy-fast and regularly hit mirrors while crying about how the “damn cagers” are always cutting you off—cut it out.

Check the entire history of SB 350 here, and more on lane splitting legislation here.

If you’d like to support our mission, order some lane splitting stickers and put ’em on every vehicle you own and maybe even some you don’t—but you didn’t hear that from us. 🙂 Every sticker we sell here on the site funds the distribution of  free stickers around the state, not to mention keeping this website live. Thanks for your support!

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3 comments on “Lane Splitting is Safe in California—SB 350 is Officially Dead
  1. pepetrainwreck says:

    We have to fight back let’s demand a motorcycle lane only see those morons like it smdh!!

  2. take the lanes back says:

    Most the “lane splitters” I see are violated the “Basic Speed Law” by going substantially faster then the slower moving traffic on the freeways, in the Inland Empire, and that includes several motorcycle officers that use the northbound I-15 in the morning.

    California Driver Handbook – Laws and Rules of the Road

    Speed Limits

    California has a “Basic Speed Law.” This law means that you may never drive faster than is safe for current conditions. For example, if you are driving 45 mph in a 55 mph speed zone during a dense fog, you could be cited for driving “too fast for conditions.”

    Regardless of the posted speed limit, your speed should depend on:
    • The number and speed of other vehicles on the road.
    • Whether the road surface is smooth, rough, graveled, wet, dry, wide, or narrow.
    • Bicyclists or pedestrians walking on the road’s edge or crossing the street.
    • Whether it is raining, foggy, snowing, windy, or dusty.

  3. Following the Driving Rules Guy says:

    I thought I was the only one having a problem with those idiots who speed and zig zag through slower traffic (usually without even using a signal) and I constantly pray that my car isn’t going to get hit. I go out of my way to make room for the honest motorcyclists who do the proper lane split. But the idiots out there need to to be stopped somehow. I’m glad I’m not the only one who feels that way!

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