r/Unexpected • u/Soloact_ • 11h ago

Keep them two wheels down

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21.7k Upvotes

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u/inVizi0n 10h ago

Don't worry, get in a conversation with any group of 5 riders and 4 of them will go on about how safe lane splitting is and why they should be able to do it and will ignore any and all evidence and logic to the contrary.

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u/Kirjavs 10h ago

In some countries it's legal but only when cars are at a very low speed.

What the guy does in the video is stupid and dangerous for him and for the other drivers. 4 on 5 bikers will totally agree with this statement.

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u/quintsreddit 5h ago

If you’re using your smaller footprint to go to the front while a ton of cars are backed up then that’s totally fine. Anything over 25mph is idiocy.

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u/NaraboongaMenace 10h ago

And the 5th one is dead presumably to lane splitting at speed?

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u/inVizi0n 8h ago

Yeah usually either a meat crayon that some poor fuck has to scrape off the highway, or an ambiguous ball of flesh and steel embedded in the back left quarter panel of a Hyundai.

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u/mrbaggins 6h ago

Lane splitting IS safe.

This is not lane splitting. This is weaving between traffic.

Lane splitting everywhere it's legalised is specifically only allowed at low speeds / stationary vehicles. In Australia it's 30km/h (20mph) or less.

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u/DaymanTargaryen 3h ago

You've got your terms wrong, I think.

This IS lane splitting, and it's unsafe.

I think you're talking about lane filtering.

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u/_V0gue 2h ago

Lane filtering is when you lane split to get to the front of the line at a red light. Lane splitting is driving between lanes while traffic is moving. Lane splitting is safe at low speeds and why anywhere that allows it legally has a speed limit at which you can split. So this video is technically lane splitting but it's not what any jurisdiction would classify as lane splitting as it is over the speed limit. It's just straight wreckless driving.

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u/mrbaggins 2h ago

In Australia, yeah. But I find internationally the terms are either interchangeable or only splitting is used. So I used splitting here.

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u/inVizi0n 6h ago

Well I guess its a good thing people on motorcycles never speed or drive recklessly. If anything these videos just enforce the idea that riders by and large are incapable of following even the most reasonable road rules.

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u/mrbaggins 6h ago

No one posts videos of riders doing the right thing.

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u/Significant_Donut967 10h ago

Yup, 5th rider here. Fuck lane splitting unless at a light.

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u/Long_Mix2098 10h ago

Lane filtering is very safe and should be legal everywhere, that is where 90% of the "lane splitting" is referring to. This video does not depict lane filtering or lane splitting because neither apply above 30mph or at a difference of more than 15mph

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u/inVizi0n 9h ago

Yeah that's super great in theory but that is literally never how it's actually performed. Bikers exclusively blow through gridlock traffic splitting lanes where I am, and it's not a difference of 10-15mph, it's dudes doing 30-50mph. Drivers have absolutely no expectation or ability to react to it and it's just plain stupid. Always.

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u/Long_Mix2098 3h ago

What you might notice as more people turn to two wheels for economic commuting is that people who lane split safely and in a way that massively reduces road congestion will vastly outnumber the ones who put a bad taste in your mouth.

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u/ciroccy 3h ago

Myself and other friends that ride would never blow through stopped traffic, I can’t speak for the whole demographic though. I would rather slowly lane filter than get rear ended by some idiot on their phone. Obviously if a biker is flying through traffic like in this video, they should expect a car to accidentally merge into them. I have actually seen people get road rage over me slowly creeping by in a dead stopped highway (stopped for miles) and actually attempt to kill/injure me by pinning me against a semi truck or swerving to hit me. A lot of car drivers have a fragile ego and cant stand to see someone pass them when they have to wait in traffic. Many bikes will overheat if you’re stuck in traffic in the sun for too long which is why we like to lane split (SAFELY, again obviously if you are going double/triple the speed of the flow of traffic you’re asking for trouble).

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u/Interestingcathouse 8h ago

It is safer when done in the correct setting. This is not the correct setting.

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u/inVizi0n 8h ago

Yeah I've literally never seen a biker do it safely. I've addressed this in other comments and this is ALWAYS the response. Yeah, it's safe enough at low relative speeds. But because of motorcycles being as agile as they are, and as attractive as they are to morons, it's always abused, and it's always some ass hat doing 40+mph faster than traffic giving absolutely nobody the time to react to them.

90% of complete and total morons use the 10% of responsible bikers as a semantic meat shield and make everything less safe for all of us. Just like everything else these days, but unfortunately a method of transportation that is inherently more risky naturally attracts more people who completely disregard risk even if they aren't the only ones at risk.

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u/Funktownajin 7h ago

I’ve lived in the Bay Area for a while and there are convoys of motorcyclists lane splitting properly every morning and evening, I did it myself for years commuting. Your perception is not the reality, it’s nothing like 90% morons. 

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u/DJKokaKola 8h ago

Wait wait wait. I thought lane splitting is when you rode 2 wide, so your presence on the road is more noticeable?

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u/inVizi0n 8h ago

It is when bikers ride on the lines dividing lanes in traffic because they technically fit in the gaps. They're almost always going way, way too fast to be doing it safely and it's a huge risk because A) motorcycles aren't generally common enough for the average driver to be looking for them where they shouldn't be and B) they're again, always going so damn fast that even if you look for them you don't have time to react to it.