Freeway messages stir outrage in some drivers

NO CREDIT TO JOHN WHAT A SHAME
Sign of trouble: Request to share the road with motorcyclists
A message appearing on electronic freeway signs around the county in the past week wasn't supposed to cause road rage.
To the state agencies that posted the message, its suggestion "Share the road. Look twice for motorcyclists" seemed helpful, especially with spring weather bringing out more bikers.
Some drivers apparently saw red.
"None of the calls we've gotten have been positive," said Edward Cartagena, spokesman for the San Diego Caltrans office. "One call was a 20-minute rant."
About a dozen callers angrily complained that it wasn't their job to watch out for motorcyclists who speed, double up in lanes with cars or otherwise ride aggressively.
"Wow, I didn't know there was a sentiment like that out there on the roadways," Cartagena said.
Since the electronic message was posted statewide Feb. 11, Caltrans has received about 800 phone calls, mostly positive. "Except for here. I don't know why," Cartagena said.
Some calls in other counties came from motorcyclists who appreciated the state looking out for their safety, officials said. Some bikers yesterday said that they're too often at the mercy of distracted drivers oblivious to smaller vehicles.
The signs, which are due to go dark today, were a joint effort between Caltrans, the California Highway Patrol and the state Office of Transportation Safety and had been in the works for a year, CHP spokeswoman Jaime Coffee said.
The CHP also is in the midst of a two-year "Look Twice, Save a Life" campaign to reduce the escalating number of motorcyclist deaths and injuries in the four counties with the worst accident rates.
San Diego County ranks No. 2 — behind Los Angeles County — with 52 motorcycle deaths and 1,134 injuries in 2008, the most recent figures available.
"This (sign) is a good way to get the message out that we share the road and need to look out for each other," Coffee said.
At least, the signs have been noticed.
Outside Costco in Carlsbad yesterday, Bud Loury said he thought they were a good warning for drivers. Loury, who lives in Mexico, said he gets steamed while inching his car toward the border crossing and motorcycles thread between cars to the front of the long line, a maneuver some call "lane splitting." The maneuver is legal in California.
The sign "is good advice because you don't see motorcyclists when they go crazy, zipping in and out of lanes," he said. "If I were to hit one, someone would probably say I was to blame."
Carlsbad resident Elaine Cosbey said the problem is drivers who don't want to share the road with motorcycles. "Everyone has a right to the highway," she said. "A lot of (motorcyclists) get killed because drivers in cars don't have enough respect for them."
Stanley Kling of Encinitas said he thought the signs didn't make sense.
"What's to share? You don't have any choice about that," he said. "The sign says look twice, but I have enough to look at. There's no problem seeing motorcycles unless they're dashing in and out of lanes."
Gary Meads, president of San Diego-based MeadsDurket advertising agency, said the message was clear enough and hit the industry standard of seven words or fewer for drive-by signs.
Considering that some drivers wish they didn't have to share the road with motorcyclists who weave between lanes or cut ahead in traffic, the message could be tweaked, he said.
"It might be better to lose the `share' and just stick with the `look twice for motorcyclists,' " Meads said.
Motorcyclists said they welcomed the campaign because they're vulnerable on the road with inattentive drivers chatting on cell phones, adjusting radios or switching lanes without watching for smaller vehicles.
Although drivers may complain about motorcyclists lane splitting, it's legal if done safely, bikers said.
Oceanside Cycle Supply sales manager Ryan Dalby scoffed at the complaints Caltrans has received.
"Motorcyclists are much less distracted than drivers," he said. "Riding a motorcycle is very fundamental. You're on two wheels, riding down the road.
"I like what Caltrans is doing. If it gets through to one person, it's done its job."
Kevin Dotson, who drives both a motorcycle and a truck, welcomed the signs as a reminder that drivers should indeed look twice.
"People don't see motorcycles," he said. "Even I don't sometimes. There have been times when I've been changing lanes in my truck and I didn't see a motorcycle because it's small and in my blind spot."
Janet Lavelle: (760) 476-8201; janet.lavelle@uniontrib.com
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