ickerington, Ohio: The AMA Board of Directors adopted a lane-splitting positionstatement at their October meeting. The AMA believes that lane splitting can have safety benefits as well as help reduce traffic congestion. In developing its statement, the AMA board continues to place significant emphasis on motorcycle operator and passenger safety.
The AMA endorses rider responsibility and actions that make roadways safer for motorcyclists. While research and evidence suggest that lane splitting may reduce a motorcyclist’s risk exposure, the AMA is cautious to issue a blanket endorsement supporting the practice. In particular, experience indicates that the legislative process and the implementation of new laws are fraught with uncertainty. A straightforward lane splitting bill may easily be amended with provisions that the AMA and the motorcycling community would find unacceptable.
Passing legislation to permit lane splitting may be the easiest part of the process. Significant effort would subsequently be required to educate the law enforcement community, officials and administrators within state departments of transportation and public safety, prosecutors, the judiciary and the general motoring public on the benefits to those groups and motorcyclists to make lane splitting safe for everyone.
Lane splitting is an issue of choice. The practice is optional in California, for example, where formal guidelines exist. Those opposed to the practice should consider the desires of other motorcyclists who believe they would benefit from it.
Given the ongoing success of lane splitting in California and the recent enthusiasm for lane splitting and/or filtering in other states, the AMA endorses these practices and will assist groups and individuals working to bring legal lane splitting and/or filtering to their states.
To view the statement, seehttp://americanmotorcyclist.com/Rights/PositionStatements/LaneSplitting.aspx.
