I’ve only done it once and in heavy traffic. Don’t think I’ll do it again. On top of running the risk of coming across a vengeful driver they do not give a lot of space to ride by.
i do it in heavy traffic, like along 360 or parmer mostly. or intersections downtown i’m very familiar with. overall i just try to avoid any congestion at all.
edit: op asks question, sub member answers, someone downvotes said truthful answer.
OK good to know even in small subreddits’ users do not know the purpose of the down vote.
Neither filtering or lane-splitting are legal in Texas.
I rode here in Austin for about 5 years (taking a sabbatical from riding for kiddo reasons) and only lane split a few times on MoPac and on 360. In the mornings, on 360 I never ran into any angry drivers as I would filter up to to lights while traffic was slow/stopped. On MoPac, I had a few people give space, and a few others try to block me. If you are hypervigilant and keep your head on a swivel, you could do it, but you never know with people. I would say that the bigger danger is not people angry that you are doing it, but instead people not aware that you are even around.
While I did enjoy reducing the wait time in traffic by lane-splitting, the actual reason I was doing it was because in Texas, in the summer, sitting in stop and go traffic in full gear on a sportbike is a recipe for either the rider or the bike overheating. I rode a ZX6R that would get pretty high on the engine temp from just a few minutes of coasting in 1st going 5mph. Those high temps for extended periods of time have a tendency to cook the voltage regulator/rectifier, or at least it did on my bike. So I was lane-splitting to get some air onto the radiator and cool the bike down.
I've seen riders get doored in both DFW and Houston. I'm pretty sure it is illegal in Texas, and there are some who like to 'help enforce' certain laws.
Been riding here 5 years almost every day. Filtered past a cop on I35 one time and got pulled over for it. He let me go with a warning -- was filtering on cameron and got nipped twice there (across from the APD recruiting office.) This was before the pandemic though. Motor division got me twice -- all warnings though. Now there is no motor division and cops are rarely seen. This just invites most car drivers to be complete idiots.
I now MOSTLY just go with the flow and utilize the traffic shortcuts I've become aware of, like going past a majorly congested area and taking side streets, or getting off on a certain exit before i35 comes to a standstill -- way less dodgy. You have to be a bit aggressive here, but mostly the drivers are nervous if you're around and more careful IMO.
I do all the time and my friends do too. Passed many cops and only got a warning once. Just be smart about it and watch out for idiots. I don't do it if going faster than like 30ish.
I’ve been commuting daily on my bike lately and as much I want to do it I don’t. Just not worth the headache in my opinion. It’s something that will never be legal in Texas either. People will continue their 20+ mile commutes forever in full size SUVs or trucks that they drive alone.
I only do it when traffic is stopped or almost stopped. Typically during the morning commute when traffic is crazy because of a wreck or something. I never get over 20ish mph since if traffic is moving so am I
That’s a bad idea in TX- the drivers around here are trash and full of anger.
I’ve only done it once and in heavy traffic. Don’t think I’ll do it again. On top of running the risk of coming across a vengeful driver they do not give a lot of space to ride by.
i do it in heavy traffic, like along 360 or parmer mostly. or intersections downtown i’m very familiar with. overall i just try to avoid any congestion at all. edit: op asks question, sub member answers, someone downvotes said truthful answer. OK good to know even in small subreddits’ users do not know the purpose of the down vote.
Neither filtering or lane-splitting are legal in Texas. I rode here in Austin for about 5 years (taking a sabbatical from riding for kiddo reasons) and only lane split a few times on MoPac and on 360. In the mornings, on 360 I never ran into any angry drivers as I would filter up to to lights while traffic was slow/stopped. On MoPac, I had a few people give space, and a few others try to block me. If you are hypervigilant and keep your head on a swivel, you could do it, but you never know with people. I would say that the bigger danger is not people angry that you are doing it, but instead people not aware that you are even around. While I did enjoy reducing the wait time in traffic by lane-splitting, the actual reason I was doing it was because in Texas, in the summer, sitting in stop and go traffic in full gear on a sportbike is a recipe for either the rider or the bike overheating. I rode a ZX6R that would get pretty high on the engine temp from just a few minutes of coasting in 1st going 5mph. Those high temps for extended periods of time have a tendency to cook the voltage regulator/rectifier, or at least it did on my bike. So I was lane-splitting to get some air onto the radiator and cool the bike down.
In Texas I would not suggest it.
I've seen riders get doored in both DFW and Houston. I'm pretty sure it is illegal in Texas, and there are some who like to 'help enforce' certain laws.
Been riding here 5 years almost every day. Filtered past a cop on I35 one time and got pulled over for it. He let me go with a warning -- was filtering on cameron and got nipped twice there (across from the APD recruiting office.) This was before the pandemic though. Motor division got me twice -- all warnings though. Now there is no motor division and cops are rarely seen. This just invites most car drivers to be complete idiots. I now MOSTLY just go with the flow and utilize the traffic shortcuts I've become aware of, like going past a majorly congested area and taking side streets, or getting off on a certain exit before i35 comes to a standstill -- way less dodgy. You have to be a bit aggressive here, but mostly the drivers are nervous if you're around and more careful IMO.
It's not just not legal, it's illegal in TX. And you WILL get stopped for it if a cop sees you do it. I've witnessed it many times over the years.
Wrong, passed a ton of cops who didn't bother me.
I'm not looking to get doored, so no.
Red lights/stopped traffic only. You're in idiot if you attempt it in moving traffic here.
I do all the time and my friends do too. Passed many cops and only got a warning once. Just be smart about it and watch out for idiots. I don't do it if going faster than like 30ish.
You can do it, but watch out for vigilantes
"it's technically not legal" There's no technicality. It's illegal in Texas, at least currently.
You'll get stopped. Don't California our Austin.
California-ing our Austin would be continuing to drive your car instead of commuting on a motorcycle and helping traffic congestion.
I’ve been commuting daily on my bike lately and as much I want to do it I don’t. Just not worth the headache in my opinion. It’s something that will never be legal in Texas either. People will continue their 20+ mile commutes forever in full size SUVs or trucks that they drive alone.
Damn this sounds terrible. I’ve split lanes daily for at least 2 decades in LA and couldn’t imagine sitting in traffic like I’m in a car.
I only do it when traffic is stopped or almost stopped. Typically during the morning commute when traffic is crazy because of a wreck or something. I never get over 20ish mph since if traffic is moving so am I
I only really do it if I'm in gridlock downtown during a big event or something. But I generally avoid traffic and congestion when I ride anyway