As of last week, riders in the state of Arizona will be able to take advantage of lane filtering, with a wee condition or two to seal the deal.
The recent update for the Grand Canyon state was purportedly signed at the last legislative season, allowing riders to change lanes between cars – but only stopped cars, and only within certain speed zones.
While the concept of lane-splitting is still off the table, 12News reports that certain locals are more than happy with the let, given the additional freedom (and safety) it provides the riders.
“Bikes will be able to get around more safely and take less space,” enthuses Phillip Payne, a frequent rider in Scottsdale more than contented to have his rear fender better protected.
“Getting rear-ended on a motorcycle is one of the scariest spots to be on a bike.”
“There’s a lot of stipulations,” admits Aaron Bolin, an officer with the Scottsdale Police.
“That idea of it being done safely is so paramount…we don’t want to see anybody injured, we don’t want to see any property damage happening.”
According to the new law, riders will only be able to act on the lane-filtering benefit if:
- Vehicles in the same direction of traffic are stopped
- The speed limits show 45 MPH or less.
- The rider scoots a maximum speed of 15 MPH between the cars
Given that “the latest 2021 ADOT crash report found rear-end collisions were the most common type of crash in Arizona” (via ABC15), riders and drivers alike hope to see improved figures for the coming seasons.
What do you think of the new law?
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