Question about California traffic.

[Marslet]

OK guys, just got back from California and Savannah's first birthday bash. What a hoot. She had a ball. Will try to post pics a little later on.
My question is aimed at anyone living or driving in California. What in the world were they smoking when they passed that law for lane sharing????? You haven't lived until you and a car right beside you are cruising on the freeway doing 65 and two big loud Harleys come flying down the center line between the two of you doing 80 or better. Just barely clearing the fender and outside mirror of your car!!! They wouldn't clear the mirrors on my truck when they are out for pulling the camper. This is legal ??????????? Boy will it get your heart to beating. Did you inhabitants of California vote on this????? Looks like an accident begging to happen to me.

[JudyJB]

My son has lived in Napa for 16 years, so I have made a lot of trips out there and driven, and yes, this crazy lane sharing is legal. It is terrifying as you well know!!

Just about as terrifying, however, was driving US 1 north of Fort Bragg, CA to Fortuna, CA along the coast and then inland through the redwoods. I had always wanted to drive US 1 from Canada to San Diego. Not now. The road was very narrow and winding, with huge logging trucks barreling down towards us around curves where you could not see them until the last minute. There were huge redwoods and douglas fir growing right up to the pavement with absolutely no shoulder at all. When a large tree was too close to the pavement, instead of cutting it down, they just paved up to it, so you also had trees encroaching onto the road! There was no place to turn around or pull off or anything.

Never again! On the other hand, I am going back for a month, but this time it will be in OCtober and maybe November, not summer.

Horrible traffic in Calfornia, and no one merges or gives way or does anything to give you a break when you drive a big vehicle!!!

[Rufflesgurl]

YES, the lane sharing with motorcycles is idiotic!! I've lived in CA most of my life and it still scares me! But, there are lots of maniac drivers on our freeways too. Probably lots of crazies driving in other states also.

Linda

[Irmi]

The lane sharing is legal in CA? I'll have to ask Carolb which roads she used to see what she experienced. That's just scarey.

[BarbaraRose]

Yes, that was a big pet peeve of mine! Those bikes would scare the hell out of me when they zoomed past me between me and the car next to me. Trust me, there are a lot of motorcyclists killed that way. Legally, they are only supposed to share the lanes if the traffic is going slower than 35 mph but they do it at any speed out there.

Originally, the reason for it is so that when the traffic is backed up, the bikers don't have to sit and inhale the exhaust from the cars.

There was a marine killed one day in San Diego on his way to Camp Pendleton. He went between a dump truck and an SUV and caught his handlebar on the mirror of the SUV and got thrown under the dump truck...

It is a really stupid law for so many reasons! To have that be legal and yet they have to wear helmets by law out there, makes no sense. Of course, a helmet won't help them in that situation.

[JudyJB]

Now that you mention it, the worst accident I ever saw in California was a motorcyclist on the freeway. I could see the results, not the accident itself, but the crash site and the medics coming for the body from my hotel room that overlooked the freeway in Santa Clara, CA, south of San Francisco. Not pretty.

My son would like me to eventually move to California. I think the traffic, as much as the increased cost, is what would keep me from moving there. It truely is awful.

[monik7]

I'm a California native. I don't ever remember being asked to vote on it. I think it's actually called "lane splitting." As far as I know it's not supposed to be done at high speeds, but the motorcyclists don't seem to care. I think they're nuts to even do it at low speeds.
Sandi

[RVWannabeKathi]

I saw one doing 80 or 90 a couple of weeks ago on my way to work. Way too fast. Wondered if he had a death wish. Days later I am pretty sure I saw the same guy go by and down the road he was pulled over. I hope he learned the lesson.
Kathleen

[Azusateach]

I've lived in CA most of my life. But when I was old enough to get my driver's license I was living in Minnesota. My mom made a deal with me -- that she would drive me anywhere I wanted to go as long as I wouldn't learn to drive in MN. So I waited a year, until we moved back to CA.

People think that CA drivers are crazy. Actually, from a defensive standpoint CA drivers are better than most other places in the country. And freeway driving is a learned skill. If you don't do it often enough it can be intimidating. I find that driving here is lots less stressful than driving on the back roads of TX was -- 2 lanes with a 70mph speed limit -- sheesh! Scared the bejeebers out of me! It's all about what you're used to.

Laura

[chalet05]

I had no idea that was legal in CA! I have seen motorcycles do that where it wasn't legal!

Texas drove us crazy with people in the oncoming lane passing those driving on the shoulder but not far enough over for the passer to stay in their own lane. A Texas woman tried driving on the shoulder in Washington and got a ticket.

Glad the birthday was such fun - was sure it would be!!

[snowball]

Hmm note to self when driving in CA other than Blythe and the northern border area going into NV have a Californian drive
sheila

[Redetotry]

Just about as terrifying, however, was driving US 1 north of Fort Bragg, CA to Fortuna, CA along the coast and then inland through the redwoods. I had always wanted to drive US 1 from Canada to San Diego. Not now. The road was very narrow and winding, with huge logging trucks barreling down towards us around curves where you could not see them until the last minute. There were huge redwoods and douglas fir growing right up to the pavement with absolutely no shoulder at all. When a large tree was too close to the pavement, instead of cutting it down, they just paved up to it, so you also had trees encroaching onto the road! There was no place to turn around or pull off or anything.

I love that drive on Rt 1 but must admit to being somewhat terrified one time when I was doing the cut over on 20 from Ft Bragg to Willits on 101 and the fog dropped! I couldn't pull over as I couldn't see anything but a bit of road in front of me, talk about white knuckle driving! Plus my dream has always been to live on the coast of either Northern CA, or OR the air is so good I feel like I can breathe without working at it like here Illinois. I can actually feel my sinus clear and breathing become easier as I drive west. But of course cost way too much . I have driven from Seattle to San Diego on Hwy 1, just not all the way on the same trip. To me the best part is along Big Sur, looking out over the waves from that high up you see the color changes in the water.

The lane sharing though does sound a bit insane!!

[WickedLady]

Lane sharing Bikers? Here in WA we call them organ donators.

[Pooker]

Good one!

Regarding the splitting of lanes: Our CA Driver's Handbook says "Motorcycles may travel faster than traffic during congested road conditions and can legally travel in the unused space between two lines of moving or stationary vehicles; this is commonly called 'lane splitting'." No place does it say they can legally exceed the speed limit, though. Lane splitting is only supposed to be used when traffic is going slower than the limit. It also admonishes those of us driving cars to visually check for motorcycles before making turns and before opening doors (like when the freeway is a parking lot!)

Our surface streets often have what is fondly called "suicide lanes" which are used for making turns into driveways, parking lots, etc. It looks scary at first, but they actually work. Sometimes, tho, it makes you do a double take when there is already a car in your way facing you when you want to enter this lane. They are also used for pulling out into traffic when the lane on your side is empty, but the lane across has moving cars. You can safely move into the "turn lane" to merge when there's an opening.

To be fair, most of our drivers have moved here from someplace else, so you can't blame the state for lousy drivers - they brought their bad habits with them! You definitely see that on a rainy or foggy day - those with white or silver cars rarely turn on their lights and they still drive like a bat out of ----.

Pooker

[BarbaraRose]

We have the "suicide" lanes here in MN too. Some people just don't understand how they work, tho.