filtering in CA - crash

[Stig / Major Tom]

I see this as 100% bike rider's fault.
Filter at your peril...and no more than a few MPH above traffic speed. Traffic was stopped. He should have been creeping - not flying.
Glad he seems OK - though quickly seems to be fading.
Hope he learned something.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/motorcycle-accident-on-busy-road/vi-AA165aaR?category=foryou

Stig

[Neil955i]

"Do you need a hug?"...  Only in CA!

Not sure I totally agree on that Stig.  Yes the biker was at fault for filtering too fast for him to stop safely - I'd argue that 10 mph less and more observation & he could have, but I'd have to attribute a portion of the blame to the motorist pulling a U-turn in such conditions.  I note also a solid yellow centre line, in the UK that would place 100% of the blame at the driver's feet.

Here in the UK, with the video evidence, even without a solid white line I bet a judge would award damages to the biker, but reduce them by about 50% for contributory negligence.

[Stig / Major Tom]

"Do you need a hug?"...  Only in CA!

Not sure I totally agree on that Stig.  Yes the biker was at fault for filtering too fast for him to stop safely - I'd argue that 10 mph less and more observation & he could have, but I'd have to attribute a portion of the blame to the motorist pulling a U-turn in such conditions.  I note also a solid yellow centre line, in the UK that would place 100% of the blame at the driver's feet.

Here in the UK, with the video evidence, even without a solid white line I bet a judge would award damages to the biker, but reduce them by about 50% for contributory negligence.

Not a U but a L turn,,,and pretty certain a legal one.
I see this situation frequently. Driver needs to turn L into store/street, etc. TWO lanes of already stopped traffic patiently halts for the car to make their turn safely.
One better use much caution if coming along in a 3rd curb lane...or filtering down the middle!  Traffic is stopped for a reason.
Rider using too much speed for the road situation.
IMHO
Stig

[Iahawk]

biker should have been more careful when filtering through stopped traffic, there's a reason traffic is stopped...but she clearly turned in front of him. You turn in front of someone on a street like that and it's your fault. She has to yield to oncoming traffic.

Watching people filter always makes me nervous...you're making a big assumption that the stopped (or slowed) vehicles are actually looking in their mirrors and paying attention to anyone coming up from behind.

[Stig / Major Tom]

She is supposed to see him coming back there in a "that's not a traffic lane" of stopped cars, behind a van?
He's riding blind.

Actually - if he'd been at the proper "no more than 10mph faster that the line of cars" per California recommendation  (they were stopped - see brake lights) he can, and would have, seen her first!



Also - yeah he's acting goofy. Take a blood sample....

Stig

[Iahawk]

Proper speed for the conditions and surroundings plus a far ahead, big picture view will prevent most (all?) accidents..

[Viper254]

Unusual for me to disagree with Neil but the speed of the filtering is the issue here - if he's been doing an appropriate speed he would have easily stopped. I've been in that situation in Derby a number of times.

I hate to back up a driver but there's absolutely no way that car could have been them coming.

[Neil955i]

Also - yeah he's acting goofy. Take a blood sample....

Stig

Yep, I guess the wacky baccy is legal in Cali!

[Neil955i]

Not a U but a L turn,,,and pretty certain a legal one.
I see this situation frequently. Driver needs to turn L into store/street, etc. TWO lanes of already stopped traffic patiently halts for the car to make their turn safely.
One better use much caution if coming along in a 3rd curb lane...or filtering down the middle!  Traffic is stopped for a reason.
Rider using too much speed for the road situation.
IMHO
Stig

My mistake Stig, I can clearly see now that she was making a L turn.  Still stand by everything else I said though.

[Neil955i]

Unusual for me to disagree with Neil but the speed of the filtering is the issue here - if he's been doing an appropriate speed he would have easily stopped. I've been in that situation in Derby a number of times.

I hate to back up a driver but there's absolutely no way that car could have been them coming.

Not sure that you are disagreeing there Viper!  I agree, he was going way too fast and would've stopped in time at even 5-10 mph slower.  The other point I omitted to make earlier was observation, or lack of it on the part of both parties.  Any experienced biker would be wondering why the two lanes of traffic were stationary with a clear road ahead of them and be slowing and covering the brakes already!  The driver was not looking into the gap between the stationary traffic in case anyone was filtering or she would have stopped giving the biker the chance to swerve around the front of her car.

The point I was trying to make was how you might apportion blame here and in my humble opinion, neither party is totally blameless.  The only question left is how much blame each should shoulder.

Having looked again at the footage and Stig's still, I am now inclining towards the bulk of the blame resting with the (spaced out?) rider.

[randyo]

I did that once, passing stopped traffic on right, I was going to make a right turn at the traffic light ¼ mile ahead, I was only going parking lot speeds, and my wife was riding pillion. As I was passing a large van body truck, that obscured view of oncoming traffic, he left a break for an oncoming minivan to make a left turn into the restaurant parking lot to my right, I first gained view when we were about 10 feet apart, I hit his front bumper at a diagonal as we both came to a stopped, it launched me enuf that my hands landed on his windshield, but I was still standing on pegs, my wife, had a hissy, she didn't even realize we actually made contact, zero damage to my SV650, minivan had a small indentation in the front bumper

I don't filter anymore, but I still frequently pass on double yellows, especially in Vermont, where it's legal, like filtering in CA

[stuo]

Here in CA we call it lane sharing, or white lining. It's at least 50% of why I ride on two wheels. Traffic here is baaad.

An appropriate tombstone for the biker: "I was dead right".

[Iahawk]

An appropriate tombstone for the biker: "I was dead right".

Haha, and Stuo for the Win!

[airshot]

Here in Ohio, the bike rider would be cited for not driving in an approved lane.  Riding on the center line between lanes is a no no!

[Neil955i]

Haha, and Stuo for the Win!

In the UK that’d read “l had right of way!”