People who can't stay in their lanes

[Ben73]

Originally Posted by Craiginmackay

I can tell you that as a motorcyclist, that lane filtering is actually a self preservation technique that we use to stay alive. If this ****** you off a little then I am sorry but my well being is more important than your mood.

If I can move to the front of a queue of stopped traffic safely I will do so because while I am out in front of everyone, I am being seen and noticed, not being caught up in a blind spot just waiting to be knocked off, merged in on or used for traction by car drivers who fail to check mirrors or do headchecks and indicate.

And lets face it, 99 times out of 100 you aren't going to be held up by a bike that lane filters, so it affects you in no way what so ever. I am sorry that in this one instance, you were held up for 5 or 6 seconds though. No wonder you blasted him with your horn!

I don't really care if motor bikes go up the middle. But the fact this guy came flying up the middle flat out then took off slow it seamed as he was doing it to be a smart ***.

Plus since he took off so slow all the cars on the left past him so the self preservation excuse can't be used either

[XR6TCraig]

Originally Posted by Ben73

I don't really care if motor bikes go up the middle.

Really?

Originally Posted by Ben73

I hate when motorbikers do it any time.

So which one is it Benny boy!

[No.6]

for u motorbike riders, if self preservation is the main aim, then dont go between cars while traffic is moving, even if it is at a crawl in peak hour traffic. Motorbikes are a superior method of transportation especially in peak traffic, but dont ride like you own the road as some riders do. I cant tell you how many times ive seen riders nearly get knocked off their bikes when drivers are changing lanes while a motorbike is cokming up between the cars.

[SteveJH]

Originally Posted by flappist

Motorcycling 1.01: If you do not move through the traffic it will move through you.....

So what happens when they do it past an unmarked highway patrol car?

[Ben73]

Originally Posted by Craiginmackay

Really?



So which one is it Benny boy!

The idiotic ones

[XR6TCraig]

Originally Posted by SteveJH

So what happens when they do it past an unmarked highway patrol car?

If you are not breaking any laws you are fine. Lane filtering technically is illegal in Aus but most cops turn a blind eye to it. Probably because they realise why it is done and use a bit of comon sense.

[XR6TCraig]

Originally Posted by No.6

for u motorbike riders, if self preservation is the main aim, then dont go between cars while traffic is moving, even if it is at a crawl in peak hour traffic. Motorbikes are a superior method of transportation especially in peak traffic, but dont ride like you own the road as some riders do. I cant tell you how many times ive seen riders nearly get knocked off their bikes when drivers are changing lanes while a motorbike is cokming up between the cars.

Why cant I ride like I own the road?
Most car drivers drive this way, and I pay more tax than them, in the form of extra rego and third party on another vehicle. Why can't I have the same attitude as the wallys in the cages that I pass?

In truth I ride on the road with the attitude that everyone in the cars around me are blind, stupid and have a murderous streak in them. In other words I ride like they are all out to get me. Its the best way to keep yourself alive. If you ride around thinking that you have right of way or that someone has seen you or that they care if you are hurt or killed, you do end up hurt. Lane filtering is part of that strategy and so far it has worked for me.

[XR6TCraig]

Originally Posted by Ben73

The idiotic ones

How can you tell the idiotic ones from the average Joe with 2 kids, a wife and a big mortgage?
Do the idiotic ones have "IDIOT" on the back of their helmets?

[JC]

Originally Posted by flappist

Motorcycling 1.01: If you do not move through the traffic it will move through you.....

LOL, spot on. I'm not a rider, but am fairly motorcycle aware, and actually will move over in a lane slightly to leave room for a motor cycle to do lane splitting at the lights.

[g220ba]

The art of driving is long gone, a mate of mine has been rear ended twice in 2 weeks and unfortunetly one of them involved my second car which has now been written off. Clearly there are more important things to worry about than driving a 1 tonne+ weapon that has potential for serious damage.

Does anybody even look at road signs anymore? whether it be speed limits, keep left, roadworks, school zones, merging traffic, left land ends in XXXm etc. nobody seems to notice them or even care about the info they're relaying.

Does anybody scan the road ahead for potential hazards, i'm not talking directly infront as in the next car in the line but more 3 cars ahead or a couple of hundred metres ahead?

Is there any comprehension of proper merging techniques? frequently i see people having issues with indicator usage when their lane ends or becomes a turn only lane.

Basically everybody sees their license as a right not a priveledge that has to be earnt.

[Ford_The_Win]

A bit of a controversial opinion (even though we live in a free country and I should be able to say whatever I want) but perhaps the decrease in driving standards has something to do with the ever-increasing immigration from non-Western countries?

[Ben73]

Originally Posted by Craiginmackay

How can you tell the idiotic ones from the average Joe with 2 kids, a wife and a big mortgage?
Do the idiotic ones have "IDIOT" on the back of their helmets?

Yes..

[nuthin' fancy]

Originally Posted by Craiginmackay

Why cant I ride like I own the road?
Most car drivers drive this way, and I pay more tax than them, in the form of extra rego and third party on another vehicle. Why can't I have the same attitude as the wallys in the cages that I pass?

In truth I ride on the road with the attitude that everyone in the cars around me are blind, stupid and have a murderous streak in them. In other words I ride like they are all out to get me. Its the best way to keep yourself alive. If you ride around thinking that you have right of way or that someone has seen you or that they care if you are hurt or killed, you do end up hurt. Lane filtering is part of that strategy and so far it has worked for me.

Because you have no secondary safety.

[nuthin' fancy]

Originally Posted by Ford_The_Win

A bit of a controversial opinion (even though we live in a free country and I should be able to say whatever I want) but perhaps the decrease in driving standards has something to do with the ever-increasing immigration from non-Western countries?

I think it has more to do with the fact that modern cars isolate you more from the outside world. Frive a standard XY Falcon in traffic at peak hour for an hour and you'll know you've been driving. Drive an EL Falcon in the same traffic and you won't feel it as much.

[new2ford]

Originally Posted by Ford_The_Win

A bit of a controversial opinion (even though we live in a free country and I should be able to say whatever I want) but perhaps the decrease in driving standards has something to do with the ever-increasing immigration from non-Western countries?

Well I did suffer from that in my only accident where the other car turned right from the left lane right in front of my car. Insurance covered it (thanks to witnesses) but the other party did a bunk and the insurance company couldn't find them - no insurance, car disappeared, moved out of house, they suspected they returned to country of origin in the middle east on the next flight out!

I wouldn't generalise though. I think the reason for the increased lane-drifting is use of mobile devices, ipads etc while driving. People are not just talking, now they're typing and reading too. Scary.

[XR6TCraig]

Originally Posted by nuthin' fancy

Because you have no secondary safety.

I don't think that the secondary safety systems such as crumple zones, ABS and air bags on a car give you reason to drive like you own the road though so how does the lack of them preclude a bike rider from riding with the same attitude if they so wish?

[nuthin' fancy]

Originally Posted by Craiginmackay

I don't think that the secondary safety systems such as crumple zones, ABS and air bags on a car give you reason to drive like you own the road though so how does the lack of them preclude a bike rider from riding with the same attitude if they so wish?

I'm not saying this means a car driver can drive however they like but if you are on a bike you have to accept you are harder to see and if you ride unpredictably (i.e. lane splitting in peak hour traffic) the results of you falling off and hitting the wire rope barriers installed in the median of freeways will mean you don't make it home for your dinner.

I've been caught out on occasion changing lanes to the detriment of a motor cyclist but most of time they are riding unpredictably in that circumstance.

If the government and road safety authorities had any guts they would reduce the road till by 15% by banning motor bikes.

But courage is severely lacking in our "leaders" these days.

[XR6TCraig]

Your solution is to ban? Brilliant! You do realise this is Australia, not a third world baltic state under communist rule right?

Why would you ban motorcycling? Is it more dangerous than other activities that we do as humans like sky diving or surfing? No, not on its own it isnt. Once you get morons in cars around you, it becomes a little more so , but banning bikes doesn't address the problem, which is the poor attitude and skill set that most car drivers have. So lets ban cars!


Actually banning is a very nice, neat, easy solution to most things. Here is a list I have prepared for you. Perhap you could run for office!

As already mentioned, how about we ban all cars? That would cut the road toll by a hell of a lot more than banning motorcycles and would also ease a lot of the congestion. Public transport and freight only to be used on the roads for now on! Oh and bikes too of course. They are green, cause absolutely no wear and tear on the roads and you can park heaps more of them in tight parking areas.
We could also ban certain people from breeding based on IQ? That would mean a better gene pool to pick our pollies for the future.
How about banning homosexuality based on the fact that you don't get them?
Why not ban smoking and drinking too?
These cost the tax payer billions and take many more lives than riding a motorcycle ever would.
Ban surfing or swimming at the beach and we eliminate the shark problem.
Ban people from being out in the sun and skin cancer rates will tumble.

What else could we ban to improve society? Internet access maybe? Television?

There is no courage in banning anything in our society. That is just what someone with no creativity and a closed mind may see as a quick fix to a solution that really requires a lot more thought and money thrown at it.

The courageous thing to do would be to start a long term major overhaul of our road networksand licensing systems so we have the best roads and drivers in the world. That and make everyone start out on a bike or scooter. This would lead to better road awareness and roadcraft than starting in an air conditioned, air bag equiped metal saftey cell complete with 10 speaker sound system that gives you the impression of being isolated from any harm and invincible.

[flappist]

Originally Posted by Craiginmackay

If you are not breaking any laws you are fine. Lane filtering technically is illegal in Aus but most cops turn a blind eye to it. Probably because they realise why it is done and use a bit of comon sense.

In actual fact it is legal in QLD on multi lane roads and on the right on single lane roads.

It is illegal to overtake on the left in the left most lane unless turning to the left.

Of course if you are speeding then that is the issue not the overtaking.

It does get a bit grey but you are right in saying that most traffic police prefer safety over perdantism.

[4.0i_SiX]

The more distracting info-tainment crap they pack into cars the worse its going to get

[vztrt]

Originally Posted by Ford_The_Win

A bit of a controversial opinion (even though we live in a free country and I should be able to say whatever I want) but perhaps the decrease in driving standards has something to do with the ever-increasing immigration from non-Western countries?

I see plenty of Caucasians that shouldn't be allowed to drive. I also seem to notice that its the 'Aussies' who like to drink and drive more then the 'immigrants'.

The governments of Australia are slowly conditioning drivers to poor driving standards. Don't speed and you'll be ok is all that seems to be preached. There is no real education of staying alert and knowing what is around your vehicle.

[aussie muscle]

Originally Posted by Craiginmackay

Your solution is to ban? Brilliant! .

what we need is dedicated motorcycle lanes.

Originally Posted by 4.0i_SiX

The more distracting info-tainment crap they pack into cars the worse its going to get

technically, since a radio is a 'distraction' when driving, they could be deemed illegal.

[SumoDog68]

Originally Posted by FG_Frodza

How about the people who apparently lack the ability to judge distance at all and come just about half way into your lane when passing a parked car on their left even though a bloody Hummer could easily stay in the lane while passing said parked car!

Yeah I rant.

So true - some even tout their horn as if i am too close to them and they are 2 m away from the parked car on their left :-)

[Mozz]

Spatial and other awareness is sometimes sadly lacking in and around Brisbane where I tend to roam.