Driving in the Yellow Lane - Right-hand side

I hope the two Idiots with there GS’s will think what they where doing on Tuesday afternoon. The Northern province dude we may excuse as he do not know how we do lane splitting in PTA-JHB JHB-PTA,but the dude with the red 1200 GS have no excuse.
1. Sir you think it’s safer on the right hand side in the yellow lane, but just think for a moment if there were to be a bumper bash. You will not have a chance as every one’s instinct in a cage is to swerve to the right hand side and there you fly over the bonnet of a car and may be over the barrier onto the oncoming traffic.
2. The cage drivers see you coming on the right hand side and to be polite, move over to the left and knock the biker in the middle of the fast and middle lane over.

So please Mr.Biker Think for your self and your fellow bike friends.

I agree, I ride my bike from Pretoria to Midrand and back EVERY SINGLE DAY. Sometimes the stupid bikers (like this guy on the red 1200GS) are 10 times worse than the cages.

More often than not there is enough space between the fast and middle lane to ride at a decent pace. But you also get the odd "superbike" blasting through there at 120kph - That is just plain stupid.

To everybody doing the "groot-trek" every day (in a cage or on two wheels) - PLEASE LOOK OUT AND BE SAFE !!!

Had a guy on a Dakar on Thursday on the Ben Schoeman travelling towards Joburg - riding with hazards on!!

How tf are the cages supposed to know which way he is going to weave??

...and then when the traffic got too busy for him he decided to ride on the left of the yellow line!!

Idiot!!!

Driving in the emergency lanes is the worst form of idiocy you can get - these lanes are supposed to be used for emergency stops. What happens if the kamikaze in the emergency lanes realises to late that the vehicle in front is stationalry. Regards and Safe riding. LeRoy

I read on Think Bike’s website a while ago that there was a suggestion put forward to paint a dotted line about 1m on each side of the line between the middle and fast lanes. This will give bikers a 2m lane to ride in. The cars will also learn to keep to the left or right of this "lane". This will make lane-splitting a lot safer, both for cars and bikes.

What do you think ?

Most motorcycle problems are caused by the nut that connects the handlebars to the saddle
Chance takers are accident makers!! The door to safety swings on the hinges of common sense


Nuthead !!

Most motorcycle problems are caused by the nut that connects the handlebars to the saddle
Chance takers are accident makers!! The door to safety swings on the hinges of common sense


Nuthead !! [/quote]

I drive from Glenvista Johannesburg (Camaro offramp) to Rosslyn every day and back and have found that the general public is very obliging as a whole, to motor cyclists however despite my headlight being on bright you get the odd idiot that thinks because he/she puts on the indicator it is their right to turn, especially the BBBEE ladies !!!

Also encounter the yellow liners and the odd lunatic that goes off pop if somebody turns in front of him, he just takes the glory out of his own day...

I have made a habit of thanking motorists that make an effort to move out the way.

I have wondered for us splitters if it is illegal to have the White Strobe light the the cops have in our head lights

The so-called "fast" lane has over 80% of all rear-end accidents. When one happens, the cagers following avoid a collision by going to one of two places - they either swerve left into the second lane or they go right into the median (if there is one). They do this instinctively and without looking - and if you are filtering between them, TOUGH!
For this reason, I do not ride in between the second and third lanes.

I don't ride in the middle lane of a six-lane highway because there are cagers doing weird stuff on BOTH sides.

I usually ride in the right half of the left lane. With everyone else trying to get to their destination in the "faster" lanes, it usually has little or no traffic, except for the odd truck or bus every kilometre or so. There is seldom any difficulty momentarily merging into the second lane to get past and there is always the (empty) emergency lane in an emergency...

Tend to agree with Richard on the left hand lane - have also found many a time that the traffic there is bit better - depending on the time of day of course. LeRoy

LeRoy Olivier wrote:Tend to agree with Richard on the left hand lane - have also found many a time that the traffic there is bit better - depending on the time of day of course. LeRoy

I have found that on the Ben Schoeman the cars 'expect' the bikers to be between the middle and right lane and actually leave a 'bikers lane'
between the two.

Have found that in other lane's it is a bit more difficult to get 'space' because the cars are not really expecting bikes there.

Referring to peak hour traffic here where people tend to be travelling the highway at the same time each day.

DaveS wrote:

LeRoy Olivier wrote:Tend to agree with Richard on the left hand lane - have also found many a time that the traffic there is bit better - depending on the time of day of course. LeRoy

I have found that on the Ben Schoeman the cars 'expect' the bikers to be between the middle and right lane and actually leave a 'bikers lane'
between the two.

Have found that in other lane's it is a bit more difficult to get 'space' because the cars are not really expecting bikes there.

Referring to peak hour traffic here where people tend to be travelling the highway at the same time each day.

I agree with you 100%, i have found that if you go between the other lanes they(Cars) are not as aware of the bikers, especially in peak hours.

Sharkie wrote:I read on Think Bike’s website a while ago that there was a suggestion put forward to paint a dotted line about 1m on each side of the line between the middle and fast lanes. This will give bikers a 2m lane to ride in. The cars will also learn to keep to the left or right of this "lane". This will make lane-splitting a lot safer, both for cars and bikes.

What do you think ?

I think the strobe light is an exelent idea.

In the past two days I have twice had the opportunity to re-experience the traffic to OR Tambo via the R21 in peak hour - in a cage. The only conclusion I can come to is that cagers are blithering idiots...!
"Keep left, pass right" - RIGHT? WRONG!!

The Right lane is chock-a-block, bumper to bumper with cars where the drivers are blindly following the tail of the car in front of them. They don't change station, change lane, (change gear?) - talk about object fixation...!

I happened to have noticed a VITO bus - mainly because he cut in unsafely directly in front of me at the Irene on-ramp. From the time he entered in front of me, until I left him out of sight around Benoni, NOT ONCE did the white minibus move from its place "in the queue" in the right lane. The bus travelled all the way less than a car length behind a Renault Megane, flashing lights at anyone who dared to even indicate they wished to move out of the left lane.

Without exceeding the speed limit once, I found that the left (slow?) lane was more uncluttered, manageably spaced traffic and certainly far less stressful. By REDUCING my speed to match convenient spaces in the FAST lane, I was able to easily merge in to pass trucks, overloaded minibuses and 18-wheelers.

I do a regular test of this method. I identify an easily recognisable vehicle about a kilometre or so ahead in the right lane. I reset the trip meter and see how many kilometers it takes to pass that vehicle. I have yet to take more than 10km before that vehicle ahead is in my right hand wing mirror - all by "keeping left - passing right".

Using the same method on my R80/7 motorcycle, I was able to ride from near Menlyn Park in Pretoria to the centre of Johannesburg near Gandhi Square in 35-40 minutes - irrespective of the traffic conditions. My experience of the route between middle and right hand lanes was that certain drivers ACTIVELY closed the door by moving over in their lane to try to block me and the criss-crossing of cars between lanes was frightening.

I love the left lane. Travelling 15-20kms per hour (jogging speed) faster than the other traffic, I find the ride more pleasant and less stressful...

Fully agree with Richard on this. Basically my experience as well. I do however travel the same routes to and from work through town daily and would profusely thank any motorist who opens the gap for me - resulting in more willing cagers the next or following day. Regards. LeRoy

Is'nt it funny that some day's you get some SOB that looks at you in his rear view mirror and just moves over and cages you in, just to make a good start to your day !!!

Thanks to the obliging guy shaking his head on the left who let me through, who i thanked for his courtesy

I guess it takes all kinds to make the world go round

The Big Bolshy Biker's handbook says:

When there's space, ride up beside him and polish his mirror for him...
If he complains, smile broadly and bend it backwards out of the way before riding off...

...of course, such actions are contrary to the vision and mission of the Club...

...but we can dream, can't we...?

Was driving along the N3 the other day, driving in the fast lane and sitting on the right hand white line giving space to the bikes and low and behold this 1200S comes roaring past between me and the barrier.... WTF !!!!
This guy must have been on drugs !!!

Ja I've learnt that you may not ride next to the Armco barrier. And I don't do it because you guys say I may not.

But why not?

- There is enough space for a bike
- You can be squashed only from one side - then jump over the barrier to safety!
- A car does not tend to swerve into that space at any normal time
- It is not an emergency lane that is used by other vehicles
- It can make a reasonably safe "Biker's lane"

I sometimes longingly look at that space when vehicles close the gap in front, deliberately or not.

If you jump over that barrier boetie I hope you can fly You are now in the oncomming traffic.
Instinct is to swerve into that lane when in trouble, and in an emergeny they stop their at 80km\h you better stop quick if you catch up

I was traveling this morning on the N1 from North to South in peak time. Just before the John Voster off ramp a Kawasaki SB rider and a lady pillion passed me on my left. I had a fright at first as I did not notice him before he passed me. I was sitting on the left hand side of the fast lane but could not do lane splitting and pass between the middle lane and the fast lane because of the road works and associated reduction of lane width. The size of the GS is just too big and I waited each time for a “think bike” conscious driver to make space for me to pass. The Kawa rider did manage to do lane splitting between the slow and middle lane BUT he was blocked off by a car in the slow lane that wanted to get out of the lane to pass the backup traffic on the off ramp. He almost came to a stop – between the stationary slow lane and the mid lane moving at about 80. A 18 wheeler cruising in the middle lane and with no time to stop and no where to move came hurdled on …. It was freaking millimeters and I could see the bloke and his GF looking at those huge wheels.

No thank you. I had to check my pants after that. I bet he and his GF did knyp washers. Drive safely…

It is totally irresponsible for a biker to pass on the left. I know it is very tempting because the whole of Gauteng sit in the right hand lane, but it is extremely dangerous because no-one expects it and car drivers seldom look left when changing to lanes on their left. Now I know why I like my bike more on the long hauls and less in traffic

The only time that I really get scared is when I see a person shooting out of one lane into the other and then shoot back again. It is then that I wait until he is blocked in from all sides before I shoot past and ensure that this person does not get near me again.

I am quite grateful if somebody on a motorcycle passes me in the heavy traffic at 120 km/hr because I know that people sometimes crash in traffic and this person will uphold the statistics while leaving me safe to ride at a pace not more than 10-15 km/hr faster than the traffic around me. This gives everybody the chance to see me.

Must say that I learned a valuable lesson from Braam's accident: Do not shoot over a robot - even if the light is in your favour. A bike is fast on the pull-away - sometimes to the detriment of the person on the bike.

And then I thank God for His protection because even after all the lessons that I learn daily, I still end up making mistakes.

It is bad about Brian, but lets say I am learning from his mistake. Had to drive in my car yesterday in traffic (usualy traffic is only a mith for me) What a frustration. Quite a few bikes came FLYING down the road. Eish whena I was nervous for them