Arizona to become fourth state to allow some lane filtering for motorcyclists

 Arizona will become the fourth state to allow motorcycle lane filtering in some situations. Lane filtering or lane sharing is when motorcycle riders are allowed to pass between your car and the one next to you.

The law doesn't give bikers the ability to ride in between traffic on the highways. It's only legal on surface streets where the speed limit is 45 miles per hour or less. They can only pass stopped vehicles, and the motorcycle cannot go faster than 15 mph. There also needs to be at least two lanes of traffic going in the same direction.

Advocates say the new law isn't the same as lane splitting, which allows a motorcycle rider to go between rows of cars at regular speeds. Instead, supporters said this law will enable riders to go to the front of the line at a stoplight so they're not sandwiched between two cars and can avoid being rear-ended.

Bikers we spoke with say this law will keep the roads safer. Bill Seltzer, with Arizona Motorcyclists Training Centers, says this will allow motorcyclists to get ahead of traffic. "For a motorcyclist to get to the front of the queue or the line and be able to create time and pace in front of traffic, that's really important. If we're stuck in amongst cars we're really difficult to see so being able to get out in front makes us more visible," said Seltzer.

Seltzer says this law should reduce how many times motorcyclists are rear-ended, but he added the biker still has a responsibility. You should only pass through traffic when it is safe to do so.

The law passed back in March 2022. To read more about the law, click here.