I've been commuting to work in the Seattle area daily for a bit over a year now. I'm a year round rider and ride in all weather, except ice and snow. My recent switch to a new bike has caused me to evaluate the survival skills I've picked up over the past year plus of commuting as I translate those skills to the new bike. Below I'll go into some of the strategies I've picked up and employed successfully. The purpose of writing these down is really just to clarify these thoughts for my personal use but perhaps you might find some of it applicable to your riding.
Riding in slow moving traffic
Riding in slow traffic can be a challenge for a motorcycle rider. Unlike a car its more work for you to creep along at low speeds because you need a certain amount of forward motion to keep the bike upright. You also need to focus energy on your clutch work. To make traffic jams less painful I try to keep a fair amount of space in front of me. This space cushion gives me a chance to ride along at a low but constant speed while the cars are creeping, stopping, surging forward, creeping, stopping, etc. There are some disadvantages to this that you do need to be aware of. Many drivers hate the empty space. The car behind you may follow very closely, cars may dart over into your cushion of space because they confuse your extra bit of space with a faster moving lane.
Your extra space may cause car drivers to do goofy things. When I first started employing this technique I had a few irritating experiences. First many cars are going to merge over in front of you, this is fine. Expect it, when you see a car that needs to come over let them, honestly I think most traffic jams are caused by people following too closely which forces cars to cut over then the guy behind them has to slam on his brakes. Anyway your extra space keeps you moving and keeps the rest of traffic moving as well. However as I mentioned above the extra space can cause some drivers to go nuts. I've actually had cars pass me in my lane just so they could get into the extra space. To combat this you need to assert some control over your lane. Typically in traffic I ride in the center of the lane and if the cars behind me seem extra anxious I also weave back and forth across the lane a bit. This lets the cars know you have an entire lane and you intend to use it. I've noticed when I do this cars back off a bit and usually don't try to steal my space.
Learn your daily ride
One advantage to commuting on the same route every day is you learn the perfect line for every curve, off ramp, the best lane positions where you can see traffic as well as be seen. As you ride every day notice how the cars move. When you see a driver do something stupid like cut across two lanes to make an exit or spots where people merge badly make a note of them. On future rides remember these spots and anticipate the stupid tricks people are tempted to pull in those spots. As a daily rider you have a huge advantage over someone who is just passing through. Sometimes a car will just look "wrong" and when it does be ready to take action to avoid trouble. However being overly familiar with your route can be dangerous as well. Never let your familiarity with a route lull you into a sense of false security. Always be alert for the unexpected.
Incentives to Get Stupid
The more I ride to work the more I notice patterns of stupidity on the roads. Particulary riding on the freeway I notice certain places and situations that bring out the dumb in people. Here are a few of them to be aware of:
- Off Ramps - Major highway off-ramps can really bring out the stupid in people. Where there is a major exit always be on the lookout for cars cutting across the double white lines to make that exit at the last second and alternatively keep an eye out for the impatient driver who doesn't want to run up the merge lane with the other cars and instead guns it and cuts across the double white lines into the main travel lanes too soon. These drivers may not check their blind spot and they usually don't signal.
- Buses - Many people hate to drive behind a bus. Maybe its an ego thing but when riding near a bus anticipate stupid moves. I've seen people driving behind a bus going 65mph cut over and gun it up to 85mph to pass the bus just to get back over into the right lane and drive at 60mph. They don't really want to go faster than 65 but there's something about being behind a bus that drives them nuts. So when you're around a bus give it plenty of room and be aware that people might do goofy, illogical things when driving near a bus.
- Fast/Fancy Cars - I hate to employ a stereotype but there's something I notice quite frequently around here, particulary in bad weather and that is the absurdely fast luxury car driver. These drivers seem goofiest in the pouring rain where it seems like they feel their BMW, Mercedes or Land Rover makes them invicible. These drivers will be moving at a high rate of speed regardless of weather, traffic, etc. Your best bet is to let them by as soon as possible. To try to keep up or play their game is going to put yourself at unecessary risk. Expect fast acceleration, quick lane changes, and a general disregard for life and limb.
- Tunnels - In dry weather most cars slow down when they enter tunnels, in wet weather they usually speed up or maintain a constant speed. Most motorcyclists will tend to speed up in a tunnel due to the reduced wind turbulence inside them. In wet weather they can be much slippier than the regular roads and your sight lines are usually reduced. On the upside most car drivers won't change lanes in tunnels unless they have to.
Riding in the HOV Lane
I love the HOV lanes around here and riding in them is generally great. They seperate you from the bulk of traffic and most of the lunatics. Maybe people who carpool are nicer but in the general sense I think the HOV lane is the safest lane for the motorcyclist. However there are a few things to be aware of.
Getting Cut Off is Easy to Do When traffic gets slow or even stopped the HOV lane and subsequently you, keeps moving. It's great zipping past all that slow/stopped traffic isn't it? However this is when you are most vulnerable in the HOV lane. When a lane next to you, in any case, is stopped or very slow you should adjust your speed downward no matter how clear the lane in front of you is. My general rule of thumb is no more than 30mph faster than the adjoining lane. I do this to allow myself more time/space to react if (when) someone cuts over from the slow lane. This has happened to me a bunch of times and over time I've adjusted my strategy for riding in this situation.
The safest way to deal with this is ride on the side of the lane opposite the slow/stopped traffic. I used to ride on the side closer thinking that would put me in driver's side mirrors making them more likely to see me. Wrong, it doesn't seem to help much and it forces you to pull a much more drastic manuever when a car cuts over. So riding on the side opposite is the best. This means if a car cuts over you have slightly more time/space to decide what to do. Maintaining a speed of no more than 30mph above the slow/stopped traffic is probably the hardest part. In fact you may get cars following you very closely or flashing their lights at you. This has happened to me twice, once on the bike and once in my car. I just ignore them. If a car cuts over at 5-10mph and you're going 60mph it will be 4x more difficult to stop/avoid than if you were going 30mph. I've had cars cut over in front of me so many times now I just won't go any faster, the guy behind me be damned, I'm not taking that risk.
When riding on the highway in general always be aware of your environment and where you can and can't go in an emergency. In many cases you can use your motorcycle's relatively small size to your advantage by putting the bike on the white line and avoiding being hit. Also be ready to the hit the horn and let that guy drinking coffee, eating breakfest and talking on his cellphone know that you're there.
The Light is Green, So What?
When I'm first at a stoplight and the light turns green I don't go. I sit there for a couple seconds, take a look in both directions and then go. There have been a bunch of times I've done this and seen a car cross the intersection in front of me, running the red. I'm not saying sit there long enough to make the guy behind you honk, but just wait until you're positive the intersection will be clear before you take off. You always have to remember when riding that on a motorcycle there's no such thing as a fender bender. The accident being the other guy's fault is not going to save you pain and suffering. So take an extra few seconds to be sure before you go. It's helpful too if you really swivel your head around, both so you can see and so the people behind you can see clearly what you are doing. I try to always do this and the only time I was honked at was once when I sat there watching a red light runner go by.
Avoiding Trouble on the Streets
I employ a few tactics for riding on the surface streets that have come in pretty handy, helping me avoid trouble. First off is be predictable. When moving through intersections or down streets its best to limit your acceleration, braking and turning to something that generally resembles what the cars around you are doing. Going too fast or too slow puts you at odds with drivers who are anticipating where you are going to be, or not even noticing you at all! If you dart through traffic at a high rate of speed you increase the odds that a driver won't notice you or will not estimate your speed properly resulting in an accident. Also be aware that some drivers assume motorycles don't need as much space or can manuever out of the way so they may take seemingly inappropriate chances around you. In these cases it is helpful to assert your lane position by using the entire lane and, if needed, employ the horn to remind drivers you are there or let them know what you think about their driving.
When approaching a car that might turn left or pull out in front of me I never watch the driver's eyes. Drivers may make eye contact with you then pull out anyway, either because you just thought they made eye contact, they've misjudged your speed or they're simply looking through you. To avoid this I never watch the driver, instead I watch their front wheels. The wheels tell you where the car is going to go when they mash the gas. Also any movement of the wheels can be perceived much quicker than the movement of the entire vehicle. Be prepared to stop. It is best to ride as if the driver will pull out in front of you.
The Friday Night Fight at the Lights
When heading home on Friday nights always be extra careful. Traffic patterns change on Friday nights, people leave work early, people go places they don't normally go. You are more likely to see last minute lane changes, fast drivers, stopped traffic in strange places and the like. In general just be aware that Friday won't be quite the same as any other trip home and expect the unexpected. Most importantly don't be in a hurry yourself! I use my bike to get to/from work and I run alot of errands on my bike as well but I never use the bike to make up for lost time. What I mean is if you're in a hurry take the car. Or if you're running late just forget about it while you're on the bike. Enjoy the ride, stay alert, ride smart, and resist the urge to use your bike's superior speed and manueverability to make up some time. One trip to the emergency room will waste more time than you'll save in a lifetime of fast riding.
