Are you a motorcycle driver who often speed up through row of vehicles, moving in the same direction as you, in slow-moving or stop-and-go traffic to avoid traffic congestion? Worry yes, because a bill that tackles and charges violators of lane splitting was introduced in the House of Representatives.
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The House Bill No. 1419 otherwise known as the Anti-Lane Splitting Law of 2022 has been passed by Pangasinan 5th District Representative HON. RAMON N. GUICO JR. on the first regular session of the 19th congress.
As per Guico, the unrestrained cases of motorcycles associated with road crashes or accidents in the Philippines is caused by motorcycle drivers passing through sidewalks or driving in between lanes on highways.
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Further, driving a motorcycle already posed a risk itself, that is why motorcycle drivers "passing in between vehicles moving on the same direction must be prohibited."
What is Lane Splitting?
According to Guico's explanatory note, lane splitting shall mean "any motorcycle, scooter, two or three-wheeled motorized vehicle which shall share a lane already occupied by another vehicle in the highways."
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This connotes that, "No person while operating a motorcycle in a highway shall traverse in between two vehicles except to overtake. Any motorcycle stopping or passing through vehicles during traffic on a broken white line in highways shall likewise be considered as lane splitting."
What are the imposed fines under the bill?
The bill when passed into law will penalized motorcycles who will be caught violating the measure which are as follow:
First Offense: the payment of a fine in the amount of P1,500;
Second Offense: the payment of a fine in the amount of P3,000; and
Third Offense: the payment of a fine in the amount of P5,000 and revocation of the individual’s drivers license.
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If this bill does get closer to becoming law, we honestly wouldn't be surprised if there is a lot of opposition. There are safe ways to split lanes, therefore it's not always harmful to do so. Perhaps establishing safety regulations for lane-splitting and filtering would be a preferable course of action, with those in violation being apprehended and punished.
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How about you? What's your take on this proposed bill?
I think it depends on the situation, how about if we have emergency vehicle at our back? We don't need pull out to give way? Or this is an excuse ?