Mostly visibility. A biker at the front of a line of cars is easier to see for the cars behind them, and to be seen by oncoming and cross traffic. Drivers have a tendency to miss bikers stopped in the middle of a line of cars and crush them into the car in front of them.

FYI it's called lane filtering, at least when motorcycles do it

Which is illegal in this state

Also don't want to breathe all that exhaust

Just to upset sensitive car drivers

I found loads of sources that say splitting is illegal but can't find anything about filtering?

Pa vehicle code 3523

Plus I can generally clear the intersection before the lead car has put down their phone

Ahh ok, worded as a catch-all. Thanks.

Oh wow. I rarely bike, but I’ve always gotten in line with everyone because that seemed safer. The more you know.

Let them go. They move faster and are generally not on their phones delaying traffic.

Unfortunately lane filtering is illegal for motorcycles in PA. So is splitting, but I wouldn't feel comfortable doing that until it was legal long enough for car drivers to get used to it. Splitting & filtering are both legal in CA and have been forever. Filtering will be legal in UT soon. I think a few other states are discussing making filtering legal as well.

Filtering protects anyone on two wheels from getting hit from behind and also helps ease traffic congestion.

Pa loves doing that with codes.

If you have some situation awareness, you can expect that guy on the bike you just passed to try to snake up to the front of the line at a red light and prevent it by positioning your car close to the curb or a parked vehicle, and close to the car in front you. The cyclist will need to risk passing on the left or the other side of the road to get in front. Bonus points if you can roll some coal while he's back there.

I do this at certain intersections. Depends on the amount of traffic etc and how narrow it coming up. And if I'm turning or not. If I don't do this, then when I get behind a line of cars at a light I get right in the middle of the lane and then move back to the right after the intersection so I'm not taken out by turning cars or people cutting me off at the other end of the intersection.

As a biker I do it when there’s lots of room. Then I don’t have to worry about people turning right etc. not a good idea when you’re packed in close side by side.

Penndot pub380 calls out that bikes can.

(EDIT: And that vehicle code explicitly calls out motorcycles, which bicycles are not)

Chapter nine has a whole section on it.

>GETTING THROUGH TRAFFIC JAMS
Traffic jams do not have to stop you—that is one of the biggest ad - van tages of bicycling in the city. However, in the tight quarters of a tie-up, take extra care. Stopped cars in a traffic jam present the same hazards as parked cars: blindspots, doors and unpredictable starts and turns.
If there is an open passing lane, use it rather than thread between cars. If the street is completely plugged, pick your way forward slowly and with your hands on the brake levers. Remember, any car door could open!
If you are in a traffic jam, you can be sure that the cars will not move, since they have nowhere to go. However, if there is an open driveway or parking space into which a car could turn, you have to assume that it will. Look to see whether the car's front wheels are turned. Move away from the side of the car as you pass, and try to get the driver's attention as you approach the front of the car.
When cars are stopped, but not completely bumper to bumper, be very wary of cars from other lanes cutting across in the gaps. Stop and look before you move out into a gap. Be especially careful if the vehicle you are passing, like many vans, does not have a hood you can see over.

About half of collisions in Allegheny County are red-light rear-ends.

Obviously be aware of the whole situation, but generally you don't want to be last in the line.

I mean this with 100% sincerity: when the weather gets nicer, rent a bike and ride on a safe road with traffic and traffic lights. You'll understand the instinct.

Have to pass them? In rush hour, biking often takes the same amount of time as driving. The few seconds you take to “have to pass” someone could have easily been spent chillin and you’d get to your destination at the same time, I promise!

I’d like to know why cars pull into the middle of intersections when there’s no room for them to clear it before the light changes.

I drive, bike, and walk. Everyone sucks.

A. for the same reason that motorists obsessively overtake cyclists in traffic, then "force the bikers to have to pass them at the next light anyway". That is, because they can, and they aren't really thinking ahead _at all_. Which one is the "then have to pass them" is just a matter of which side of the lens you're viewing from.
B. for that reason, I generally chose to remain in the order I arrived at *unless* the line was so long it looked like it would take multiple light cycles. In that case, I would try to arrange it to be the last one through on the first cycle, that way I had the road all to myself for the next few minutes. When Irvine St backs up for a 15-20 minute delay at 5 pm, it's just stupid for me to sit there sucking fumes and wasting my time, instead of riding to the front and being gone. It's not little old me causing the backup there, it's all the people in 6 passenger cars, riding all alone.
C. If either one of us has to pass the other twice, we're both doing something wrong.

I’ll pass.

Was that a pun? Sounds exactly like a pun my dad would make, but he's not Internet savvy enough to be on here.

Come on, join the dark side! It's awesome! No need to pay for gas and pumps you full of feel good hormones!

Why would a bike have to pass someone when they’re going slower than the average car? Just stay behind them.

As to your second point, we’ll never agree on that. You’re always going to think you should be able to pass people in that scenario, and I’ll always think you should have to wait your turn like everyone else on the road.

[deleted]

The only time I was ever hit on my motorcycle was at a stop sign and the yo-yo behind me just bumped into me, but yes, it was startling (only bent my license plate, fortunately.) But when I rode, in traffic at a stop sign or light, I was always taught to move to the left side, within my lane, where I was stopped. That way, I would be right in front of the driver's face behind me (so they would hipefully notice me), and, if a rear end collision was imminent, I would have an escape path closer than being in the center of the lane.

Safety, visibility, and keeping the flow of traffic moving. Filtering is legal for cyclists and definitely encouraged. A few years ago a woman died in Oakland after being hit by a driver from behind while waiting at a red light.

Sorry that you were hit. Fortunately that has never happened to me. My process is to move to whichever side gives me the best escape route in case someone coming up behind me shows no indication of slowing down. Sometimes the shoulder has plenty of room. Sometimes that's not an option but on the left there's room between cars to shield myself.

I've only had to move into an escape route a handful of times, and in all of those instances the person stopped before hitting anyone or anything But when you're sitting there exposed while stopped, and someone is approaching from behind quickly, it's better to protect yourself from what may have happened rather than regret it later after you've been hit.

I wear a jacket with high viz yellow. There's high viz yellow on my helmet as well. My integrated stop/tail/turn signals are LED. When I brake, the brake light will flash rapidly 3 times before going solid. Sometimes when I stop and someone is approaching from behind I'll squeeze the brake lever a few times to get the light flashing. Especially when I can see they're looking at their phone instead of the road. That seems to help too - but I'm also getting ready to move just in case!

So we don't die in squeeze crashes like this lady did.
 
https://www.wtae.com/article/arrest-in-oakland-crash-that-killed-woman-riding-bike/7479508

 
This particular thing exemplifies pointless driver rage in this city. Cyclists perform this innocuous act that harms no one in order to keep themselves from getting killed in a rear end crash, and drivers absolutely lose their minds over it. They act like cyclists are somehow doing it at them, instead of doing it to stay safe.

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/pittsburgh/news/oakland-motorist-bicyclist-road-rage-attack/
 
As long as drivers act like their commutes are a competition that they have to "win", our roads are never going to get any safer.

> Just stay behind them.
 

Cyclists have no obligation to "just stay behind" anyone. Driving is not a competition. Cyclists filtering ahead aren't doing it just to make you sad. They are doing it so they don't get killed.

You really go out of your way to be the biggest prick in this sub, don't you?

The incident that prompted this post was a cyclist in Sq. Hill going around me at a red light on a residential street when there was nobody else behind me. I then had to drive behind them for a few blocks for no reason. I’m not angry, just wondering why they would do that when there was nobody behind me.

> The incident that prompted this post was a cyclist in Sq. Hill going around me at a red light on a residential street when there was nobody else behind me.

 
And there's nothing wrong with the cyclist doing that.

 
> I then had to drive behind them for a few blocks for no reason. I’m not angry,

 
Okay.
 
Just because there was no one behind you when that cyclist filtered up doesn't mean there wouldn't be anyone pulling up behind sooner or later.
 
Driving is not a competition. You do not have to be first. You do not have to "win". Quit treating it like a competition.

Do you have any source at all to back you up? Lane splitting is illegal in PA.

https://codes.findlaw.com/pa/title-75-pacsa-vehicles/pa-csa-sect-75-3523.html

It's posted elsewhere in this very thread that you posted and can see all replies to, my man.
 
https://old.reddit.com/r/pittsburgh/comments/11sajlb/what_is_the_rationale_when_bikers_go_to_the_front/jcdof2n/

 
https://www.dot.state.pa.us/public/pubsforms/publications/pub%20380.pdf

 

Your commute is not a competition. Quit acting like it is.

In this very sub, over the course of three weeks, you will see posts saying:

 
A> Speeding is my god-given right as a driver

B> Cyclists need to follow the law

C> Why are cyclists allowed to do this thing that's legal for them to do

 
I truly do not know what the fuck these people want.

What am I supposed to be looking at there? You posted a 51 page document.

You are supposed to look at the permalinked post from reddit user chuckie512 that explains exactly what part of that publication says cyclists can filter.
 
I'm starting to think that you made this post because you were mad that you were delayed 18 seconds by a cyclist today and you're just playing dumb.

3304?

“These traffic-jam tactics are reasonably safe, but in some cities, it may not be legal for a bicyclist to pass on the right or ride between lanes of traffic.”

How does this ambiguous manual override a statute from the PA legislature?

Bicycles are not motorcycles, genius. Motorcycle laws don't apply to bicycles. PA statutes that apply to pedalcycles will very specifically say so.

 
If PennDOT says I can filter, I will filter.
 
If you've driven over the speed limit today your argument is disingenuous. You don't actually give a fuck about what the law says, you're just mad someone passed you.
 
Quit acting like your commute is a competition. That sort of behavior gets people killed.

That's for passing on the right?

Wouldn’t that be the same as filtering to a red light?

No it's only for passing people on the right when they're making a left turn, as long as you're not on a shoulder or berm.

You keep using that word. I don’t think you know what it means.

Just drive safely like you promised you'd do when you got your driver's license and quit whining because someone passed you. You aren't the main character.

Never said I wouldn’t drive safely you stupid fuck. Your main character comment is ironic. ✌🏻

Ha, that's what bar ends are for.

When did bikes become motorcycles?

What Pittsburgh ordinance bans it?

They're just covering their butts in case one of the thousands of townships in this state makes a rule that they can't. Pittsburgh doesn't have one.

> I drive, bike, and walk. Everyone sucks.

Amen to this. Every group feels the need to claim a moral high ground to justify why they should be entitled to special treatment.

We should all be prioritizing "is it safe" and "is it reasonable" as higher priorities than "does it inconvenience me" or even "is it legal" (at least when passing judgement on others).

[removed]

When we have to get to work not an hour late, it actually does matter. Most people don’t drive for recreation we are trying to get to jobs and such.

They don’t move faster at all

Leave earlier, dumbass. Don't make your laziness someone else's problem.

Bikes in the city are as fast or faster than the average car. (especially e-bikes).
It's been tested quite a bit.
Cars have more horsepower but the constraints of the environment prevent that power from being used.
I literally beat a McLaren down Wilkins one day (yeah, the driver probably didn't even know it was a competition;). Sure, that's essentially a race car, but on a dirt road it could be beat by a donkey cart. Same in the city. Bikes are optimized for city surface streets, cars for highways and rural travel.

Biker to me means motorcycles and crotch rockets, which typically move faster than most vehicles.

[deleted]

I have a child, I’m not about to die on the road for no reason.

That post discusses moving through a “traffic jam.” Doesn’t discuss bikes moving to the front of the line at every intersection like you seem to suggest. Bikes can’t just do whatever they want.

Ah, so you are playing dumb.
 
Do you really think PennDOT would publish illegal advice in an official publication?

I’m saying that the section you cite discusses filtering through a “traffic jam,” where cars are “unable to move.” Not sitting at a traffic light.

They want cyclists to stop existing and every road to have as many lanes as necessary to allow unimpeded traffic everywhere they go. Every second lost to traffic and bicycles is an infringement upon their personal autonomy.

Don’t worry, I’ll wait.

Maybe then don't flame a cyclists who's just trying to not die by your hands.

I have a solution to traffic in the city: if we bulldoze every building for more lanes and more parking then we won't have any more traffic.

Granted we also won't have anywhere to drive to, but why would that matter if there's no traffic?

Just want everyone to follow the law 🤷🏻‍♂️

And the law doesn't prohibit cyclists from not dying at an intersection.

Do you really think PennDOT would publish illegal advice in an official publication?

As I said before, nothing in that manual permits what you’re taking about lol

[deleted]

Bikes are considered vehicles. Are cars allowed to just skip past other cars because they don’t want to wait? People like you are why everyone hates bikers lmao.

https://www.penndot.pa.gov/TravelInPA/active-transportation/Pages/Bicycle-Safety-and-Pennsylvania-Laws.aspx

“Pennsylvania's Vehicle Code considers "pedalcycles" as vehicles and provides that every person riding a pedalcycle upon a roadway shall be granted all of the rights and responsibilities applicable to a driver of a vehicle, with certain exceptions discussed below.”

> Bikes are considered vehicles

Statutes that apply to pedalcycles specifically mention pedalcycles, dingdong.
 
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/CT/HTM/75/00.035..HTM
 
Click on those words up there and hit control F, and type "pedalcycles" for an example.
 
I can't believe you're this stupid, so I'm going to assume that you're still mad about being made some cyclist's bitch two days later. Get over it and get a life.

Funny how you were so adamant that it’s not a “competition” but once you get proven demonstrably wrong that facade completely crumbles lol.

“Get a life” from the dude arguing with people about PA turnpike road tolls 😂😂😭

Your entire argument rests on the idea that PennDOT is deliberately and willfully telling people to do illegal shit in their manuals.
 
You have an assumed natural right to move under your own power in western jurisprudence. That which isn't explicitly banned is permitted. The law doesn't need to explicitly say I can filter on a bicycle; if it isn't banned, it's permitted.
 
You keep pretending to not understand this despite an average twelve year old child in Pennsylvania understanding it.

 
You're so mad about a bicyclist passing you two days ago that you're pissing your time away today, two days later, arguing about it. Get a life.

You're crying about a cyclist owning your ass two days ago. 😂😂😭

What part of bikes are vehicles don’t you understand dude? You’re acting like traffic laws don’t exist. I genuinely don’t understand your point. Are bikes vehicles or not?

Do you think PennDOT is intentionally telling bicyclists to break the law in their publications or not?

Nothing in that publication says you can just go to the front of the line at every light my guy. It says in “traffic jams” you can. Jesus fucking Christ.

The term "traffic jam" has no legal meaning, and the manual offers no definition. The manual is clearly referring to instances where cars are stopped.
 
I can tell that you have no fucking idea what you're talking about because you don't understand this. Terms like "traffic jam" are defined in a legal context when they're used in legal documents. What you think is a "traffic jam" is irrelevant.
 

Do you think PennDOT is intentionally telling bicyclists to break the law in their publications or not?

Today I learned that sitting at a red light by myself constitutes a traffic jam. Not gonna keep arguing with someone making clearly bad faith points.

[removed]

> Today I learned that sitting at a red light by myself constitutes a traffic jam.

 
Show me where the state defines what a "traffic jam" is. The definition in your head doesn't count.

 

Your entire argument rests on the idea that PennDOT is deliberately telling cyclists to break the law in their official publications. That is an absurd assertion to make.

Weird, what's the ordinance that they can't?

Fun fact about our country, you can't be guilty of a crime that doesn't exist.

So bikes aren’t vehicles now? Vehicles don’t have to obey traffic laws? This argument is so dumb.

What's the law that says they can't filter at the light? Because the only one mentioned in this thread is about motorcycles filtering. Penndot actively encourages bikes as a way to get through city traffic.

They're just trying not to get killed by ignorant people like you, who feel that being behind a cyclist for two blocks is such an inconvenience you have to flame them online.

If you're going to say it's against the law as your sole argument why 5 min of your time is worth someone's life, at least post the law.

PennDOT says you can do it in a “traffic jam.”

Post the damn law, since it's your only argument.

Someone else posted it above. Feel free to take a look.

There's no applicable law in this thread.

Sorry 5 minutes of your life can make you this pissed off. Just hope you don't pass me within arms length of your mirror.

Im not mad my friend, just curious as to the reasoning. I’ve never advocated for violence against cyclists or dangerous driving in any of my comments. Just looking for reasoning based on something beyond “we feel like we should be able to do this” and not seeing it.

You have your reasoning, it's the top comment.

The most dangerous place on the road for a cyclists is the last spot in line at a red light, because drivers are inattentive. Which is why half of collisions in Allegheny county are red-light rear-ends.

Fair enough

There was something wrong with the cyclist doing that. They were being an unnecessary dickhead

Love how you say that what I think a traffic jam is is irrelevant, but then go on to define traffic jam in the most absurd manner possible. 😂

And this is the root of the problem. You, and other drivers, think that a cyclist doing something to protect themselves is being a dickhead. Because drivers in this city are selfish assholes who think their commute is a competition they have to "win".

 
Cyclists aren't doing it at you, they're doing it to stay safe. Quit thinking everything is about you.

First off you don't know my bike status I ride in this city. Second, being aware of your surroundings is what keeps you safe not not rigid protocols like some sort of autonomous car. In the instance in reference the cyclist was a dickhead just as in this instance you are as well reddit isn't a competition you have to "win" quit thinking everything revolves around you and stay safe out there.

This only applies to “traffic jams” though.

What's the law that says they can't?

Are bikes not vehicles that have to follow the traffic laws?

Which traffic laws?

Dude you are being intentionally obtuse.

https://www.etownonline.com/sites/g/files/vyhlif3091/f/uploads/pa_bicycle_code_-chapter_35.pdf

Says that bikers are subject to the same duties as cars. I’m not about to find the particular section that says you have to stop at red lights and can’t just pass other cars in non-passing lanes. Like what is your argument? That bikers aren’t subject to the law? Can do whatever they want?

I'm just saying that what you're saying is illegal isn't. You can't even post the law that says it is.

Sorry that a cyclists trying to not die at a red light ruined your day because you were behind them for 3 blocks.

Lol ok dude, you’re right, bikers aren’t subject to any laws or regulations. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Fun fact about our government: you can't be subject to a law that doesn't exist.

Hope this helps you pass your elementary school civics test!

I’m not about to spend the time finding the exact statute that says vehicles (which bikes are considered per the fucking link above) have to stop at red lights and can’t just cut to the front of the line whenever they want. Feel free to die on the hill that there are no traffic laws. Bizarre.

Lol stay mad bro.

I'll be sure to stay in the middle of the lane and pedal extra slow just for you next time I'm in squirrel hill.

And the city is literally installing infrastructure to support cyclists doing it.

Ever see those green painted boxes at the front of the lane at a light? Those are to give cyclists room to wait at the front of the line.

https://www.cbsnews.com/pittsburgh/news/oakland-motorist-bicyclist-road-rage-attack/

Yeah, the cyclist is the dickhead in this situation.

 
I'll do what it takes to keep myself safe, including filtering. If that makes me a dickhead to some asshole with terminal carbrain, so be it.

Yeah the strawman link still makes you a dickhead lol

That dispute was over filtering.
 
The problem here is that people stuck in their cars see someone moving faster than they are and they get mad over it because it's unfair in their opinion. No more, no less. The arguing over legality is just window dressing for their little baby brains getting mad over being passed.

 
I don't want to get killed in a squeeze crash so I'm going to filter. Cope and seethe.

> I’m not about to spend the time finding the exact statute

You've sat here crying about it for three days, so I'm assuming you've already put the time in trying to find the exact statute and couldn't. Because it doesn't exist.

There’s a link above saying cyclists have to follow the same laws as drivers. Not sure what else I should have to provide but go off king.

👍🏻

Maybe people would take your opinion more seriously if you weren’t such an insufferable cunt in literally every comment you post. There’s a reason your history is full of downvotes and arguments.

You keep claiming that PennDOT is deliberately encouraging cyclists to do illegal things in their official publications. That's one hell of a claim to make and you've presented nothing that would convince me that PennDOT is actually doing that.
 
Keep seething about being passed by a cyclist though, because we all know that the actual problem here is that you got big mad about it, not whether or not it's allowed.

Keep seething.

Guy probably thinks the bike boxes/advanced stop lines around the city are just green pieces of street art.

The issue here is that I don't think he thinks about it at all. The issue here is "someone is going faster than I am/passing me and that's unfair and makes me big mad."

 
You see that sort of behavior on the Parkway West going towards Robinson all the time. People will speed and weave through traffic to get to the front of the pack and stay there. Just their lizard brain screaming "I HAVE TO BE FIRST" at them.

 
Arguing about the legality of it is just window dressing to make his temper tantrum sound reasonable.

Nobody is “seething” my guy. You come in with a horrible attitude and insult people and expect them to treat you with respect. Don’t know how many times I have to explain that PennDOT says you can lane filter in a “traffic jam,” but it’s clear you don’t want to have a real discussion. We both know you know it’s illegal. I’d respect it a lot more if you just admitted it.

Have a terrible night!

> We both know you know it’s illegal.

 
Then call the cops over it, you big fucking crybaby. Call the cops and tell them you're big mad about a cyclist that delayed you by 18 seconds three days ago.
 
Or just keep seething, either option is funny to me.

Lol ok man, keep picking fights with everyone you encounter on the internet. I feel bad for the people who have to be around you in real life. Peace.

Seethe.

Eeeek so rude for no reason. Cringe.

Expecting other people to suffer because you can't plan ahead. Cringe.

That’s nearly every comment with this guy. Spends his whole day in the Pittsburgh and PA subs attacking people. Doesn’t seem like a happy guy.