Tight motorway filtering

[Hugo Stiglitz]

Who else absolutely loves the variety and long filtering challenging of this? Am I mad?!!

[Essarell]

Surely the bike’s greatest asset is the ability to filter, try to keep my speed right down and in the vast majority of cases traffic will move over to let me thru.
It’s a good test of skill and concentration, not so keen on those who weave through moving traffic or filter at high speeds with the hazards on, that just seems like a good way to donate an organ.

[black-k1]

Doesn't it really piss you off when another biker "blocks" you from being able to filter? https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

I wouldn't say I enjoy it as I'd rather be riding my bike on country roads, or mountain passes, or even a motorway that's moving at free-flowing speeds but there is a feeling of smugness as you ride past the queues. I suppose it's the same feeling the cars get when it's pissing down and they see you "wading" your way along!

[Biker 1]

I weirdly enjoy this sort of filtering too!
Essential to watch out for foreign cars; many countries do not allow filtering, so drivers are either not aware, or downright aggressive in closing the gap, such as the Swiss. Beware plates bearing the letters CH...

[julian64]

One of my pet hates. I tend to filter at no more than 10mph past whatever speeds cars are travelling at. I wince when I sit in traffic 5pmh traffic on A2 every morning and see motorcylists with hazards on doing 30mph plus past traffic in both lanes, usually those passing in 1-2 are trying to overtake those passing in 2-3.

All out to donate.

[black-k1]

julian64 said:

...

All out to donate.

[the cueball]

My "best" was 18km on a stretch of motorway somewhere near the Polish/Czech border.

Got to the front of the queue, there had been a massive accident.

Got off the bike, waited around for a while then the police let me and another biker away first before any of the other traffic moved.....

I do like a bit of filtering...

[maxrobot]

Yes, I like it but in a very much on the precipice between life and death way.

[julian64]

black-k1 said:

julian64 said:

...

All out to donate.

implies you think it reasonable. Try to put a number on it ? Its a motorway. Is thirty mile an hour differential down both lanes okay for you?

Just trying to find out where you sit on this

I guess everyone has an idea of what they think is reasonable. I wouldn't do more than 10mph differential, but then I guess I'm quite conservative?

[black-k1]

julian64 said:

black-k1 said:

julian64 said:

...

All out to donate.

implies you think it reasonable. Try to put a number on it ? Its a motorway. Is thirty mile an hour differential down both lanes okay for you?

Just trying to find out where you sit on this

I guess everyone has an idea of what they think is reasonable. I wouldn't do more than 10mph differential, but then I guess I'm quite conservative?

I don't think you can put a definitive number on it and I don't think you can directly measure on a speedo the point at which the personal risk becomes too great.

Each circumstance is unique and will need to be managed accordingly. I'll filter much faster in London than I would locally in Suffolk because London traffic is, in general, used to filtering.

I'll filter faster where I'm one of many bikes currently filtering than I will when I'm on my own.

I see people who filter faster than I would feel comfortable with and others who don't filter as fast as I would. Are they right and me wrong? I don't know and I don't feel qualified to judge them.

Each of us will be responsible should things go wrong or we get pulled. I suspect I'd likely be done for the rates I filter at if there's an incident but, like speeding, I'm happy that I've balanced the risks and have made the right decision.

[julian64]

black-k1 said:

julian64 said:

black-k1 said:

julian64 said:

...

All out to donate.

implies you think it reasonable. Try to put a number on it ? Its a motorway. Is thirty mile an hour differential down both lanes okay for you?

Just trying to find out where you sit on this

I guess everyone has an idea of what they think is reasonable. I wouldn't do more than 10mph differential, but then I guess I'm quite conservative?

I don't think you can put a definitive number on it and I don't think you can directly measure on a speedo the point at which the personal risk becomes too great.

Each circumstance is unique and will need to be managed accordingly. I'll filter much faster in London than I would locally in Suffolk because London traffic is, in general, used to filtering.

I'll filter faster where I'm one of many bikes currently filtering than I will when I'm on my own.

I see people who filter faster than I would feel comfortable with and others who don't filter as fast as I would. Are they right and me wrong? I don't know and I don't feel qualified to judge them.

Each of us will be responsible should things go wrong or we get pulled. I suspect I'd likely be done for the rates I filter at if there's an incident but, like speeding, I'm happy that I've balanced the risks and have made the right decision.

Bit woolly . I think we all travel to the speeds we are comfortable with, and the thread was on what peoples opinion of that speed is.

If I ask the question in a different way perhaps. What speed differential would you think would cause a police car to pull you over?

[TheInternet]

Through stationary traffic is fine, but if it's slow moving with the potential for cars to suddenly and aggressively change lanes without looking is just the worst.

[black-k1]

julian64 said:

Bit woolly . I think we all travel to the speeds we are comfortable with, and the thread was on what peoples opinion of that speed is.

If I ask the question in a different way perhaps. What speed differential would you think would cause a police car to pull you over?

Id say it's definitely not woolly and any belief that you can define safety in an infinite number of different possible circumstances as a speed or speed differential is, at best, naive.

As for plod, again, I'm not plod so I can't say. I do believe that I would get a tug if I were to be seen filtering in Suffolk at speeds I've happily filtered past plod cars in/around London, and, at speeds I, and many others, have followed marked Met bikes filtering at!! I've also had marked Met bikes (no blues and twos) catch me up and pass me when I've been filtering at a significant speed differential, including when traffic is already travelling at 30mph+ (up the A12 past the Olympic Park at Stratford.)

I have filtered down the M11 to the North Circular at 30mph+ greater than the traffic speed where I am just one bike in the middle of a long line of bikes all filtering past at pretty much the same speed. (Almost a whole extra lane!) I suspect that had I been the only bike at that speed I'd have been pulled for "a chat" as a minimum. As one of many, I suspect it simply wouldn't have been important enough.

[Dog Star]

Hate it, but used to do it every single day going to Leeds on the M62 - the jam would start between Saddleworth and Huddersfield and basically be solid all the way into Leeds almost every day. So that was 17-20 miles of stationary or very slow moving traffic to filter past. On an R1 it got pretty hard on the wrists.

I used to regularly meet two bellends on fully kitted GSs and they obviously couldn’t fit between cars, but that wouldn’t stop them blocking - a quick change to filter between L1 and L2 or the central reservation was always needed.

[Tribal Chestnut]

TheInternet said:

Through stationary traffic is fine, but if it's slow moving with the potential for cars to suddenly and aggressively change lanes without looking is just the worst.

I’m always very wary where there is a big speed differential between the lanes that I am looking ynfilter between.

When lane splitting (fairly rare for me) I always hold back when approaching a junction or on a bend where the other vehicles are less likely to be aware of what is behind them and might vary their position in the lane.

[Niponeoff]

Don't commute on my bike so don't visit motorways too often. However, I don't mind traffic on a bike, just more to overtake which is just so easy on a bike.

I seem to meet quite a few bones willing to sit in a slow convoy, I figure they're just enjoying the ride, though I do wonder if they might disapprove of my overtakes.

[Tribal Chestnut]

Niponeoff said:

I seem to meet quite a few bones willing to sit in a slow convoy, I figure they're just enjoying the ride, though I do wonder if they might disapprove of my overtakes.

I’m seeing that more and more on my commute to Central London. Makes no sense to me.

[Stig]

Have to do it daily from Hillingdon to Euston - made worse by barrier repairs on central reservation, so 3 lanes squeezed into two narrow ones.

That said, been doing it for so many years it just feels like normal riding to me.

Just dreading the weather improving when all the GS riding Ewan McGregor wannabes with those huge ally panniers become mobile roadblocks! If there's a bike right behind you, you're riding too slowly - let them pass ffs.

[Harji]

I once filtered through standstill or crawling traffic from East London Brick Lane to West London, all the way , it was a distance of 15 miles and I gave myself a high five at home.

[OutInTheShed]

I think I once bumped over every catseye in the M25 between Gatwick and Heathrow,

I used to filter my way into London, about twice a week. Some of the regulars seemed to be happy with differential speeds at least 30mph more than I cared for. Lots of bikes used to brake HARD for the 70mph speed cameras, where the cars were doing maybe 30.
By that point in the journey I probably had 20 minutes in hand so I was in less of a rush.

Everything is much slower than 20-25 years ago.
Despite many of us riding more capable bikes.