TBirdman

Per Washington State Drivers Guide (available via google or by following link http://www.dol.wa.gov/driverslicense...erguide-en.pdf (you'll want page 31)) :

White lane markings – Solid white lines are used to mark both edges of two-way roads and the right edge of one-way roads. You should not drive to the right of the edge line. A dashed white line between lanes of traffic means that you may cross it to change lanes if it is safe. A solid white line between lanes of traffic means that you should stay in your lane unless a special situation requires you to change lanes

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CharlotteRoyal

I can easily answer that question for you. FHWA sets the guidelines....

States are obligated by the Feds to allow motorcycles to use the HOV lanes per Title 23 U.S.C. Chapter 1 Section 166. States may override the feds, but Washington has not done so. HOWEVER, some local municipalities have bus lanes where motorcycles are NOT allowed...like Shoreline, Edmonds, Lynnwood, and Everett. For those of you wanting to use HOV facilities on I-5 and I-90 and their associated express lanes, you can. However, I'd advise you not to try to overtake vehicles on SR 167 in the sections where you have the double white line, even when the sign says "open to all"...since doing so may land you a ticket.

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/USCODE-...ap1-sec166.pdf

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1kBrian

Seattle Express Lane tunnel

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blakegaston

Bus lanes?

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Fast Eddie 919

Grannies are for p w ning n00bs

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CharlotteRoyal

That one is up for debate. I'm fighting the City of Shoreline about that one right now.

This was the response that I received from the City Public Works Director:

Thank you for your email of December 5, 2011 about allowing motorcycles to use the Business Access and Transit (BAT) lanes along Aurora Avenue N. I appreciate that you took the time to share your questions with the City Council. The Council requested that I respond to you on their behalf.

Please know that I understand your desire to travel in the BAT lanes for the reasons you stated. However, at this time, we believe it is best to keep the BAT lane access limited to turning vehicles, and only allow buses to use them for travelling through intersections. The very reason for constructing these lanes is to improve the safety of the travel corridor, and it is the City’s experience that allowing motorcycles and carpools to use BAT lanes as HOV lanes could actually create added safety problems.

For example, visibility can be limited by heavy traffic conditions for drivers making left or U-turns, resulting in an increase in collisions when exceptions are granted to the “right lane must turn right” requirements. The City allows buses to use the lane because they are infrequent users, and they are large enough to be seen in crowded traffic conditions. In addition, if motorcycles and carpools are allowed in the BAT lanes, they tend to travel faster than mainline traffic during times of peak traffic. Even though they may be traveling less than the posted speed limit of 40 MPH, the difference in traffic speeds between adjacent traffic lanes can result in serious injury accidents.

I would also add that the communities of Edmonds and Lynnwood to the north use the Highway 99 BAT lanes the same as Shoreline. Consistency among the cities makes it easy to understand for all drivers and therefore adds to the safety of the corridor. Finally, King County Metro is adding Bus Rapid Transit to Shoreline in 2013. These buses will use our BAT lanes and will include an increase of 5,000 service hours, with headways every ten minutes during the morning and evening travel hours, and every 15 minutes during the rest of the day.

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Could have fooled me! They work just fine in SeaTac, Kent, Des Moines and Federal Way, where I used to live. They just gave me a line to avoid changing the status quo and avoid having to change their environmental impact statement. What happens during these bus lane projects is that they actually write these bus restrictions into the environmental documentation to make transit folks happy or secure funding that otherwise wouldn't be available. (Don't laugh! It's true!) To open the lane up to motorcycles may require some additional work on the City's part to not only re-sign the roadway but also redo the documentation to reflect the allowance of motorcycles in the bus lane. It sounds stupid, but it's part of govco bureaucracy.

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