When it comes to states that are friendly to motorcyclists, we can add Arizona to the list, as the Grand Canyon State has passed a law that makes it legal to lane-filter on a motorcycle.
The states that motorcyclists can pass between stopped vehicles, at a speed no faster than 15 mph, and only on roads with speed limits below 45mph.
These provisions are modeled off of Utah’s lane-filtering law, which itself has been renewed for an additional five years.
Accordingly, Arizona’s Senate Bill 1273 was met with bipartisan support in both the Senate and House of the Arizona State Legislature.
The bill was passed with help from the AMA and with great assistance by ABATE of Arizona, and it will likely take effect in mid-September.
“This law has been four years in the making,” said Michael Infanzon, legislative director for ABATE of Arizona. “But we had a really great sponsor for the bill this year with Senator Pace (R-Mesa District 23).”
“He is an active motorcycle rider and it was key to have someone who understood the danger of being rear-ended. This is all about safety and nothing more than part of the plan to reduce motorcycle fatalities in Arizona.”
According to the Arizona Department of Transportation’s most recent data, 30 percent of all motorcycle crashes in 2020, including 11 out of 106 fatal motorcycle collisions, were the result of rear-end collisions.
“ABATE of Arizona put up a strong showing to successfully get this law signed,” said the American Motorcyclist Association’s (AMA) Western States Representative Nicholas Haris.
“It is a welcome sight to see more states adopting commonsense safety laws that protect motorcyclists when they are most vulnerable to a collision. The AMA is committed to working with riders nationwide on efforts to pass similar legislation and educating the public about its benefits.”
Hopefully the success of Arizona’s recent passage of a lane-filtering law, and the continued success we see in jurisdictions like California, Hawaii, Utah, and Montana will pave a way for more states to adopt motorcycle-friendly traffic laws.
Source: American Motorcyclist Association
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