Washington Motorcycle Law

07/10/2026

SHARE THE ROAD 🙏

From 2021 to 2025, investigated more fatal collisions involving motorcycles in July than in any other month of the year.

Safety is a shared responsibility for everyone on the road.

Motorcyclists:
- Obey traffic laws and speed limits.
- Wear a DOT-compliant helmet and protective gear.
- Stay visible.
- Never ride impaired or distracted.
- Complete rider education courses and ride with a valid motorcycle endorsement.
- Ride defensively.

Motorists:
- Check your blind spots.
- Allow plenty of space for motorcycles to maneuver or stop.
- Remember that motorcyclists have the same rights on the road as any other motorist.
- Obey traffic laws and speed limits.
- Stay alert and never drive impaired or distracted.

06/16/2026

Lane filtering / lane spltting is like any other kind of riding. It is safe if practiced properly. As a rider and motorcycle accident attorney, I've testified numerous times about the injuries I see in my practice. I've often said there is always a tradeoff, as this article points out.

I do think the opinion in this article is a bit slanted, as it fails to provide the injury and fatality data that shows injury reductions across the board, something that is dismissed out of hand by saying it is in the daytime, and riders are not impaired. That statement is intellectually dishonest in my opinion. A second look at it reveals a hidden admission. These are THREE COMMON TRUTHS:

1. RIDERS WHO LANE SPLIT AND LANE FILTER TEND TO BE SAFER RIDERS THAN ALL OTHER RIDERS COMBINED.

2. LANE SPLITTING AND LANE FILTERING IS NO MORE DANGEROUS THAN ANY OTHER FORM OF RIDING.

3. SOMETIMES LANE SPLITTING AND LANE FILTERING IS THE SAFEST RIDING OPTION UNDER THE CONDITIONS.

Let riders decide. Allow riders to stay out of the blind spot. Fund rider training and integrate safe lane filtering and splitting techniques into the curriculum. Study road rage. Make our highways and roads safer for EVERYONE.

Footnote: shoulder riding is dangerous and there is no data to support it. Please share the road and stay off the shoulder and bicycle lanes.

California has permitted it for decades. Minnesota began allowing it last year. Why is it still illegal in Washington?

05/06/2026

You know, I used to be AGAINST the death penaly.

The suspect is facing several charges, including driving while under the influence.

04/21/2026

A CONDEMNATION OF RIDE APART MAGAZINE

Recently RideApart, a well-known and, heretofore, respected motorcycle publication, published two completely irresponsible, erroneous, and misleadingly alarmist articles relating to Utah's lane filtering law.

In 2019 Utah passed a bill which legalized "LANE FILTERING", which limited the practice of riding between lanes on a motorcyce to essentially STOPPED traffic on ROADS with speed limits of 45 miles per hour or less. The bill did NOT legalize "LANE SPLITTING" which is generally known as riding a motorcycles between lanes on HIGHWAYS (55 mph +) while traffic is MOVING.

The first article, published an article on January 15, 2026 entitled "Utah Bans Lane-Splitting, Makes Wheelies a Crime" which reported correctly that Utah passed a bill in 2025 which expressely stated lane splitting was illegal, which, of course it already was. Arguably a misleading title, but, OK.

HOWEVER, on April 20, 2026, RideApart published an article titled "Utah Motorcycle Riders, Lane Filtering Is Next On The List To Be Outlawed," which was a COMPLETELY IRRESPONSIBLE, MISLEADING, AND ALARMIST article that violated journalism ethics.

The article used the previous January "lane splitting now illegal" article as a launching pad to CLAIM THAT AN ELECTRIC BICYCLE AMENDMENT BILL (incorporating electric bikes into existing statutes) WAS IN FACT THE FIRST STEP IN MAKING LANE FILTERING ILLEGAL IN UTAH, UNNECESSARILY ALARMING UTAH RIDERS and those of us with functional brains who are fighting for motorcycle rights across the country.

Needless to say, THIS claim, nay SCHEME, did not survive legal scrutiny.

This WAS undoubtedly JUST FOR ATTENTION AT THE MOTORCYCLE COMMUNITY'S EXPENSE.

Shame on you RideApart Magazine.

This RIDER and LAWYER calls on RideApart Magazine to ISSUE A RETRACTION AND WRITTEN CORRECTION and APOLOGIZE to its readers and the motorcycle community at large.

UNTIL SUCH TIME, I CALL ON THE MOTORCYCLE COMMUNITY TO BOYCOTT RIDEAPART MAGAZINE.

We expect better from "our own."

Christopher A. Slater, Attorney at Law.

04/20/2026

I AM LOOKING INTO THIS

IF TRUE, this would constitute the first "counter swing" or "correction" to the growing national lane splitting/filtering movement. IF TRUE.

The article was written by a non-lawyer.

I will carefully read the bill and post my LEGAL OPINION as to the bill and the accuracy of this article.

Stay tuned.

Both ape hangers and lane filtering are on deck to be outlawed and positioned as legal infractions if you have or engage in either one. Let's dive in.