A1684

An Act establishing a Lane Splitting Task Force.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. There is established a Lane Splitting Task Force. The task force shall consist of five members, to be appointed as follows:

a. Two members by the Governor, as follows:

(1) A representative from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation; and

(2) A representative from Rider Education of New Jersey; and

b. The Commissioner of Transportation or his designee;

c. The Chief Administrator of the Motor Vehicle Commission or his designee; and

d. The Superintendent of State Police or his designee.

2. The public members shall be appointed within three months of enactment and shall, to the greatest extent practicable, have, by education or experience, knowledge of lane splitting initiatives in other states or countries, and the effects they have had on road congestion and traffic safety. Any vacancy in the public membership of the task force shall be filled by appointment in the same manner as the original appointment was made.

The task force shall organize as soon as possible after the appointments of its members. The Commissioner of Transportation, or his designee, shall serve as the chair of the task force and shall appoint a secretary, who need not be a member of the task force. The members shall select a vice chair from among them.

3. The task force shall focus on lane splitting, which is the allowing of motorcycles to ride between lanes of motor vehicle traffic during times of congestion, and shall examine the advantages and drawbacks of instituting such an initiative in New Jersey. In conducting its inquiry, the task force shall study lane splitting initiatives which have been adopted or considered in other states and countries and determine their effect on road congestion and traffic safety. The task force shall compare these various initiatives and establish an opinion on which components of the policies would provide the most benefit with the safest implementation if lane splitting were adopted in New Jersey.

4. The task force shall be entitled to call to its assistance and shall avail itself of the services of the employees of any State, county, or municipal department, board, bureau, commission or agency as it may require and as may be available to it for its purposes. The task force shall further be entitled to employ counsel and stenographic and clerical assistance and incur traveling and other miscellaneous expenses as it may deem necessary to perform its duties, within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available for its purposes.

5. The task force may conduct public hearings in furtherance of its general purposes at such place or places as it shall designate, at which it may request the appearance of officials of any federal, State, or interstate department, board, bureau, commission, agency, or authority and solicit the testimony or interested groups and the general public.

6. The task force shall report its progress to the Governor and Legislature annually, with the first report no later than 12 months after its organization, and shall issue a final proposal to the Governor and Legislature no later than three years after its organization. The final proposal shall outline the findings of the task force, including, but not limited to:

a. The advantages and drawbacks of lane splitting, in general;

b. Guidelines outlining specific components that a lane splitting initiative should include, if one were to be adopted in New Jersey, to ensure the most successful and safest implementation possible; and

c. A recommendation as to whether New Jersey should adopt a lane splitting initiative, taking into account the State’s highway system, congestion, and unique attributes and traffic patterns.

7. The members of the task force shall serve without compensation, but may be reimbursed for necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties. Any reimbursement of members shall be within the limits of funds appropriated to otherwise made available to the task force for its purposes.

8. This act shall take effect immediately, and shall expire upon the filing of the task force's final proposal to the Governor and Legislature in accordance with the provisions of section 6 of this act.

STATEMENT

This bill would establish a Lane Splitting Task Force to focus on the policy of allowing motorcycles to ride between lanes of motor vehicle traffic during times of congestion, and to examine the advantages and drawbacks of instituting such an initiative in New Jersey. The task force would consist of five members, including:

· A representative from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation;

· A representative from Rider Education of New Jersey;

· The Commissioner of Transportation;

· The Chief Administrator of the Motor Vehicle Commission; and

· The Superintendent of State Police.

In conducting its inquiry, the task force would be charged with studying lane splitting initiatives which have been adopted or considered in other states and countries and determining their effect on road congestion and traffic safety. The task force would compare these various initiatives and establish an opinion on which components would provide the most benefit with the safest implementation, if lane splitting were adopted in New Jersey.

The bill requires the task force to report its progress to the Governor and Legislature annually, and to issue a final proposal within three years.