In a bid to reduce the number of deaths amongst Malaysian motorcyclists, the Works Ministry is in favour of introducing a policy which will restrict motorcyclists to the left most lane on highways. The proposed restriction will come into effect during peak rush hour on weekdays.
This was said by Works minister Baru Bian, as reported by news portal The Mole. Citing accident statistics, Baru said motorcycle deaths during commuting hours had reach “alarming levels,” with over 4,000 motorcyclists in Malaysia dying yearly and many more injured.
“I think we can apply certain provisions during those hours of the working days like during the high (volume) traffic period that bikers may be limited to ride only on the most left side of the road,” said Baru. However, Baru said implementation of such a policy along highways such as New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE) and KL-Seremban Highway would not be soon as all parties would need to be consulted.
“I think we can apply certain provisions during those hours on working days, that bikers may be limited to ride only on the left-most side of the road. This is perhaps more feasible,” said the minister, “I think any suggestion for the policy to be enforced round the clock is not suitable currently.”
This was said in response to a suggestion by road safety advocates Safety First Group, advised by Datuk Seri Azman Ujang, for the government to enforce a blanket ruling on such a policy. Earlier this year, the group forwarded a proposal to Transport minister Anthony Loke for bikers to be confined to the left lane.
The proposal also called for bikers to not only be confined to the left but also be restricted to a speed of 70 km/h. Loke had at the time said such a proposal would have to be reviewed, saying enforcement would be difficult adding he was aware weak enforcement contributed to a rise in road accidents and that enforcement and existing regulations would be tightened.
Meanwhile, The Malay Mail, quoting a Bernama report, said Azman has called the minister’s support of the proposal “welcome news.” “Despite the highly alarming number of people, especially among the young, killed in motorcycle crashes year in and year out, nothing much has been done to address this very serious issue,” he said.
The provenance of the Whatsapp based Safety First Group is not widely known, nor the key personnel behind it, aside from Azman, chairman of national news agency Bernama, and founder Samad Rahim, and their advocation for Malaysian motorcyclists to be marginalised and discriminated against. From research, the group was established in 2016 after a fire in the Sultan Aminah hospital in Johor claimed six lives and currently claims to have 500 members.
Furthermore, it is unknown if the group has actually consulted the primary stakeholders in such a proposal, the motorcyclists themselves, or done any studies to determine the causes of fatal accidents amongst bikers.
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Yes ! Please !! Just do it before it get worse.
We refuse to let way. The Gov got no rights to tell us what to do.
Fight for your rights! Equality for all! Take to the highways if desperate! This is New Malaysia! Viva le Malaisie!
*La Malaisie
merci beaucoup
“equality for all” – that’s what communists said last time.
All motorcyclist should acquired skills of Defensive Driving/Riding.
Currently majority motorcyclist only knows to speed up and lane splitting but didn’t know how to anticipate unforeseen road conditions and other vehicles sense of direction on the road. Thus motorcyclists possess the mentality of all other vehicles must give way and clear the path for them. Furthermore most motorcycle has insufficient or poor braking system especially emergency braking at certain velocity.
What you say is true. Not enough Defensive Riding skills, lack of awareness and anticipation of how other road users behave, a mentality that all other road users must give way to then and excessive speed when filtering through traffic.
However, I like to point out that their brakes are actually very good except that motorcyclist in Malaysia have been trained to use their rear brakes primarily instead of both. So excessive speed ( not understanding speed differential) and wrong use of brakes usually lead to these motorcyclist being unable to stop in time.
Yes, i like to emphasize on the break usage, many malaysia’s motorcycle didn’t know the proper technique for breaking ie. the used of rear break instead of the front one
Wont work when ministers require their police motor outriders to be on the main lanes escorting them. Waiting for this uturn idea to be uturned later.
Baguslah. If motorcyclists wanna have a say concerning this matter they must pay tolls like any other road users first. Only then their views can be taken into account
Dont decide based on feeling (jealous cuz bikes dont have tolls). In the first place toll exist to maintain road due to damage by heavy vehicle, not bike.
Some said tolls would be abolished once they tookover the Government…
BS! The previous gomen even let us rempit, what rights do the new gov stop us from rempiting?
1000cc bikes pay rm350 road tax , 1000cc cars pay only rm20 , there are reasons govt abolish toll for bikes
Not sure how frequent Baru Bian drives on highways for long distance travel in Semenanjung. I suggest that the restriction to left lane should be base on motobike’s cc. For those high cc bikes, that can travel at high speed, restricting them to left lane only can also spell for tragedy. Of course those who travel on right lane is also bound to the general rule to give way to other vehicles that intends to overtake them.
high cc doesn’t mean u can drive beyond speed limit, bear in mind of that traffic rules.
Tell that to the ferrari and Lamborghinis. U can always see them with their “im not overspeeding… Im overtaking everyone on the left from point A to point B” loophole
Hahaha ban those cars driving above 110kph too!
Government mentioned during rush hours only. Regardless small or big cc, ride fast in between of cars and car changed lane, here you go death penalty for riders. of course people in the car will be not likely to die or severely injured. most of cars driver and occupant still win against whatever cc of motorcycle rider in event of accident.
But from my observations, left lane can be more dangerous in peak hour than right lane. Car tend to changes lane
abruptly or without signal, using emergency lane, heavy vehicle, and not to mention incoming traffic from road entry and exit.
Accidents are inevitable. And being a motorcyclist, you are extremely vulnerable to serious injury. As such, motorcyclists need to ride with a little sense of self preservation.
Throwing legislation at them won’t solve anything. They need education. Unfortunately it is easier said then done.
1) speeding past vehicles when lane splitting (I’m fine with lane splitting, just do it carefully)
2) not enough care in keeping out of other motorists blind spot ( someone is going to cut you off if they can’t see you)
3) running traffic lights (’nuff said)
4) speeding inappropriately (or going too slow)…given bikes usually don’t brake as well as cars.
If car drivers can go and take defensive driving courses (where available, and if you haven’t, find a program to take) , why not the same for motorcyclist, this time compulsory? Once education is in place, then you can throw the strong arm of the law at them.
Seem like the case requires review ONLY when fatalities are mounting and piling up.
In other word, wait till ppl die, then take action.
Enforcement still extremely poor in Mesia despite laws, rules are passed. Simplest case in point?
More rubbish is thrown esp. at places with “Jangan Buang Sampah. Denda RM500” signs.
educate the motorcyclist to ride safely and drivers to drive safely … what is the point of riding a bike if you need to queue on the left lane…not all bikers ride in moderate speed..there are also sightseeing bikers in the peak hours…
Nice. Just put us in the same lane as the buses, the lorries and the trailers. Oh btw, those cars travelling at near 200kmh swerving and driving like crazy? Nah they’re not an issue really. Oh what about those actual kids riding on the road without helmets and not following the traffic rules? Meh its ok. The damn cyclists on the highway is the biggest issue here.
I think the motorcyclists by numbers are the bigger issue than the smaller number of cyclists on highway…
How many cars drives 200kmh during peak hours vs how many bikes rides fast while lane splitting and refuse to slow down even if they see a car with indicator on 100meters ahead to switch lanes?
There you go. The need for the law to be passed. I might add, restricting bikes to left and middle lane would be more feasible and allowing bikes with big cc like 600cc and above to the right lane should be alright.
Why do cars even need to switch lanes so frequently during jams? The answer is ciloking here and there. Car drivers are worse than motors in jams. So who are the main cause of accidents in jams, it’s usually car & other vehicle drivers. Motors tend to easily avoid accidents unless idiotic drivers jump the lane in front of motors when they cilok which goes back to the first point.
Dream on lah. First it’ll be the standard ” Kami kaji dulu “. Kaji dunno how long. Then Laporan tak siap lagi. Even if Laporan keluar, sure chop “Sulit”, so you can’t read through it.
Finally, IF …. and a big FAT IF, it even get implemented, the ruling will take years to be gazetted and even more years will pass by “period for educating motorists”, plus a few more years of “grace period”.
Last last, best of all, ini SOP Malaysia gomen, tak ada ENFORCEMENT. HAHAHAHA Mat rempit buat dunno saja. Ada law pun macam tak ada law. Syukur Msia Aman.
Should have implemented this years ago. And please implement minimum speed for the highway, driving too slow on the highway also causing problem for other road users.
Most important is educate the road users the do and dont on the highway, such as use signal light when change lane, turn on head light during raining day, do not block the right lane even you are driving at 110km/h etc.
Left lane means queue behind car/truck/bus or emergency lane?
I never saw a bus on the left lane. Usually they overtake all others at 140km/h on the right lane.
Right lane only for big lorries and buses , small lorries in the middle lane , and all cars on the left lane , motorcycles use emergency lane yahooo!!!!
Sad… but generally correct. Sign of a non civil society!
i think it’s good move to save motorcyclist live….but i think you should also enforce the prevent some idiots hogging at fast/overtake lane as well.. it also cause left side (slow/normal lane) overtaking which increase the accident rate to motorcyclist.
While they are at it, please allow full claims against motorcyclist that cause road collisions. Claiming from our own insurance for damages we didn’t inflict clearly unfair, not to mention losing our NCB for nothing.
While they are at it, please allow full claims against motorcyclist that cause road collisions. Claiming from our own insurance for damages we didn’t inflict clearly unfair, not to mention losing our NCB for nothing.
Look at the stats la. Most accidents are at turns and intersections. Highways are the safest roads for motorcyclists.
Does this Works Minister talked to Transport Minister before coming out with yet another halfassed idea? Did he have statistics to show that motors on highway is the highest accidental contributor, or death rates on the highway?
Does he have statistics to show that motors travelling on the middle or fast lanes are the cause of these accidents, and does he have study data to show that by shafting all of them to the slow lane with buses and trucks that has ginormous blind spots, it would reduce the accidental rates?
If motors were to populate the left lane, would it encourage buses and trucks to move into middle lane? How would it prevent other accidents when such slower moving vehicles are blocking the middle lane?
Do these newbie ministers even think before they talk?
Why not ban four wheel vehicle from right most lane.
WOW…! What a great IDEA… confine motorcycles to share lanes with huge heavy vehicles, long haulers, lorries, commercial vehicles and busses…! Which BRIGHT MINDS came up with this idea…?
The expressways are safest for motorcyles as long as other vehicles do not hog the emergency lane. Lane splitting and filtering is acceptable for faster motorcycles. But convoying should be strictly monitored and do not let them hog the lanes. Highways with dedicated motorcycle lanes should be maintained regularly to keep safety aspects in check always.
Restricting motorcycles to travel at 70kmh is just IDIOTIC…! Most 125cc motorcycles can go up to speeds above 120kmh…! The bigger bikes surely do more.
Why not the govt release the findings of its research and survey papers and share with the public exactly where and when it is really dangerous for commuter motorcyclist… then work from there. Right now the govt is unwilling to divulge the information and its findings. If the surveys are done in the Klang Valeey.. then make your suggestions and recomendation strictly for the KlangValley area…. coz riding habits, riding conditions, traffic flow and volume is different at different places… especially outside of the KlangValley.
125cc bikes going 120kmh. That is exactly what the minister wanted to prevent.
Also, theyre talking about peak hours (traffic jam) times tho.
Restricting bikes to left lane (my opinion should open up middle lane too) during traffic jam should be beneficial. when cars wants to change to overtaking lanes during peak hour, chances are we’ll hear BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP and realise the bike is actually still very very far away and just refuse to slow down to left us switch lanes. Oh dont forget the death stare that drivers get even when we indicated early by signalling (a few seconds) and switch lanes. We get horned by bikes for switching lanes too slow but its during jam bro. We also want to fast fast switch lanes. but cars from overtaking lanes only let you go in bit by bit.
It usually because motorcyclist have enough dealing with car change lane without signal, give signal during changing lane(not before) or give signal but don’t assess the surroundings situation (is it safe? Is there vehicle behind me?) and instantly change lane. Its up to the point that many motorcyclist are paranoid whenever car are changing lane. Of course there are motorcyclist that are downright obnoxious and not giving chance, but for majority of motorcyclist, tge signal situation can be said a “routine”
yes, unless they are overtaking.
Riders need training and the enforcement of proper safety equipment whilst riding.
It has little to do with speed or the inside or outside lane riding. It is Riding skill issue, which brings awareness of dangers.
Too many times over the years do I see guys on small bikes with no protective clothing boots or gloves even riding in situations that with the smallest change or miscalculation could result in a fatal accident… And sadly has more times than I wish to recall…
Hopeless study, hopeless enforcement (if any) for hopeless dunggu drivers.
Just watch the tube….with lots of videos of ugly malaysian drivers even uses the emergency lane driving at highway, Tailgating ambulance, cucuk-cucuk and dangerous driving in their tin-milo cars, illegal modded cars, etc…
Personally, I dont see the left-lane motorcycle lane is gonna help much.
The left lane will be fully occupied by them during public holiday. With gang over gang of motorcycles hogging and with excessive loud exhaust which I don’t understand why they are even allowed to install at the first place.
Not that why they install it at the first place, but why such loud exhaust is allowed to be sold.
Back to law and enforcement.
Lol…car also overtook from slow lane/emergency lane
well, could be without bikes lane splitting (blocking cars from switching to overtaking lane) & road hoggers, i doubt anyone would choose left/middle lane over take vs right lane.
saya setuju dengan cadangan ini! diharap dapat dilakukan secepat mungkin. memang patut dari dulu motosikal diletak di lorong motosikal ditepi. kalau nak lagi bagus haramkan jer motosikal, buat kacau aje kat jalan. dah la bawak celah lorong, bila kereta nak signal tukar lorong, dia hon pulak. memang tak guna.
Make it compulsory for all motorcyclists to have insurance coverage first.
Newbies detected! How did you get your license?
Make the road level up.first
I drive and i ride during peak hours and these are some of my observation. The rider needs to value their life more. I’ve seen riders cucuk other riders during lane splitting just because the rider in front is slower than him or just cut across another rider without signal. By right the rider should only lane split with speeds above 20-30 km/h more than the drivers. I’ve also seen some drivers that switch lane immediately after signaling. The signal is to inform others of your intention. If drivers switch lane immediately after signal, then it really defeats the purpose of signaling. And of course in Malaysia, if you signal, chances are other driver/rider will speed up to prevent you from entering their lane.
It all comes down to courtesy from everyone. If everyone is selfish on the road, then we will always have angry driver/rider on the road which is bad.
finally,some good comment
First of all it’s not biker whom just causing any accidents, it’s the car drivers who doesn’t follow the bloody law, driving while texting,on call while driving! Don’t use indicators while making a lane shift!
Please make them stop, bikers most of them know how to ride esp superbikes, or in that case why don’t make bike lanes like Australia? Come on guys this is totally BS!
I do ride a lot than driving. MTB or any two wheels, I love them. We have many rules but lack of enforcement. Every year we have stupid cabinet ministers make stupid rules by old and new government, it never change.
Our car loving drivers seldom use a signal indicator on entering a junction or uses it when turning into a junction for a two second blinks ! They do double and triple parking anywhere and always hog the bike parking bay.Young Bikers and drivers have ego problems.When you overtake them, they want to race. Motorist still uses phones on the road ! They should be banned 6 months for it. Mopes are not save in speed over 100kmph. It failed to stop safely buy only slide towards danger. That’s why you got more death. It doesn’t help young bikers like to come on the left and then to the right to overtake in a short distance.
Even on plus highway the entrance and exit of bike lanes are dangerous. All bike lanes should be made wider. Young motorist should have a higher insurance to use the road. They are reckless. And please ban the two Stoke machines and old diesel trucks forever.
The Transport Minister should ride on a bike everyday for three months just to see what the problem really is instead of using his arse that did the talking instead of his brain ! With Mahathir Mr Clean that is not clean, things will never change.
Buy hayabusa… Ride on most left lane @ 70kmph. Lol.
Yup yup.. Those driving recklessly will never die one, protected within the metal cage with airbags and all… Can play phone some more while driving.. Normal maa… Always like that one.. But see bike zooming in between cars, hati terus terbakar… U see ah, a bike’s width is less than 1/3 or a car or like that la.. Imagine la the contribution of the car on the road to the ever lasting jam on malaysian roads.. And sometimes one car only driver inside ooo… Imagine the carbon foot print u car driver leave behind lor.. Lagi mau bising2 sama biker ka? Do u realise that most bike accident were due to car drivers carelessness? Jumping Q without signaling, turning into junction without warning, and the list goes on.. But yea.. U guys are protected within in that metal frame right…
Reimplement restriction for motorcycles on highway without proper road shoulder.
Motorcycle to keep to the left lane and emergency lane, but when approach an exit, there is a possibility they ride too fast and collide with exciting traffic, limit them to no more than 30km/h with traffic speed at all exit. Exiting traffic have higher priority, hence motorcycle have to slow down to let them through.
Lane splitting between car lane is 30km/h above traffic speed. If there is a stand still traffic jam, 30km/h is the max they can ride.
Yeah…ban those cars driving or any vehicles driving dangerously above 110kph & tailgating too…barubtul2 selamat! Idiot punya proposal…how the heck are u going to enforce this? Heavy vehicles using highways during peak hours pun cannot enforce!??….otak letak kat lutut punya idea
Stupid idea, then all those u opted to ride for commuting will start to drive their cars…it gonna bemassive trafgic jam during rush hours. Govt shud encourage ppl to use bike/public transport for commuting instead of driving….polhtion etc…massive jam…why ler this minister are plain stupid…just imagine if najority who rides decide to drive cars again…horrible jam!!
Before becoming a new motorcyclist this year, I did extensive research by reading up on motorcycling techniques and safety tips. I watched YouTube channels and have seen what riding tests are like in other countries like the US. I honestly think all of this has helped me avoid laying down my bike so far, especially the time when my back tire skidded when braking on a wet day over the painted strips on the road.
I am genuinely appalled by the bike course in Malaysia. (1) To get an L license which allows you to ride, you only need to pass a theory test. How is this still a thing?
(2) There is no mention of safety gear throughout the course, other than the use of a helmet.
(3) There is little to no mention of advanced topics such as safe lane filtering (no higher than speeds of 40-50km/h). The JPJ facilitator even had to use a video from an Australian local agency. What is JPJ doing?
By implementing such a blanket rule, you are not going to solve the problem which stems from the ignorance of the average motorcyclist. Also, who is going to monitor and enforce those rules? Wasting more manpower on stupid, menial jobs like this? Instead of having more traffic police, we need more actual police to keep our streets safe.
This morning was on the way to work, as usual, NKVE crazy jam .. 2 C2Pid unsatisfactory issue stuck in my mind, that is why i read on this article ( even it is a old post ). I am from Setia Alam towards Damansara NKVE.
1) Uneducated car drivers cutting queue during jam, is that really Malaysia that uncivilized & selffish? Not only some buatan malaysia car doing so, but those BM-Merz drivers are doing this as well. They cut queue and block the whole right lane, where other want to turn the other side. I thought blocking the road would be wrong doing and lead to saman ?
2) When I wanted to switch lane from left to right, and I have opened my signal for more than 10 sec with moving carefully. Some super bike coming from far with very fast speed, and when i saw him, both of me and the driver from behind me (right lane) stopped and give way to him, and this biker showed his unhappiness toward me( with middle finger), and kicked my car with his bike boot. When I want to look at his bike number plate, it is places facing upside, from the back, we don’t even able to see it.
Not mean to release my feeling here, but is JPJ and police doing anything to control these ? I can see JPJ having operation at some outskirt highway or “ulu” area to catch car with speeding at 60km/j … not sure how is the measurement of allocating our government resources, although i understand they are limited. Really hope our enforcement can spend some time on these mini-minor issues.