Post Body:
Cześć wszystkim!

I recently started riding an electric motorcycle in Gdańsk for work (food delivery), and I’ve been trying to understand the rules and street etiquette better. I’m originally not from Poland, so I want to make sure I ride safely and legally.

Here’s a picture from today:
(Insert the photo you uploaded above)

In this spot, traffic was slow and I wanted to filter (ride between cars), but the other lane is for oncoming traffic. So I stayed behind.
My question is:
• Is it legal or acceptable to filter here?
• In general, what are the rules or unwritten norms for filtering in Poland with a small motorcycle or scooter?

I’d really appreciate tips from experienced Polish riders — I want to respect the law, stay safe, and avoid annoying other drivers.

Dzięki wielkie!

by yoramzichill

15 comments

  1. I would like to know as well, cause having a motorcycle is my dream. But I saw people doing it often while I was driving a car. Not sure about etiquette though.

  3. Even if you do not move out into the lane with the opposite direction you are still making an overtaking maneuver.

    Excerpt from the Highway Code:

    The driver of a vehicle is prohibited from:
    1) overtake a vehicle on a pedestrian crossing and immediately in front of it, except for a crossing where traffic is directed;

    Here’s a link to an auto translation of this section of the code: [link](https://sip-lex-pl.translate.goog/akty-prawne/dzu-dziennik-ustaw/prawo-o-ruchu-drogowym-16798732/art-26?_x_tr_sl=pl&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=pl&_x_tr_pto=wapp&_x_tr_hist=true)

  4. It’s legal as long as you obey the laws about overtaking. So you can’t do it before a pedestrian crossing, crossroads, can’t go over the solid line, have to overtake the cars on their left side, etc.

  5. I am not sure if I am in awe of your bravery or scared for you more, given that you seem to not know the traffic laws of the country where you decided to ride a motorcycle. There is a reason motorcyclists are called “organ donors” and you literally just make it more dangerous for yourself.

    Maybe it would be a good idea to invest in an online driver’s license course. You can find ones in English and they shouldn’t be that expensive.

  6. It’s a gray area. I would do it, but do not cross the solid lines.

  7. Some people here say you can’t overtake before zebra crossing which is true. But in case of a standstill you are not overtaking (wyprzedzanie), but passing (omijanie). You can’t do omijanie if a car stopped before zebra crossing to give way to pedestrians, but if there’s standstill I think you can pass those cars when there’s no pedestrians on zebra.

  8. Lane filtering is allowed only when the passed vehicles are stationary and you don’t cross the lane marking. However these laws are not very strictly enforced.

  9. In the case shown in the picture, you may even lose your driving licence by overtaking that car with the L-plate and preceding one. Double line and before pedestrian crossing overtaking and not giving a way to a pedestrian plus dangerous driving should easily deplete your points. In the case of an accident you may be sentenced. If there is an exam ongoing in the L-car which is obligatory monitored, then the examiner will share the video with police.

  10. Dude, you are driving electric motorcycle for food delivery.

    Of course you will drive illegally, that is the pillar of that job 😉

  11. If the other lane goes in the other direction (implied by the double line), you really shouldn’t

  13. You can do it only if the cars are stopped and there is no pedestrian.

  14. “lane filtering” as known in the states is not a defined term. The traffic rules in Poland define two manouvers: overtaking moving viehicles and stopped viehicles. This is one of the most complex toppics with many exceptions and you should have familiarized yourself with those on a driving course.

    Remember that you can ride 50 cc mopeds/4 kW e-bikes without AM license only if you were born before 1995 and your vehicle has to be registered and insured.

    Overtaking (pol. *wyprzedzanie*) – passing moving vehicles

    passing (pol. omijanie) – passing stopped vehicles.

    You can overtake on the left. You can do that on the same lane (if you fit) without any restriction (unless there is B-25 sign – then you cannot overtake cars, you can still overtake bicycles, electric scooters and other motorbikes). You can use other lanes to overtake only if the lines on the road permit that. Crossing or even touching a solid line is an offence.

    You **have to** overtake on the right: trams (unless the tram tracks are on the right side of road or the road is one-way) and vehicles signaling left turn

    You **can** overtake on the right: If the road (pol. *jezdnia*, you should also know the difference between *jezdnia* and *droga*) is one-way or its two-way and has two or more lanes in urban area (D-42 sign) or three or more lanes outside of it (D-43)

    You CANNOT overtake in the following situations: right before zebra crossing without pedestrian lights, on a crossroad except for roundabouts and crossroads with traffic lights. On crossroad you can overtake vehicles signalling turning right or left. You cannot overtake on sharp curves (marked with A-1 and A-2 signs) and when reaching the top of the hill (you have to overtake on the descending part of it).

    Whilst overtaking you must excisise extraordinary caution (it is also a term defined in traffic law), notce if you are not being overtaken or a vehicle in front of you is not trurning or overtaking. While overtaking you should pass other vehicles leaving “safe distance”. For cars this distance is left for you to decide (but if you scratch someone its your fault) but for overtaking pedestrain columns, motorcycles, mopeds, bicycles, e-scooters, UTO etc. this distance cannot be less than 1m.

    Whilst being overtaken you are prohibited from speeding up significantly.

    Now for passing stopped vehicles, for example when they are stopped on a traffic light:

    You can pass stopped vehicles from the left or right. You have to do that using the same lane but you can also use other lanes, provided other lanes also lead the same direction (for example you cannot pass traffic that is going forward with a left-turn lane). You have to pass vehicles signaling a left turn from their right side. You have to leave safe distance with exactly the same rules as wit overtaking moving vehicles. You cannot pass vehicles stopped in front of a zebra crossing, if they are stopped to let the pedestrians cross.

    In either of those situations you cannot be on both lanes at the same time – ot os an offence. You can only touch the dashed line to change to other lane and you should not ride with it between your legs. You cannot cross solid lines to achieve overtaking or passing stopped vehicles.

    To conclude: “lane-filtering” is therefore either overtaking or passing stopped vehicles. When overtaking a lot of rules apply, less so when just passing. In general “filtering” is permitted if you ride only on one lane and do not cross to the other with the overtaking/passing rules applying.

    Hope that answers your question.

  15. Hiya, fellow motorcyclist here.
    So first of all as some of the other folks mentioned here in that particular situation you’d have broken the law and in public eye acted like an a-hole or a stereotypical motorcyclist.
    With that out of the way, let’s get to the topic of lane filtering. The law around it is unfortunately really finicky and even the police don’t treat it as seriously as some people may make it seem. The general rule of a thumb here is don’t be an a-hole. No passing on solid lines or pedestrian crossings, do not take unnecessary risks, think rationally, do not haste, try to foresee the outcome of your actions and you’ll do alright.
    Take care and “Lewa w Górę” (Polish slang for left hand up :))

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