Each May, the internationally-known safety advocates at Illinois’ National Safety Council join with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and other state and local groups in a public awareness campaign to increase the awareness of motorcycle safety.
This national safety campaign targeting fatal motorcycle accidents began back in 1997 with NHTSA instituting May as “Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month.”
Sadly, while their efforts are admirable, the reality is that motorcyclists remain at a much higher risk of injury and death than those who opt for other modes of transportation. The risk of dying in a motorcycle crash is extremely high.
From the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) we know that motorcycle deaths accounted for 13% percent of all motor vehicle crash deaths in 2016 and were more than double the number of motorcyclist deaths in 1997.
Unacceptable Reality of Fatal Motorcycle Accidents
The danger of dying in a traffic accident while driving a motorcycle in either Indiana or Illinois is extraordinarily great, and absolutely unacceptable. The danger is not decreasing, no matter how well-intended the efforts to protect motorcyclists on the roads today.
For more on these preventable accidents, read our discussions in:
- Fatal Motorcycle Accidents in Indiana and Illinois: How Great is the Danger?
- Motorcycle Accidents in Indiana: Consider Just This Month ….
- Motorcycle Accident in Indiana or Illinois: Risk of Death or Serious Injury in a Motorcycle Crash
Sharing the Road Safely
One major cause for fatal deaths in motorcycle accidents is the failure of other drivers to be alert and to respect those who are riding motorcycles alongside them in their lanes of traffic.
Fatal multi-vehicle crashes involving motorcycles are the main cause of motorcycle operator deaths while riding their bike (85%).
Motorcycle safety and the prevention of severe and fatal motorcycle crashes means every driver on the roadway must share the road, no matter the type of vehicle he is operating. This month’s public awareness campaign is designed to educate other drivers that they must respect the motorcyclist on the road, treating that vehicle with the same deference as a semi-truck, big rig, SUV, sedan, or minivan.
Some may argue this is a Congressional Mandate. It may well be: there is a federal law mandating increased efforts to stop these motorcycle accident fatalities.
In the FAST Act (Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act), the Department of Transportation was instructed to develop model laws and training materials for the states to use in providing instruction to drivers of all kinds of motor vehicles on the need to respect motorcycles on the roadways. Funding was established as part of the federal legislation, allowing states to apply for and receive monies needed to do things like educational outreach and driver education programs.
To review the model language presented by NHTSA to state motorcycle, safety, and licensing officials regarding motorcycle safety messages to be included in education courses, licensing materials, driver’s manuals, and driver’s education campaigns, read the 2017 NHTSA Guidance Document, “Share the Road – Motorist Awareness of Motorcyclists.”
Scary Fatal Motorcyclist Accident Facts Given to States by NHTSA
From the NHTSA Guidance Document prepared for use by the various state authorities (like Ride Safe Indiana), we know the following:
- Most motorcycle accident statistics involve deaths in a crash, because there is scant data available for non-fatal crash injuries. These motorcycle accidents are seriously under-reported, no matter how severe the injuries may be.
- More than 70% of these fatal crashes occur between May and October, considered to be “peak motorcycle riding season.”
- Most motorcycle deaths are collisions between the bike and a car. Over 85% of the motorcycle riders killed in two-vehicle crashes were crashes involving motorcycles and passenger vehicles.
- Around half of these fatal accidents involving a head-on collision have the motorcycle colliding with the car (55%) and around half (45%) have the passenger vehicle as the striking vehicle.
- When it is a rear-end collision, most often the motorcyclist is considered responsible as the “striking vehicle” (68%).
- Failure to yield the right of way happens 35% of the time for the passenger vehicle driver, compared to only 4% for motorcycle operators.
- These fatal motorcycle accidents almost never happen on the interstate highways. Over 90% of two-vehicle motorcycle crashes involving passenger vehicles occur on non-interstate roadways (60% urban and 40% rural).
State Programs and Fatal Motorcycle Accidents
Each year, we applaud the efforts to increase public awareness of motorcycle safety and the need for everyone to be aware of the dangers of fatal motorcycle crashes here in Indiana and Illinois.
It’s important not only to educate those who share the lanes with motorcyclists – drivers of cars, minivans, SUVs, big rigs, semi-trucks, buses, etc. – but also those who ride motorcycles as well.
However, from our perspective, having state programs that include rider training courses; impaired driving programs for motorcyclists; and motorcycle safety programs will not be enough to stop the risk of death to anyone choosing to ride a motorcycle in our part of the country.
Too many drivers of motor vehicles either disregard the motorcycle that is on the roadway alongside them, or they fail to consider the possibility that a motorcycle may be in or near to their lane of traffic as they are driving.
All too often, it is the negligence of the other driver (passenger car, etc.) that causes the death of the motorcyclist. Increased public awareness may help to make drivers more aware of these kinds of accidents, but the real need is to have drivers change their attitude and style of driving to meet the reality that smaller, two-wheel vehicles deserve the same respect and attention as that given to larger vehicles.
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The tragedy of preventable accidents involving motorcycle crashes devastates families and destroys lives. Let’s share the need for drivers to respect motorcyclists on the roads of Indiana and Illinois and increase everyone’s motorcycle awareness. Be careful out there!
