‘Blind’ motorists are the biggest threat to bikers
But pointing out the number of fatalities without looking into the causes of these tragic deaths paints a far too simplistic picture.
According to 2003 NRA statistics, the most recent year with a full statistical breakdown, there were 55 motorcycle fatalities. Of those, 32 involved collisions with other vehicles while the remainder were single vehicle accidents.
According to a recent European report (MAIDS), in two-vehicle collisions involving motorcyclists, 70% of these cases were the result of other road users failing to see the motorcycle.
That is a huge number of injuries and fatalities caused by the inattention of other road users, primarily car drivers. It is such a common a problem that motorcyclists have an acronym for them, SMIDSY (‘Sorry, mate, I didn’t see you’).
As for Mr Gleeson’s other assertions, let me point out that motorcycles are one of the most environmentally friendly forms of mechanised transport. They are more fuel efficient, produce fewer emissions, cause little damage to road surfaces, and help reduce congestion.
If Mr Gleeson wants to talk about environmentally unfriendly vehicles, let’s look at all the single occupancy car commuters and 4x4s clogging our cities and towns.
If he wants to talk about twin exhausts, let’s discuss the thousands of boy racers with their mobile nightclubs and loud pipes.
What Mr Gleeson has done is blame a group of vulnerable road users for accidents that are often not of their making. He probably has no understanding of the other difficulties faced by motorcyclists, to which car drivers are often oblivious.
These include poor road surfaces, loose gravel, diesel- slicked roads from people selfishly overfilling their tanks, mobile phone use among all road users leading to dangerous driving, rubbish and cigarette butts being thrown out of windows onto a following motorcyclist and misaligned window washers spraying us in the face as we ride by. Even mud and cow dung can be fatal.
If motorcycle fatalities are to be reduced we need a reasonable debate based on fact and not on the stereotypes and misinformation which influenced Mr Gleeson’s letter.
The Government should take immediate action by
* Implementing compulsory basic training for all road users
* Introducing an education campaign to inform all road users about the presence of motorcycles and the need to watch out for them.
* Introducing L plates for motorcycles.
* Allowing motorcyclists to use bus lanes, which would remove them from the general flow of traffic. This has been shown to work in Britain.
* Encouraging motorcyclists themselves to engage in more training.
Motorcyclists, through their lobby groups, have been advocating greater safety measures for years, often falling on deaf ears in government.
We are fully aware that we have a personal responsibility and many of us have undertaken advanced training to improve our skills and increase our chances of survival. This is now being encouraged by some insurers.
What we don’t need are ill-informed people like Mr Gleeson muddying the debate with anecdotal evidence that bears no relation to reality and adds nothing to what is, in fact, a life-and-death issue.
Martin O’Driscoll
12 Connolly Place
Ballyphehane
Cork
