From the
GWRRA Texas Chapter M-2 Education Corner
“Control
Yourself”
From the
GWRRA Texas Chapter M-2 Education Corner
“Control
Yourself”
No,
this article is not about how to avoid getting tossed out of yet another
restaurant with your chapter friends. This article examines causes of
motor-cycle accidents, and how many of those causes are actually things that
are under your control.
Back
in 2006, a motorcycle accident study analyzed information from thousands of
accidents, drew conclusions about the causes and looked for ways people can
avoid accidents. The "Motorcycle Accident Cause Factors and Identification
of Countermeasures," was a study conducted by the University of Southern
California, with funds from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
by researcher Harry Hurt. He drew some interesting conclusions about the causes
of motorcycle accidents, some of which seem obvious to us, and some of which
may be less so.
It’s
true that the failure of motorists to detect and recognize motorcycles in
traffic is the predominating cause of motorcycle accidents. This study showed
that in multiple vehicle accidents, the driver of the other vehicle violated
the motorcycle right-of-way and caused the accident in two-thirds of
those accidents. The driver of the other vehicle involved in collision with the
motorcycle did not see the motor-cycle before the collision, or did not see the
motor-cycle until too late to avoid the collision. The most frequent accident
configuration is the motorcycle proceeding straight when the automobile makes a
left turn in front of the oncoming motorcycle.
One
thing that struck me in looking at the rest of the study conclusions was how
many causes were things that are under our control as riders. Some-times
external risks that we perceive as significant actually represent a very small
percentage of actual accidents. For example, weather was considered a cause in
only 2% of the studied accidents. And motorcycle mechanical failure was the
cause in less than 3% of accidents – and most of those were accidents where
control was lost due to a puncture flat. Animals were causal in only 1% of
accidents.
Here
are some other interesting conclusions from the 2006 study. I’ve added italics
where causes of accidents were things that are under our control.
Approximately
three-fourths of these motorcycle accidents involved collision with another
vehicle; one fourth were single vehicle accidents. In the single vehicle
accidents, motorcycle rider error was the precipitating factor in about
two-thirds of the cases, with the typical error being a slide out and fall
due to over braking, or running wide on a curve due to excess speed or
under-cornering.
Conspicuity
of the motorcycle is a critical factor in the multiple vehicle accidents, and accident
involvement is significantly reduced by the use of motorcycle headlamps and the
wearing of high visibility yellow, orange or bright red jackets.
Motorcycle
riders in the studied accidents showed significant collision avoidance
problems. Most riders would over brake and skid the rear wheel, and under
brake the front wheel greatly reducing braking power and collision avoidance.
The ability to counter steer and swerve was essentially absent.
The
motorcycle riders involved in accidents are essentially without training: 92%
were self-taught or learned from family or friends. Motorcycle rider training
experience reduces accident involvement and is related to educed injuries in
the event of accidents.
Lack
of attention to the driving task is a common factor for the motorcyclist in an
accident.
Additionally,
almost half of the fatal accidents show alcohol involvement.
So
the headlines might read: If you attend classes to keep your skills up
(especially for cornering, swerving, and braking), pay attention when you ride,
don’t drink and ride, and be very visible you can drastically reduce your
chances of being involved in an accident. Those precepts are the same ones we
emphasize over and over in Rider Education, and I believe that as a result our
GWRRA chapters have very good safety records. So keep up the good work, and
remember that these powerful practices do indeed allow you to control yourself!
Nancy Kwiecien
GWRRA Spring, Texas Chapter M-2 Chapter Educator