Motorcycle Safety and Awareness
Riding Safely = Arriving Safely:
February is Motorcycle and Bicycle Safety and Awareness month in the Santa Clarita Valley. The United States Department of Transportation (NHTSA) reports the following in their 2007 Action Plan to Reduce Motorcycle Fatalities: While significant progress has occurred in reducing fatalities among passenger vehicle occupants, motorcycle fatalities have been rising steadily since 1997, and currently represent our Nation’s greatest highway traffic safety challenge. In 2006, motorcycle rider fatalities continued their nine-year increase, reaching 4,810 (a 5% increase from 2005) and exceeding the number of pedestrian fatalities for the first time since the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) began collecting fatal motor vehicle crash data in 1975. In 2005, the motorcycle fatality rate was 73 per 100,000 registered motorcycles. By comparison, the fatality rate in the same year for passenger vehicles per 100,000 registrations was 14. This trend has been so pronounced that motorcycle fatalities have for all practical purposes offset the gain in lives saved resulting from higher seat belt use and improved passenger vehicle safety. Motorcycle rider fatalities now account for 11 percent of total fatalities, and dramatically affect the Nation’s overall highway fatality rate.
February is Motorcycle and Bicycle Safety Awareness month in the Santa Clarita Valley. Did you know that a separate driver’s license classification from the DMV is required before you can legally ride a motorcycle on city streets. Did you know that of the 60 motorcycle related accidents we had in the City of Santa Clarita last year, nearly 40% of them involved unlicensed motorcycle drivers. Parents, you need to know that of the four fatal traffic collisions last year, three of them were motorcycle riders and this year isn't looking any better with two fatalities occurring already. On behalf of the Sheriff Department and the City of Santa Clarita, Captain Anthony La Berge would like to urge parents to enroll their teens in a motorcycle safety class before purchasing a motorcycle or allowing them to ride a motorcycle. It is a fact that unfamiliarity with the motorcycle and failure to complete a motorcycle safety test through the DMV, as well as speeding were direct contributing factors in nearly every fatality motorcycle accident in the Santa Clarita Valley in 2007. Please. Help us help keep your sons and daughters safe. More information about motorcycle safety, bicycle safety and safety classes offered locally, are detailed below. You will also find many links to several websites that offer hundreds of motorcycle and bicycle related safety tips. Take a minute and think about personal safety. Remember: Public Safety is everyone’s business. Let’s all make Santa Clarita a safe place to live, work and play.
Motorcycle Safety & Training Course
Did you Know...? A motorcycle rider safety/training course, sponsored by the California Highway Patrol, is available right here in the Santa Clarita Valley. The course is offered by the Nelson Motorcycle Training Center and is held on the weekends at the College of the Canyons parking lot. Upon successful completion of the course all students receive a California Motorcyclist Safety Program course completion card and a DMV Certificate, which will take the place of the DMV skill test for your Class M motorcycle license. For additional information or to find a safety course in your area, visit the following website: California Motorcyclist Safety Program or call (800) 593-7909.
What Causes Many Motorcycle Accidents?
- Lack of basic riding skills.
- Failure to appreciate the inherent operating characteristics.
- Failure to appreciate the limitations of the motorcycle.
- Failure to use special precautions while riding.
- Failure to use defensive driving techniques.
- Lack of specific braking and cornering skills.
- Failure to follow the speed limit.
Motorcycle Safety Tips:
- Treat other motorists with courtesy and respect.
- Avoid tailgating.
- Avoid riding between lanes of slow moving or stopped traffic.
- Know and obey traffic laws, including ordinances in the Santa Clarita Valley.
- Avoid excessive noise by leaving the stock muffler in place or using a muffler with equivalent noise reduction.
- Use signals when appropriate.
- Wear appropriate protective gear.
Additional Resources:
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California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
The California Department of Motor Vehicles has several publications pertaining to motorcycle laws, safety and awareness. One of the most thorough and useful is the California Motorcycle Handbook.
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National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website has several motorcycle and bicycle California Department of Motor Vehicles has several publications pertaining to motorcycle laws, safety and awareness. One of the most thorough and useful is the California Motorcycle Handbook.
