Safer journeys

[p.dath]

I've just been taking a read of the Safer Journeys discussion paper that discusses potential changes to be made by 2020. The following posts are some interesting snippits.

[p.dath]

• The risk of a motorcyclist being killed or seriously injured in a crash is about 18 times higher than for a car driver. This is largely because motorcycles have less stability, offer lower levels of occupant protection, and are less visible to other road users.
• In 2008, 50 motorcyclists were killed, 456 were seriously injured and a further 940 suffered minor injures. This equates to 14 percent of all road deaths and 18 percent of all serious injuries.
• The total social cost of crashes involving motorcyclists in 2008 was $586.62 million.

[James Deuce]

A lot of KBers took part in the workshops. There's already a body of work around the 2020 issues on KB. Use the search function.

[p.dath]

Head-on crashes account for 23 percent of all fatal crashes. Yet over 90 percent of them could be avoided by installing a median barrier.

[p.dath]

This one I found really surprising:

Crashes involving large bikes (600 cc or bigger) tend to be more serious than those involving smaller bikes. This partly reflects the fact that larger motorcycles are generally used for travelling longer distances and at
higher speeds. ACC’s most expensive claims come from crashes involving large bikes.

[Hitcher]

Please refer to Mr Deuce's post above.

You're quoting from the Doomsday Book for Motorcyclists. These government agencies just want us banned. They're patient and will make life as onerous for us as possible in the interim. There's nothing "interesting" or "fascinating" here. Most of their statistics are bogus and those that aren't are twisted to suit the end result they want to achieve. These officials are beyond sanction or retribution. They will offer us choices like "Death by hanging?" "Death by firing squad" or "Death by lethal injection."

Some of us will try to mount a fiesty rearguard action. But, like the efforts of the BDOTGNZA, the mongol hoardes are already upon us. We're doomed.

[Jantar]

• The risk of a motorcyclist being killed or seriously injured in a crash is about 18 times higher than for a car driver. This is largely because motorcycles have less stability, offer lower levels of occupant protection, and are less visible to other road users.
• In 2008, 50 motorcyclists were killed, 456 were seriously injured and a further 940 suffered minor injures. This equates to 14 percent of all road deaths and 18 percent of all serious injuries.
• The total social cost of crashes involving motorcyclists in 2008 was $586.62 million.
It seems strange that these figures are so different from the official ones on http://www.transport.govt.nz/research/Documents/Motorcycle-Crash-Factsheet.pdf . Admittedly the official ones only go up to the end of 2007, as they say the 2008 data isn't yet available.

But in 2007 it was 10 percent of all road deaths and 8 percent of all serious injuries.

Then have a look at the section of Licence status of motorcyclists in crashes. 46% of crashes involve riders who either do not have a full licence, or are on the wrong class of licence for the bike. They dont say how that percentage relates to motorcyclists as a whole, but it strongly suggests that many of those crashes by riders on large bikes shouldn't have been on those bikes in the first place.

Massaged statistics of this nature are meaningless. Its only by referring to origional data and finding instances that are outside 2 SDs of the norm that we can start making any assumptions or conclusions.

[p.dath]

I guess the other thing to consider is there has been a big surge in the number of motorcycle registrations. So presumably there should be a corresponding increase in accidents (or maybe more so, since it will mostly be new riders).

[eliot-ness]

But, like the efforts of the BDOTGNZA, the mongol hoardes are already upon us. We're doomed.:Oops:

Yep, I guess we are.

[James Deuce]

I guess the other thing to consider is there has been a big surge in the number of motorcycle registrations. So presumably there should be a corresponding increase in accidents (or maybe more so, since it will mostly be new riders).
Ixion has already pooh poohed that in other posts, and returning motorcyclists probably make a up a bigger percentage of the new bike regos, excluding scroters.

Over 40s are making up a bigger percentage of the accident stats.

[peasea]

Ixion has already pooh poohed that in other posts, and returning motorcyclists probably make a up a bigger percentage of the new bike regos, excluding scroters.

Over 40s are making up a bigger percentage of the accident stats.

Yes they are, coz they think they are still 10ft tall and bulletproof. They have disposable income, want to regain some mis-spent youth and it's all a recipe for diaster in today's traffic.

Unless they exercise a large amount of self-restraint, take a refresher course or both they will end up another statistic, which is sad. Bikers who never stop riding tend to be the longest surviving simply because they move with the times.

I'm not saying older/past bikers shouldn't get back on the road; they just need to adjust, be aware of their limitations and realise that today's world is a bit busier while at the same time they are not as strong and nimble as they might think they are.

And that's from an old fart.............

[p.dath]

Since it has been raised, two interesting comments about age in the Safer Journeys document:

"An aging population – the number of people aged 65 years and older is expected to increase by approximately 52 percent between 2008 and 2020. With an aging population we expect to see some increase in the number of deaths and serious injuries because older road users are more physically vulnerable to injury."

"This has also pushed up the average age of motorcycle casualties over the last 28 years from 22 in 1980 to 35 in 2008."

[Hitcher]

So let's all get younger rather than older. That will fix it.

[Laxi]

ahh! who wants to live forever anyway?

[James Deuce]

Since it has been raised, two interesting comments about age in the Safer Journeys document:

"An aging population – the number of people aged 65 years and older is expected to increase by approximately 52 percent between 2008 and 2020. With an aging population we expect to see some increase in the number of deaths and serious injuries because older road users are more physically vulnerable to injury."

"This has also pushed up the average age of motorcycle casualties over the last 28 years from 22 in 1980 to 35 in 2008."

Look dude, SERIOUSLY. Go talk to Ixion and BRONZ. They are already doing work on all these issues. They are always asking for manpower.

You have rather too much religious fervour about your argument. The bit that is horribly wrong is regurgitating Government Statistics presented by people who want us off the road like they are fact. Talk to Ixion and ask him for his take on the stats. It's rather different than NZTA or ACC.

[sunhuntin]

I'm not saying older/past bikers shouldn't get back on the road; they just need to adjust, be aware of their limitations and realise that today's world is a bit busier while at the same time they are not as strong and nimble as they might think they are.

And that's from an old fart.............

i think refresher courses for returning riders should be compulsory, but how on earth would you prove someone has been off bikes for x amount of years?

when i bought the virago, i got dad to take her for a test ride. he nearly dropped her on a gravel driveway and has refused to ride since which im grateful for.
i also know of one older guy who had been off bikes for many moons and went and bought the flashest, biggest bike his money could buy. he dropped it on a dummy route ride for a charity event. i come up the gentle but blind rise, and here he is, sitting in a ditch on the other side of the road looking back the way he had come. how the hell he managed that i will never know, but i have refused to ride with that group since.