Editorial

Let's focus on motorcycle safety

Posted

The death last week of a 20-year-old Rockville Centre man who was riding a motorcycle when he collided with a car in Baldwin was tragic. It came just days after a crash in which a woman passenger on one motorcycle was killed and three others were injured when two bikes collided on the Queensboro Bridge.

Other incidents resulting in serious injury or death have occurred on the Wantagh State Parkway, Sunrise Highway and other roads around New York state in the past 30 days. We think these tragedies highlight the dangers of motorcycle riding and the need for greater focus on finding ways to reduce fatalities and serious injuries.

In 2012, the most recent year for which data is available, almost 5,000 motorcycle drivers and passengers across the country were killed in crashes, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a fatality rate of 59 for every 100,000 registered vehicles. Ninety-three thousand motorcyclists were injured — 1,100 per 100,000 vehicles. In New York state, 170 motorcyclists were killed in 2012. According to the NHTSA, “… [I]n 2012, motorcyclists were more than 26 times more likely than passenger car occupants to die in motor vehicle traffic crashes and 5 times more likely to be injured.”

Alcohol is a major factor in motorcycle accidents. In fatal crashes in 2012, the NHTSA reported, “a higher percentage of motorcycle riders had blood alcohol concentrations of .08 grams per deciliter” — the threshold for drunken driving in New York state — “or higher than any other type of motor vehicle driver.” The highest percentage of fatally injured motorcyclists with BACs of .08 or higher were ages 40 to 44, followed by the 45-49 and 35-39 age groups.

Speed is a factor, too. Thirty-four percent of motorcyclists involved in fatal crashes were speeding, as opposed to 22 percent of passenger car drivers.

Page 1 / 3