Motorcycle Awareness Month Draws Attention to Motorcycle Safety Issues
USA- The salsburypost.com reports that May was motorcycle awareness month. The Concerned Bikers Association uses the month to try to alert people to certain risks that motorcyclists face on the road. One unexpected danger, according to the group, comes from grass clippings and other yard waste that is often left on the street by homeowners. Dumping mowed grass clippings in the street is often a violation of city ordinances, but that often does not stop people from leaving their yard waste in the road. For a person on a motorcycle, hitting this yard waste can be like hitting a roadcovered in sheer ice.*
Another problem is that drivers often fail tosee motorcycles. According to Catherine Terwilliger, who is the secretary of the Charlotte Chapter of Concerned Bikers Association, drivers who get into collisions with motorcycles frequently say that they failed to see the biker. Terwilliger also teaches high school students about driving safely around motorcycles. She says that many people do not even realize that a motorcycle has the right to an entire lane of traffic in the same way that any other vehicle does.
It is important for drivers to be mindful of these smaller vehicles on the road. The likelihood of a motorcyclist dying in a crash is about 27 times greater than it is for a driver of a passenger vehicle. Motorcyclists can increase their safety by knowing how to properly operate their vehicle, by staying sober, and by wearing a helmet. Helmets offer protections against death and brain injuries. Most states have some form of law requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets, and many states have universal helmet law requiring anyone on a motorcycle to wear a helmet. Even if you live in one of the minority of states that do not require bikers to wear helmets, it is important to remember what is at risk if you go without one.
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