NSW: motorcycle awareness week

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MOTORCYCLE AWARENESS WEEK IS HERE!

From Saturday October 23rd to Sunday October 31st 2010

CELEBRATE THE FUN, GREEN SOLUTION TO
ALL OUR TRAFFIC PROBLEMS

Motorcycle Awareness Week is the one week of the year when the
riding community celebrates its passion for two-wheeled transport.
"Look out for motorcycles" is the message traditionally woven into
the celebrations, but this year there will be another message aimed
directly at ourselves, the riders of these wonderfully economical
and environmentally friendly vehicles, rather than the our fellow
road-users. This message will be about helping drivers to notice
us as we ride through the traffic. The combined message of Motorcycle
Awareness Week is that as road-users, we all share the responsibility
to look out for each other as well as ourselves.

People are serious about using scooters and motorcycles as their
preferred choice of transport for many reasons including cheaper
running costs, easier parking and as a great way of dealing with
traffic congestion. Motorcycles and scooters are the fun and sensible
solution to our metropolitan traffic problems. And as any rider
will tell you: "Four wheels move the body, but two wheels move the
soul" .

National sales of motorcycles and scooters are at record highs years
now and in NSW alone, there are thousands of new scooters on the
road. The last decade has seen motorcycle and scooter number double,
and with the help of campaigns such as this, riding a motorcycle
or scooter is twice as safe as it was 10 years ago. For more
information on this please got to
http://roadsafety.mccofnsw.org.au/a/38.html

Switching from a petrol-guzzling family sedan to a scooter or
motorcycle for simple daily commutes would reduce your petrol bill
by about a third. The Motorcycle Council of NSW is adamant that if
the government and the community are serious about reducing greenhouse
emissions, then they should be encouraging motorcycle and scooter
usage by lowering CTP charges and tolls, and introducing road rules
that recognise the unique characteristics of motorcycles and scooters.

Motorcycle Awareness Week aims to raise awareness of the benefits
of motorcycle use, as a fun, fuel-efficient and convenient way to
travel, along with encouraging other road-users to keep an eye out
for motorcycles and scooters.

Despite the dreary scare-mongering of the Keneally government,
motorcycling is much safer than it was a decade ago with crash rates
decreasing steadily. The Motorcycle Council of NSW recommends that
riders be made aware of the availability of protective clothing and
make purchasing decisions based on their needs as responsible riders.
It is time that riders stood up, stopped blaming other road-users
and admitted that riders are responsible for their own safety. Our
fellow road-users also need to understand that for every motorcycle
or scooter on the road, there is one less car in the traffic and
one less car polluting our environment.

Motorcycles and scooters are not the problem, they are part of the
solution.

And this is worth celebrating.

Please join us at any of the following events:

Saturday 23rd: Motorcycle Awareness Week Launch at Parramatta Mall at
10am until
2pm

Sunday 24th: Pink Ribbon Ride http://www.pinkribbonride.com
Saturday 30th: Celebration Ride http://www.celebrationride.com.au/
Sunday 31st: Breakfast Torque http://www.mccofnsw.org.au/a/316.html

For more information about motorcycling in NSW please contact the
Chairman of the Motorcycle Council of NSW, Rob Colligan on 0401227731
or email

THE M CC of NSW
United we ride - Divided we walk

For further information and all media enquiries please contact:
Rob Colligan Chairman MCC of NSW
0401227731

The Motorcycle Council of NSW(MCC of NSW) was established in 1982
is the state's pre-eminent motorcycle advisory group and represents
40,000 motorcycle riders from 38 social clubs and motorcycling
organisations.

 

In aus.motorcycles on Thu, 21 Oct 2010 11:13:30 +1100

I don't speak for the MCC but...

You can't leave your safety to others. And most crashes require two
people to make a mistake, not one.

Riders have to do things like maintain buffer zones, watch for surface
problems, practice braking.

Sure, in around 70% of car/bike crashes the car is "at fault". That
doesn't mean the rider had no input or no way to improve their safety.


Zebee

 

Very well said Nev