UK study on bike crashes

http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_rdsafety/documents/pdf/dft_rdsafety_pdf_024715.pdf

Still preliminary, but some interesting stuff.

Apparently novice and unlicenced are a big contributor to the number of
single vehicle crashes in the UK.

Some interesting stats, inlcuding that males crash 15 times more often
than females, but are only 7 times more likely to take a motorcycle
journey. OF course it isn't clear if "take a motorcycle journey" means
ride or pillion, and if the crash stats include pillions.

"When examining specific cases, there seems to be a marked problem with
other road-users observing motorcyclists. It has been noted by
researchers that, in a certain proportion of observation-failure cases
of this type, the motorcycle that the driver had failed to see was so
close to the junction that the driver had been negotiating that there
appeared to be no explanation as to why they had not seen it, even when
looking in that direction. This is commonly referred to as 'Looked But
Did Not See', in the police co-factors used in this study, and in a
review of work by Brown (2002), for example. It seems that one
explanation for accidents such as these is that drivers in these
circumstances 'overlook' the foreground while concentrating on the more
distant view beyond the junction mouth. Unfortunately, it is quite
difficult to quantify the distances involved, or the angle of gaze
required, from the information available, though we do have on record
cases that suggest distances of 20 metres or less."


Which makes sense, if the buggers turn when you are that close, it's
very hard to avoid them.

Be interesting to have some way to determine number of near misses.

Zebee

 

Perhaps they were travelling just one kay over as per the idiotic
Queensland speed kills adverts?

Rex

'00 Ninja ZX12R

 

1kph over isn't something you have to worry about on the 12R

Nev..
'03 ZX12R
'02 CBR1100XX