Globe & Mail - Setting a Safety Agenda

[tat2]

Article is dated since the confrence was @ the end of September, but it is sstill a good read.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...Story/National

Points to http://www.motorcycling-rpm.ca/ as they are the organizers of said confrence.

[Bandit Bill]

Article is dated since the confrence was @ the end of September, but it is sstill a good read.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...Story/National

Points to http://www.motorcycling-rpm.ca/ as they are the organizers of said confrence.

Interesting. The article seems to infer that while fatalities in most other motorcycle catagories (sport, sport touring, dual purpose) is remaining static, the major increase is in the new, older rider. One can infer that would indicate the cruiser class. I've heard this before - but where are the stats to prove?

Sounds good that graduated size licencing is being looked into seriously.

20 year old riders really don't need a 110 hp 600cc as a first bike. Neither does the new RUB need a 900 lb, 120 hp barcalounger, or a 800 chrome barge with 50 hp as a first bike. These classes may get 'insuranced' out of existance, if they aren't legislatively regulated in some manner for new, inexperienced riders way out of their league. Yes, a new, imprudent rider can smoke him or herself on a Ninja 250 just as quickly as say, a Ninja 636 .. but the reality is now, more new riders are smoking themselves on the Ninja 636, not the Ninja 250.

/enough gas on the flames of argument

As long as it doesn't involve Marilyn Bastedo and the CMA in organising it, it all sounds good to me.

Edit: just read that Marilyn Bastedo got shown the door at CMA shortly after the Cape Breton TT fiasco, and several motorcycle interest associations withdrew affiliation with CMA .. thats a start.

[FiReSTaRT]

It is a very good read. One thing I'd like to see to improve safety would be inclusion of riding in traffic into the courses, with an additional classroom session and two riding sessions. The problem is that it would more than double the cost of rider training because it wouldn't only effectively double the level of instruction, but there's also the issue of additional gear (like helmet communicators), insurance premiums and just getting a part of their fleet street-legal and plated (even though having the option of using your own bike would help alleviate some of this problem). Ofcourse, the provincial government would have to get on board (cheaper licensing for rider training) and so would the insurance company, by offering lower premiums. Fat chance....

[Brian P]

The statistics indicating that older but new riders on large-displacement bikes (i.e. cruisers) are a high-risk group are from the USA; I believe NHTSA collects this data.

One big trouble area with that group of riders in the USA is lack of helmet use, due to quite a few states withdrawing or loosening their helmet laws in recent years.

If a graduated licensing system is implemented, it should be years-of-riding-dependent, not age-dependent.

[mat2312]

The statistics indicating that older but new riders on large-displacement bikes (i.e. cruisers) are a high-risk group are from the USA; I believe NHTSA collects this data.

One big trouble area with that group of riders in the USA is lack of helmet use, due to quite a few states withdrawing or loosening their helmet laws in recent years.

If a graduated licensing system is implemented, it should be years-of-riding-dependent, not age-dependent.

+1


I'd also like to see better driver training. Driving School is a joke, technically you don't even need it to get your license just not kill anyone on the road, don't run any stop signs/red lights and have the ability to parallel park.

People should at the very minimum have to take a course as involved as the motorcycle ones offered.

A big part of our problems on the roads has nothing to do with 'young streetracers' and everything to do with ignorant people who cannot safely drive and shouldn't be on the road. More often than not these are the soccermoms, the blue hairs or the accountant in a hurry cause he slept in.