Daily motorbike news, views & reviews
A police report that claims riders of high-powered motorbikes are over-represented in the crash statistics demonises riders as “thrill seekers” and is “absolutely meaningless”. Victorian Motorcycle Council media spokesman John Eacott says the scant Victorian Police assessment of crash statistics is “akin to claiming that more blue cars crash than white cars”. Victoria Police compiled crash …
Victorian Police will work an extra 300 shifts over the next 10 weeks to increase patrols of the state’s roads after a tragic start to the year. So far this year there have been 76 lives lost on Victorian roads compared with 51 at the same time last year. That includes 20 riders, double the …
Victorian Police will target both road and off-road motorcyclists this Labour Day long weekend in the annual Operation Arid. Extra police resources, including 10 more “booze and drug buses”, will be deployed in priority areas, including Wangaratta/Benalla, Yarra Ranges, Geelong/ Moorabool, Glen Eira and Greater Dandenong. The operation runs from 12.01am tomorrow (8 March 2019) …
Ambitious road toll targets, such as the improbable Vision Zero campaign, create unrealistic expectations that only serve to goad politicians into knee-jerk responses. They usually consist of lower speed limits and crackdowns on motorcyclists who are over-over-represented in the statistics. So it comes as no surprise that Australia is not on target to meet its …
A road safety academic who advocates wire rope barriers, lower speed limits and mandatory hi-vis vests for riders, and alcohol interlocks and electronic rider aids on bikes has been honoured with a special award. UNSW Sydney Professor Raphael Grzebieta has been honoured with the 2019 Kenneth A Stonex award in recognition of his lifetime contribution to …
It’s been a horror start to the year for motorcycle fatalities in Victoria with 12 riders now dead after two more crashes today(Sunday, February 10, 2019). Latrobe Highway Patrol officers are appealing for a witness to come forward after a fatal motorcycle collision in Mirboo North this morning. (UPDATE: Police have now identified and spoken …
The motorcycle road toll can be reduced by better speed and alcohol/drug use enforcement, safer motorbikes, mandatory helmet laws and improved roads, according to an international report. These are key points in the latest World Health Organization Global status report on road safety 2018 report released this month. The report is only released every two …
Unsecured debris falling off trucks and utes is a fairly common occurrence and very dangerous for riders as seen in this video where a Canadian motorcyclist manages to avoid two wooden pallets that fall off a truck. The BMW F 800 GS rider posted his helmet-cam video on YouTube under the headline “Thank God for the …
Despite the motorcyclist road toll decreasing more than any other group in Australia, police and media are targeting the few dangerously high speeds of some stupid riders. The annual road toll debate has again fired up after a very bad holiday season shattered near-historic road toll lows. According to official data, up to the end …
A plea has been sent to NSW Ombudsman Michael Barnes to halt the speed reductions on the Oxley Highway because of deceptive crash statistics. Motorcycle Council of NSW (MCCNSW) secretary Steve Pearce says the Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) used inaccurate crash data to justify the speed change from 100km/h to 80km/h on 44km of the …