THINK! urges motorcyclists to 'stay in control'

A new THINK! road safety initiative to encourage motorcyclists to improve their defensive riding skills has been launched by Road Safety Minister Stephen Hammond.

The ‘stay in control’ campaign - which has been developed with partners from the motorcycle industry - advises motorcyclists to ride defensively and seek further training to sharpen their skills. The campaign will run throughout the peak riding season this spring and summer, when, historically, the number of motorcyclists killed and seriously injured on the roads sees an increase.

Motorcyclists accounted for 1% of road traffic but 19% of deaths on Britain’s roads in 2011. Around 30 bikers are killed or injured in accidents at junctions every day.In 2011, 5,609 motorcyclists were killed or seriously injured with 74% of these occurring in accidents involving another vehicle. Around 69% of these casualties happened at junctions.

Last year, 26% of motorcyclist fatalities and serious injuries resulted from accidents where no other vehicle was involved.

Comparing different road users’ casualty rates per billion vehicle miles highlights that motorcyclists are at a much greater risk of being killed or seriously injured, approximately 75 times greater than for car drivers.