Assignment 5
1
Possible Disadvantages, Answers, with Visuals
Paige Sowell
Strayer University
ENG215 Research and Writing
Professor Saraswathi Lakshmanan
August 31, 2015
Assignment 5
2
Challenges Facing Safety of Passengers and Motorcyclist in U. S
Introduction
Motorcyclist have for years become major means of transport in several states across the
United States. Most people prefer them since they can move easily on deplorable road network
within some States in U.S. Motorcyclist transport passengers to work, school, to health facilities
during emergencies and also fulfilling a business trip. In some states in the U.S roads are not
paved and thus become more appealing during rainy season
While significant progress has taken place in minimizing fatalities among passenger
vehicle occupant, motorcycle casualties have been on a steady rise since the year 1997 &
currently do represent the country’s biggest highway traffic safety challenge. In the year 2006
motorcyclist went on with their 9th year increase, recording a five percent increment of 4,810 &
going beyond the records of pedestrian casualties for the record first time from when the NHTSA
implemented the collection of fatal motor vehicle accident data in the year 1975. The records of
the year 2005 showed that the rate of fatality stood at 73 per 100,000 recorded or registered
motorcycles (Law, Noland, & Evans, 2013). By comparing with passenger rate vehicle in the
same year which stood at 14%
This trend has been much manifested that fatalities as a result of motorcycle have for all
practical reasons offset benefits in lives saved ensuing from higher usage of seat belt & enhanced
passenger vehicle safety. Motorcycle operator fatalities now take up to 11% of the total fatalities
& dramatically bears huge impact on the country overall highway casualty rate. This paper
describes plans for the department of the states to enhance safety. Some of the initiatives I have
proposed include:
Assignment 5
3
Carrying out studies on the actual cause of motorcycle crash & its outcome; this will
provide a comprehensive assessment of the factors that lead to the crash. Establishing national
standards for rider training in the entry level that will form the baseline for beginner motorcycle
operator training programs carried out in the U.S Repealing the FMVSS No. 218 about
motorcycle helmets; this will tackle the fabrication of helmet facilitated by present requirements
of labeling of motorcycle helmet standard.
Issuing out roadway safety for all motorcycles; a pamphlet containing official guidelines
on constructing, designing & maintaining roadways for increased safety of motorcycle to road
engineers, planners & designers. Establishing training planned to educate traffic law enforcement
authority on the safety of the motorcycle & particular enforcement efforts they can embark on to
minimize motorcycle crashes.
The Safety Issue
The predominant usage of motorcycling for mostly private purpose is of great concern
with no safety measures or limited. This issue has triggered debate among different sectors in the
United States. Safety is merely concerned with use of appropriate safety gears by both the
passenger and motorcyclist. The compliance and observation of traffic laws, adequate training,
less passenger loading & proper maintenance of the motorcycle are other safety precaution
measures that both passengers and motorcyclist needs to observe in reducing fatalities as a result
of an accident. The main focus of safety is that pedestrian, passengers and motorcyclist are
indeed safe if an accident is inevitable. The motorcyclist and passengers who has appreciated the
worth of safety measures for is the rider who encounters fewer collisions. Thus a qualified and
experienced motorcyclist understands all the parameters of safety and risk management. Several
Assignment 5
4
studies have revealed that suitable use of safety helmet is an efficient and effective method of
reducing fatality and severity among motorcyclist and passengers in case of a collision. Despite,
the well knowledge about this safety gear by both passenger and motorcyclist most of them do
not make use of them. They even ride at undue speed & exceed the passengers they are supposed
to carry putting them at a greater risk.
The police authorities in many states across the United States have recorded high rates of
accidents involving motorcyclist and passengers. Many of them are as a result of non-compliance
with safety regulations. According to authorities the number accidents that are not reported is
more than the reported cases of accidents. The authorities have suggested that majority of these
accidents can be avoided but unfortunate passenger and motorcyclist are not aware of safety
regulations together with few traffic law enforcers in most of the states and also ignorance to
road signs in some places could be the basis of contributing factors of accidents in many states
across the United States. The law enforcers are not able to regulate & enforce these safety
precaution measures due to lack of adequate logistic. Motorcyclist and passengers are frequently
capitalizing on these police scarcities & ride motorcycles across many states without safety gears
like helmets and violate traffic laws at will.
Motorcyclist are getting involved in crimes like robbery, hijacking & some murder
pedestrians on a hit & run with no liability. The number of injuries sustained by passengers,
pedestrian and motorcyclist from motorcycle riding overwhelms the healthcare system. There is
great challenge of service delivery to patients with few skilled healthcare providers & resources.
The increasing population is facing the problem of substandard drugs & medicine stores are the
actual source of healthcare delivery in some of the states in U.S
Assignment 5
5
It is evident in various occasions that hospitals in some states are not well equipped to
manage serious cases like fracture of bones in human body. Some hospitals have very few
doctors and some even don’t have Orthopedists. Some of the doctors in these hospitals are
contractors of private healthcare facilities and therefore majority of patients are left unattended.
If passengers, pedestrian & motorcyclist get head injuries as a result of motorcycle accident,
death sentence will be eminent. These hospitals regularly referred complicated & subcomplicated cases in few hospitals that are more developed and have adequate personnel and
equipment to handle such cases.
Policies of Addressing Motorcycle & Passenger Safety
Helmet Usage among Motorcyclists & its Benefits
In the year 2010, motorcyclist and passengers who were killed in motorcycle accidents
were 4,502 which represented 14 percent of all death from roads, despite the fact that motorcycle
only accounts for less than one percent of all miles travelled from vehicle. The usage of helmet
consistently has been revealed to minimize motorcycle crash associated fatalities and injuries and
thus the most appropriate plan to increase the usage of helmet is through enactment of universal
helmet laws. This law obliges all passengers & motorcyclist to put on helmets whenever they are
using a motorcycle. To scrutinize the link between the helmets law of state motorcycle & usage
or non-usage amongst fatally injured passenger and motorcyclist there was an analysis of 20082010 NHTSA data from FARS, census about fatal traffic accidents in the U.S. In addition the
data about the economic cost from the NHTSA were acquired to compare the amount saved due
to helmet usage by the kind of motorcycle laws of state (Howard, 2013). The findings revealed
that on average, 12 percent of deadly injured motorcyclist were not putting on their helmets in
Assignment 5
6
those states with universal laws on helmets compared with 64 percent in states that had partial
helmet laws & 79 percent in states that did not have any type of helmet laws. In addition in the
year 2010, economic gains as a result of usage of helmet by societies in those states that had
universal laws on helmet were on normal, $725 on every registered motorcycle. This was nearly
4 times greater than in those states that had no such laws.
The benefits of Helmet usage
The number of injuries and fatalities involving motorcyclist with helmet were then
subtracted from the projected numbers of motorcycle accidents injuries & fatalities to
approximate the numbers of motorcyclist minor & serious injuries prevented and live saved.
Equivalent cost calculations from National Highway Transport Safety Authority were then
applied on these approximates & the resulting costs were attuned to the year 2010 dollars. The
costs saved were approximated to be $1,212,800 per every fatality, $171,753 per severe injury &
$7,523 per small injury. The costs saved incorporated injury associated costs (e.g. emergence
services & medical costs, loss of work productivity & household & excluded costs such as travel
delay and property damage. The cost saved were regulated by each state by the motorcycles that
are registered in that particular state in the year 2010 in order to establish the costs saved per
motorcycle which is registered.
Improving Exposure Data & its Benefits
In order to accurately recognize & effectively tackle the ever growing problem of
motorcycle deaths and injuries, the Transport department re-baselined its motorcycle casualty
rate measure for the year 2008 to show change of focus from casualty per every 100 million
vehicle miles covered to casualty per one hundred thousand registrations. Vehicle miles travelled
Assignment 5
7
is normally considered the ideal measure for disclosure as it measures the actual miles covered
and is also preferred technique for covering fatality rates. Nevertheless, state reporting of the
motorcycle VMT to FHWA was not obligatory before this year. Even in those states that
accounted for motorcycle VMT, it was just measured as average proportion of total VMT as
opposed to being collected directly via roadside encounters or surveys. FHWA had no choice but
to then approximate VMT for those states that did not report depending on data from states that
did actually report. The exactness of these counts therefore was very exploratory (Dellinger &
Sleet, 2011). Starting the year 2007, FHWA started asking states to gather & report data of
motorcycle VMT
Improving Motorcycle Safety Performance & the benefits
Motorcycle safety issue is not like any other highway safety concern in that it calls for
comprehensive effort, in tackling multiple factors associated to rider and motorcycle safety, to
reverse the 10 year long trend of ever increasing fatalities. There are plans by the department for
a comprehensive effort to involve advancement to the vehicle, data analysis and collection,
roadway environment & behavioral program.
Benefits of Improving Motorcycle Safety Performance
Improvements to the breaking system of the motorcycle, together with the application of
anti-lock braking technology, improvement to vehicle lighting to make riders & vehicles more
visible to other motorcyclist and motorist as well plays a role to reducing these accidents.
Increasing the usage of helmets meeting FMVSS 218, prohibiting riding after drinking & getting
fresh riders to undergo complete class training & experienced riders to undergo refresher course,
making sure all motorcyclist possess valid license endorsement, & increasing motorcyclist
Assignment 5
8
knowledge and awareness about how to properly use and share the road with other motorcyclist
are chief to minimizing motorcycle accidents. The recommendation is to attack the issue from
different angles ranging from research on vehicle & infrastructure, behavioral, enforcement
activities & education & addressing emergency responses to motorcycle accidents.
Limitations of the Policies of Addressing Motorcycle & Passenger Safety
Limitation of Helmet Usage
The single most efficient and effective measure for minimizing fatalities & injuries in a
motorcycle crash is the application of a seat belt & helmets. In many states in U.S there are
compulsory helmet laws. However, this is not the case in the state of New Hampshire.
Nevertheless, these laws only cover rear occupants in just twenty six states & the Columbian
district. Additionally, basic laws are present in only thirty two out of the 50 states.
Riders should not put on visors, tinted glasses or goggles when riding in the dusk, dark or
condition of poor visibility as this usually distort their view. The usage of tints that are below the
legal minimum standards of light transmittance also has effect on their visibility; do cause
confusion from oncoming headlights from the car or bring sun glare.
The noise level is an issue for motorcyclist. This damage the rider’s hearing & might
prevent the motorcyclist from hearing perceptible signal like sirens, horns & traffic. The best
way for riders to achieve minimal level of noise is to put on earplugs that are conventional to U.S
standards. Important to knot that motorcyclist using these earplugs for the first time need to
check their speed carefully as the earplugs reduces their feedback level from the road
environment.
Assignment 5
9
Limitation in Motorcycle Safety Performance
Braking, particularly in an emergency situation is one of the complex tasks of riding a
motorcycle. Occurrence of an error in braking easily leads to capsizing, skidding or the bike
becoming unstable. Inaccurate application of motorcycle brakes is actually considered to be a
factor in majority of motorcycle crashes. ABS types of brakes for motorcycles have always been
commercially available since the year 1988, & are nowadays fitted to a variety of machines an
idea which should be highly encouraged. Other kind of advances in motorcycle braking system
are being developed, including CBS (Combined Braking System) that do operate both brakes &
distribute the braking force to rear & front wheels to enhance stability when breaking. It’s vital
that motorcyclist learn how these advanced braking system work & get training in their usage.
The term motorcycle includes wide variety of vehicles, ranging from little low-powered
mopes & Scooters to huge high-powered motorcycles of attaining speeds of 200 mph & more. In
case of vehicles RoSpA does not think that there is any need for coming up with such powerful
car that can very easily attain speeds of more than two times the maximum speed limit.
Young motorcyclist tend to ride smaller type of machines i.e. 100-250cc & older
motorcyclist tend to ride huge motorcycles i.e. 500cc and above & especially above 900cc.
These riders of these more powerful machines are associated with higher chances of accidents &
fatalities at night, on non-built up roads, while overtaking or on bends & accidents as a result of
speeding or other poor kind of behavior.
Assignment 5
10
Limitation of Exposure Data
In order to accurately recognize & effectively tackle the ever growing problem of
motorcycle deaths and injuries, the Transport department re-baselined its motorcycle casualty
rate measure for the year 2008 to show change of focus from casualty per every 100 million
vehicle miles covered to casualty per one hundred thousand registrations. Vehicle miles travelled
is normally considered the ideal measure for disclosure as it measures the actual miles covered
and is also preferred technique for covering fatality rates. Nevertheless, state reporting of the
motorcycle VMT to FHWA was not obligatory before this year. Even in those states that
accounted for motorcycle VMT, it was just measured as average proportion of total VMT as
opposed to being collected directly via roadside encounters or surveys. FHWA had no choice but
to then approximate VMT for those states that did not report depending on data from states that
did actually report (Rys, Research., Engineering., & program, 2010). The exactness of these
counts therefore was very exploratory. Starting the year 2007, FHWA started asking states to
gather & report data of motorcycle VMT.
Assignment 5
11
The figure below shows motorcycle riders’ causality rate by year.
Motorcycle Riders Causality Rate by year
1%
6%
1
6%
2
15%
6%
3
12%
6%
6%
9%
6%
6%
6%
6%
6%
4
5
6
7
8
0%
3%
9
10
Conclusion
The State’s department efforts to minimize motorcycle accidents & resulting fatalities
and injuries will continue to pay attention on making enhancement to the vehicle, increasing
helmet usage and other protective safety gears, getting many riders to complete neophyte &
training course for experienced riders & become licensed properly, prohibiting riding after
drinking & increasing other motorist understanding of motorcycle on the road.
Through the Fatal Highway Administration MAC, this department is working to enhance
roadway signs & maintenance to make roads exclusively safer for all motorcyclists. It has also
taken new approach in educating motorcyclist about the dangers of riding after drinking, in
addition to universal messaging about driving after drinking, reaching out to all motorcyclist
particularly in rallies and shows and via motorcycle groups and clubs. Efforts to support the use
Assignment 5
12
of helmet are expanding & involve information on the significance of using certified DOT
helmet. Additionally, FMVSS 218 will be rationalized to address fabrication of helmet
certification assisted by the non-specific classification requirements of the motorcycle helmet
standard. These and the various other activities described in this plan will enable the department
in invalidating the unacceptable trend in motorcycle fatalities in order to meet its goal of 1.0
overall highway casualties per 100 million VMT by 2011 (Newman, 2010).
Assignment 5
13
References
Dellinger, A., & Sleet, D. (2011). Preventing Traffic Injuries: Strategies That Work. Washington
D.C: Sage Publications.
Howard, B. M. (2013). Motorcycle crashes and state safety efforts. New York: Nova Publishers.
Law, T. H., Noland, R. B., & Evans, A. W. (2013). Factors Associated with the Enactment of
Safety Belt and Motorcycle Helmet Laws. New York: Risk Analysis, v33 n7.
Newman, J. A. (2010). Motorcycle helmets - their limits of performance. Michigan: International
Motorcycle Safety Conference. Proceedings. Volume III. Linthicum, Motorcycle Safety
Foundation.
Rys, M. J., Research., K. D., Engineering., K. S., & program, K.-T. (. (2010). Promoting
centerline rumble strips to increase... by Margaret J Rys . Kansas: Topeka, Kan. : Kansas Dept.
of Transportation.
Assignment 5
1
Title goes here…………..
Paige Sowell
Strayer University
ENG215 Research and Writing
Professor Saraswathi Lakshmanan
August 31, 2015
Assignment 5
2
Challenges Facing Safety of Passengers and Motorcyclist in U. S
Introduction
Motorcyclist have for years become major means of transport in several states across the
United States. Most people prefer them since they can move easily on deplorable road network
within some States in U.S. Motorcyclist transport passengers to work, school, to health facilities
during emergencies and also fulfilling a business trip. In some states in the U.S roads are not
paved and thus become more appealing during rainy season
While significant progress has taken place in minimizing fatalities among passenger
vehicle occupant, motorcycle casualties have been on a steady rise since the year 1997 &
currently do represent the country’s biggest highway traffic safety challenge. In the year 2006
motorcyclist went on with their 9th year increase, recording a five percent increment of 4,810 &
going beyond the records of pedestrian casualties for the record first time from when the NHTSA
implemented the collection of fatal motor vehicle accident data in the year 1975. The records of
the year 2005 showed that the rate of fatality stood at 73 per 100,000 recorded or registered
motorcycles (Law, Noland, & Evans, 2013). By comparing with passenger rate vehicle in the
same year which stood at 14%
This trend has been much manifested that fatalities as a result of motorcycle have for all
practical reasons offset benefits in lives saved ensuing from higher usage of seat belt & enhanced
passenger vehicle safety. Motorcycle operator fatalities now take up to 11% of the total fatalities
& dramatically bears huge impact on the country overall highway casualty rate. This paper
describes plans for the department of the states to enhance safety. Some of the initiatives I have
proposed include:
Assignment 5
3
Carrying out studies on the actual cause of motorcycle crash & its outcome; this will
provide a comprehensive assessment of the factors that lead to the crash. Establishing national
standards for rider training in the entry level that will form the baseline for beginner motorcycle
operator training programs carried out in the U.S Repealing the FMVSS No. 218 about
motorcycle helmets; this will tackle the fabrication of helmet facilitated by present requirements
of labeling of motorcycle helmet standard.
Issuing out roadway safety for all motorcycles; a pamphlet containing official guidelines
on constructing, designing & maintaining roadways for increased safety of motorcycle to road
engineers, planners & designers. Establishing training planned to educate traffic law enforcement
authority on the safety of the motorcycle & particular enforcement efforts they can embark on to
minimize motorcycle crashes.
The Safety Issue
The predominant usage of motorcycling for mostly private purpose is of great concern
with no safety measures or limited. This issue has triggered debate among different sectors in the
United States. Safety is merely concerned with use of appropriate safety gears by both the
passenger and motorcyclist. The compliance and observation of traffic laws, adequate training,
less passenger loading & proper maintenance of the motorcycle are other safety precaution
measures that both passengers and motorcyclist needs to observe in reducing fatalities as a result
of an accident. The main focus of safety is that pedestrian, passengers and motorcyclist are
indeed safe if an accident is inevitable. The motorcyclist and passengers who has appreciated the
worth of safety measures for is the rider who encounters fewer collisions. Thus a qualified and
experienced motorcyclist understands all the parameters of safety and risk management. Several
Assignment 5
4
studies have revealed that suitable use of safety helmet is an efficient and effective method of
reducing fatality and severity among motorcyclist and passengers in case of a collision. Despite,
the well knowledge about this safety gear by both passenger and motorcyclist most of them do
not make use of them. They even ride at undue speed & exceed the passengers they are supposed
to carry putting them at a greater risk.
The police authorities in many states across the United States have recorded high rates of
accidents involving motorcyclist and passengers. Many of them are as a result of non-compliance
with safety regulations. According to authorities the number accidents that are not reported is
more than the reported cases of accidents. The authorities have suggested that majority of these
accidents can be avoided but unfortunate passenger and motorcyclist are not aware of safety
regulations together with few traffic law enforcers in most of the states and also ignorance to
road signs in some places could be the basis of contributing factors of accidents in many states
across the United States. The law enforcers are not able to regulate & enforce these safety
precaution measures due to lack of adequate logistic. Motorcyclist and passengers are frequently
capitalizing on these police scarcities & ride motorcycles across many states without safety gears
like helmets and violate traffic laws at will.
Motorcyclist are getting involved in crimes like robbery, hijacking & some murder
pedestrians on a hit & run with no liability. The number of injuries sustained by passengers,
pedestrian and motorcyclist from motorcycle riding overwhelms the healthcare system. There is
great challenge of service delivery to patients with few skilled healthcare providers & resources.
The increasing population is facing the problem of substandard drugs & medicine stores are the
actual source of healthcare delivery in some of the states in U.S
Assignment 5
5
It is evident in various occasions that hospitals in some states are not well equipped to
manage serious cases like fracture of bones in human body. Some hospitals have very few
doctors and some even don’t have Orthopedists. Some of the doctors in these hospitals are
contractors of private healthcare facilities and therefore majority of patients are left unattended.
If passengers, pedestrian & motorcyclist get head injuries as a result of motorcycle accident,
death sentence will be eminent. These hospitals regularly referred complicated & subcomplicated cases in few hospitals that are more developed and have adequate personnel and
equipment to handle such cases.
Policies of Addressing Motorcycle & Passenger Safety
Helmet Usage among Motorcyclists & its Benefits
In the year 2010, motorcyclist and passengers who were killed in motorcycle accidents
were 4,502 which represented 14 percent of all death from roads, despite the fact that motorcycle
only accounts for less than one percent of all miles travelled from vehicle. The usage of helmet
consistently has been revealed to minimize motorcycle crash associated fatalities and injuries and
thus the most appropriate plan to increase the usage of helmet is through enactment of universal
helmet laws. This law obliges all passengers & motorcyclist to put on helmets whenever they are
using a motorcycle. To scrutinize the link between the helmets law of state motorcycle & usage
or non-usage amongst fatally injured passenger and motorcyclist there was an analysis of 20082010 NHTSA data from FARS, census about fatal traffic accidents in the U.S. In addition the
data about the economic cost from the NHTSA were acquired to compare the amount saved due
to helmet usage by the kind of motorcycle laws of state (Howard, 2013). The findings revealed
that on average, 12 percent of deadly injured motorcyclist were not putting on their helmets in
Assignment 5
6
those states with universal laws on helmets compared with 64 percent in states that had partial
helmet laws & 79 percent in states that did not have any type of helmet laws. In addition in the
year 2010, economic gains as a result of usage of helmet by societies in those states that had
universal laws on helmet were on normal, $725 on every registered motorcycle. This was nearly
4 times greater than in those states that had no such laws.
The benefits of Helmet usage
The number of injuries and fatalities involving motorcyclist with helmet were then
subtracted from the projected numbers of motorcycle accidents injuries & fatalities to
approximate the numbers of motorcyclist minor & serious injuries prevented and live saved.
Equivalent cost calculations from National Highway Transport Safety Authority were then
applied on these approximates & the resulting costs were attuned to the year 2010 dollars. The
costs saved were approximated to be $1,212,800 per every fatality, $171,753 per severe injury &
$7,523 per small injury. The costs saved incorporated injury associated costs (e.g. emergence
services & medical costs, loss of work productivity & household & excluded costs such as travel
delay and property damage. The cost saved were regulated by each state by the motorcycles that
are registered in that particular state in the year 2010 in order to establish the costs saved per
motorcycle which is registered.
Improving Exposure Data & its Benefits
In order to accurately recognize & effectively tackle the ever growing problem of
motorcycle deaths and injuries, the Transport department re-baselined its motorcycle casualty
rate measure for the year 2008 to show change of focus from casualty per every 100 million
vehicle miles covered to casualty per one hundred thousand registrations. Vehicle miles travelled
Assignment 5
7
is normally considered the ideal measure for disclosure as it measures the actual miles covered
and is also preferred technique for covering fatality rates. Nevertheless, state reporting of the
motorcycle VMT to FHWA was not obligatory before this year. Even in those states that
accounted for motorcycle VMT, it was just measured as average proportion of total VMT as
opposed to being collected directly via roadside encounters or surveys. FHWA had no choice but
to then approximate VMT for those states that did not report depending on data from states that
did actually report. The exactness of these counts therefore was very exploratory (Dellinger &
Sleet, 2011). Starting the year 2007, FHWA started asking states to gather & report data of
motorcycle VMT
Improving Motorcycle Safety Performance & the benefits
Motorcycle safety issue is not like any other highway safety concern in that it calls for
comprehensive effort, in tackling multiple factors associated to rider and motorcycle safety, to
reverse the 10 year long trend of ever increasing fatalities. There are plans by the department for
a comprehensive effort to involve advancement to the vehicle, data analysis and collection,
roadway environment & behavioral program.
Benefits of Improving Motorcycle Safety Performance
Improvements to the breaking system of the motorcycle, together with the application of
anti-lock braking technology, improvement to vehicle lighting to make riders & vehicles more
visible to other motorcyclist and motorist as well plays a role to reducing these accidents.
Increasing the usage of helmets meeting FMVSS 218, prohibiting riding after drinking & getting
fresh riders to undergo complete class training & experienced riders to undergo refresher course,
making sure all motorcyclist possess valid license endorsement, & increasing motorcyclist
Assignment 5
8
knowledge and awareness about how to properly use and share the road with other motorcyclist
are chief to minimizing motorcycle accidents. The recommendation is to attack the issue from
different angles ranging from research on vehicle & infrastructure, behavioral, enforcement
activities & education & addressing emergency responses to motorcycle accidents.
Limitations of the Policies of Addressing Motorcycle & Passenger Safety
Limitation of Helmet Usage
The single most efficient and effective measure for minimizing fatalities & injuries in a
motorcycle crash is the application of a seat belt & helmets. In many states in U.S there are
compulsory helmet laws. However, this is not the case in the state of New Hampshire.
Nevertheless, these laws only cover rear occupants in just twenty six states & the Columbian
district. Additionally, basic laws are present in only thirty two out of the 50 states.
Riders should not put on visors, tinted glasses or goggles when riding in the dusk, dark or
condition of poor visibility as this usually distort their view. The usage of tints that are below the
legal minimum standards of light transmittance also has effect on their visibility; do cause
confusion from oncoming headlights from the car or bring sun glare.
The noise level is an issue for motorcyclist. This damage the rider’s hearing & might
prevent the motorcyclist from hearing perceptible signal like sirens, horns & traffic. The best
way for riders to achieve minimal level of noise is to put on earplugs that are conventional to U.S
standards. Important to knot that motorcyclist using these earplugs for the first time need to
check their speed carefully as the earplugs reduces their feedback level from the road
environment.
Assignment 5
9
Limitation in Motorcycle Safety Performance
Braking, particularly in an emergency situation is one of the complex tasks of riding a
motorcycle. Occurrence of an error in braking easily leads to capsizing, skidding or the bike
becoming unstable. Inaccurate application of motorcycle brakes is actually considered to be a
factor in majority of motorcycle crashes. ABS types of brakes for motorcycles have always been
commercially available since the year 1988, & are nowadays fitted to a variety of machines an
idea which should be highly encouraged. Other kind of advances in motorcycle braking system
are being developed, including CBS (Combined Braking System) that do operate both brakes &
distribute the braking force to rear & front wheels to enhance stability when breaking. It’s vital
that motorcyclist learn how these advanced braking system work & get training in their usage.
The term motorcycle includes wide variety of vehicles, ranging from little low-powered
mopes & Scooters to huge high-powered motorcycles of attaining speeds of 200 mph & more. In
case of vehicles RoSpA does not think that there is any need for coming up with such powerful
car that can very easily attain speeds of more than two times the maximum speed limit.
Young motorcyclist tend to ride smaller type of machines i.e. 100-250cc & older
motorcyclist tend to ride huge motorcycles i.e. 500cc and above & especially above 900cc.
These riders of these more powerful machines are associated with higher chances of accidents &
fatalities at night, on non-built up roads, while overtaking or on bends & accidents as a result of
speeding or other poor kind of behavior.
Assignment 5
10
Limitation of Exposure Data
In order to accurately recognize & effectively tackle the ever growing problem of
motorcycle deaths and injuries, the Transport department re-baselined its motorcycle casualty
rate measure for the year 2008 to show change of focus from casualty per every 100 million
vehicle miles covered to casualty per one hundred thousand registrations. Vehicle miles travelled
is normally considered the ideal measure for disclosure as it measures the actual miles covered
and is also preferred technique for covering fatality rates. Nevertheless, state reporting of the
motorcycle VMT to FHWA was not obligatory before this year. Even in those states that
accounted for motorcycle VMT, it was just measured as average proportion of total VMT as
opposed to being collected directly via roadside encounters or surveys. FHWA had no choice but
to then approximate VMT for those states that did not report depending on data from states that
did actually report (Rys, Research., Engineering., & program, 2010). The exactness of these
counts therefore was very exploratory. Starting the year 2007, FHWA started asking states to
gather & report data of motorcycle VMT.
Assignment 5
11
The figure below shows motorcycle riders’ causality rate by year.
Motorcycle Riders Causality Rate by year
1%
6%
1
6%
2
15%
6%
3
12%
6%
6%
9%
6%
6%
6%
6%
6%
4
5
6
7
8
0%
3%
9
10
Conclusion
The State’s department efforts to minimize motorcycle accidents & resulting fatalities
and injuries will continue to pay attention on making enhancement to the vehicle, increasing
helmet usage and other protective safety gears, getting many riders to complete neophyte &
training course for experienced riders & become licensed properly, prohibiting riding after
drinking & increasing other motorist understanding of motorcycle on the road.
Through the Fatal Highway Administration MAC, this department is working to enhance
roadway signs & maintenance to make roads exclusively safer for all motorcyclists. It has also
taken new approach in educating motorcyclist about the dangers of riding after drinking, in
addition to universal messaging about driving after drinking, reaching out to all motorcyclist
particularly in rallies and shows and via motorcycle groups and clubs. Efforts to support the use
Assignment 5
12
of helmet are expanding & involve information on the significance of using certified DOT
helmet. Additionally, FMVSS 218 will be rationalized to address fabrication of helmet
certification assisted by the non-specific classification requirements of the motorcycle helmet
standard. These and the various other activities described in this plan will enable the department
in invalidating the unacceptable trend in motorcycle fatalities in order to meet its goal of 1.0
overall highway casualties per 100 million VMT by 2011 (Newman, 2010).
Assignment 5
13
References
Dellinger, A., & Sleet, D. (2011). Preventing Traffic Injuries: Strategies That Work. Washington
D.C: Sage Publications.
Howard, B. M. (2013). Motorcycle crashes and state safety efforts. New York: Nova Publishers.
Law, T. H., Noland, R. B., & Evans, A. W. (2013). Factors Associated with the Enactment of
Safety Belt and Motorcycle Helmet Laws. New York: Risk Analysis, v33 n7.
Newman, J. A. (2010). Motorcycle helmets - their limits of performance. Michigan: International
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Rys, M. J., Research., K. D., Engineering., K. S., & program, K.-T. (. (2010). Promoting
centerline rumble strips to increase... by Margaret J Rys . Kansas: Topeka, Kan. : Kansas Dept.
of Transportation.
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