Safe Motorcycle Riding Strategies
Safe Motorcycle Riding Strategies – While people most think that motorcycle accidents happen on the freeway or on a twisty mountain road, that is not the case. A motorcycle accident usually occurs closer to home. According to the 1981 study, Motorcycle Accident Cause Factors and Identification of Counter Measures, 90 percent of all motorcycle accidents happen in the city or suburbs, and 74% of those crashes are with passenger cars.
Strategies to Avoid Accidents with Cars
Preventing a motorcycle accident is a matter of knowing how to avoid collisions with cars. Let’s look at some examples of potential accident situations below and identify strategies that you can apply to avoid them.
The Creeper
Situation: You are riding through a suburban street when you come up behind a slow-moving car. You want to pass the car, but the driver keeps speeding up and slowing down, making it impossible for you to pass. After a few blocks, you decide to speed past the car, but just as you are about to pass, the driver makes a sudden left turn into a driveway. There’s no time to stop or swerve.
Strategy: The car’s unpredictable pace should have warned you that the driver was probably looking for a house address and was not aware of the traffic behind him. The best way to avoid this potential accident is to slow down a few seconds. Never pass at an intersection or at any other locations where a car could make a sudden turn in front of you.
Off-Ramp Dodger
Situation: You are riding on the freeway in the exit lane. Just as you are about to pass an off-ramp, a car in a lane to your left dashes across your path and brakes suddenly to make an exit. You have no room to brake.
Strategy: Since you are riding in the exit lane, drivers may assume that you are going to exit too. Knowing that on-ramps and off-ramps are prime locations for accidents, you should have moved away from the exit lane.
The Lane Changer
Situation: You are riding in the right lane of a three-lane freeway when you decide to pass a slow-moving car in front of you. Just as you are about to move to the middle lane on your left, the car in the far left lane decides to change lanes too by moving right to the middle lane.
Strategy: You should have watched the car on the far left and predicted that the driver may want to change lanes to pass slower cars too. You could have dropped back one car length to avoid a possible accident.
The Sleepy Commuter
Situation: You are riding through your neighborhood on your way to work in the morning. You are passing by a few houses with cars parked in their driveways when suddenly one of the vehicles backs out right into your path.
Strategy: You could have predicted that many people might be leaving for work around this time and may be backing out of their driveways. You should have slowed down and been prepared to stop quickly or swerve to avoid the collision.
The Basic Left-Turner
Situation: You are riding along a busy arterial street and approaching a four-way intersection. A few cars are waiting to turn. Just as you reach the intersection, the car in the opposing left turn lane skips the light and veers into your path.
Strategy: While there are many potential dangers at an intersection, the most hazardous is a left-turning car. You should have predicted that the vehicle in a turning lane might turn left in front of you and you should have reduced your speed.
The Hidden Left-Turner
Situation: You are riding in heavy traffic behind a bus. As the bus enters an intersection, a car suddenly appears in front of you to make a quick turn to pass behind the bus.
Strategy: This situation is similar to the Basic Left-Turner except the bus was blocking your view and also blocking the left-turning driver’s view. You should never follow closely behind a large vehicle. It is wise to move back a few seconds where other drivers can see you.
The More You Know
Whether you’re a rookie who is new to riding a motorcycle or a veteran who has been riding for years, it is safe to say that the more you know about these motorcycle riding strategies, the better prepared you are to avoid a collision with cars.
Watch YouTube Video: 6 of the Best Motorcycle Safety Tips. This video provides six safe motorcycle riding strategies to help you avoid a potentially dangerous accident.
Loomis Motorcycle Accident Attorneys
I’m Ed Smith, a Loomis motorcycle accident attorney. Riding a motorcycle requires all of your attention to avoid a potential accident. If you or a family member has been injured in a motorcycle crash, call me at (916) 921-6400 or (800) 404-5400 for free, friendly legal advice. You can also reach me online.
I am a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum.
To learn more about my practice and see our client reviews, visit Avvo, Yelp, and Google.
Some of our past cases are available for viewing on our settlements and verdicts page.
Safe Motorcycle Riding Strategies: AutoAccident.com
Photo by Joshua Reddekopp on Unsplash / Safe Motorcycle Riding Strategies.
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