Safety In Numbers says bmf

The British Motorcyclists Federation have welcomed the publication of the latest report from the Department for Transport (DfT) showing that motorcycling is getting safer.

The Dft’s ‘Reported Road Casualties Great Britain 2009: Annual Report’ shows that while motorcycle traffic went up by 2 per cent in 2009 compared to 2008 and was 35 per cent higher (a greater traffic increase than for any other road user type) than the 1994-98 average, motorcycle casualty rates nevertheless fell by a third.

In percentage terms, the killed and seriously injured (KSI) rate has now fallen by 33% against the 1994 -1998 base line average. This good news shows that more use of motorcycles does not automatically mean more deaths and more injuries say the bmf.

The all-important casualty rate, taking into account as it does higher usage, is impressive, but even without the usage element, motorcycle casualties still decreased in absolute terms by 4 per cent from 21,550 in 2008 to 20,703 in 2009, and were therefore 14 per cent lower than the 1994-98 average.

Further, in comparing 2009 to 2008, there were 21 fewer fatalities, 206 fewer serious injuries and 620 fewer slight injuries.

However, amongst the good news, the report shows that for all classes of road casualties, ‘failed to look properly’ is still the single biggest cause of all accidents (reported in 38% of all accidents in 2009) and for motorcyclists this is particularly worrying say the bmf. ‘Sorry mate I didn’t see you’ is a well-known phrase but for motorcyclists it still happens far too often say the bmf.

Commenting on the figures Chris Hodder, the bmf’s Government Relations Executive said: “This just goes to show that the work that has gone into making motorcycling safer over the last few years has borne fruit; not only is the individual motorcyclist safer as a result, but it has also proved that restricting motorcycling, as some would advocate, is not the answer to safety concerns.”