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THE
ROYAL SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF ACCIDENTS
MOTORCYCLING SAFETY POLICY PAPER
JUNE 2006
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Inappropriate
Speed
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Speed surveys41
show that on 30 mph built-up roads in 2004, almost half (48%) of motorcyclists
exceeded the speed limit, compared with just over half (53%) of car drivers. On
40 mph built-up roads, 36% of motorcyclists exceeded the speed limit, compared
with 27% of cars.
On non-built-up single carriageway roads with the national speed limit of 60 mph,
25% of motorcyclists exceeded the limit, compared with only 10% of car drivers.
On non-built-up dual carriageways with the national speed limit of 70 mph, 48%
exceeded the speed limit, with 21% travelling faster than 80 mph. On motorways,
59% of motorcyclists exceed the speed limit, with 28% going faster than 80 mph.
The risk and severity of injury increases with speed. Most motorcycle accidents
occur at relatively low speeds, although fatal and serious injuries are more likely
to be suffered at higher speeds. |
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Built-up roads (roads
with speed limits of 40 mph or less) have the highest casualty rate for motorcyclists.
Over two thirds of powered two wheeler casualties occur on built-up roads, despite
the fact that they carry less than half of motorcyclist traffic. However, only
one third of motorcyclist deaths occur on these roads. 60% of deaths occur on
non-built up roads (speed limits over 40 mph). Only 2% of casualties and 3% of
deaths occur on motorways, which also have the lowest motorcyclist casualty rate.
Over one third (38%) of the motorcyclists involved in fatal accidents in one study
were considered to have been speeding before the collision.
The In-depth Study of Motorcycle Accidents42 identified misjudging the speed required
to negotiate a bend as the most common cause of motorcycle only crashes. Inappropriate
speed (both exceeding the limit and riding within the limit but too fast for the
conditions) was a contributory factor in 9.2% of the motorcycle accidents studied.
However, 58% of the motorcyclists who responded to the questionnaire survey admitted
to always or frequently breaking the speed limit, but only when they felt it was
safe to do so. Over two-thirds of these experienced motorcyclists also admitted
to sometimes miscalculating bends.
The European Experimental Vehicles Committee’s review43 of research into motorcycle
accidents, also found that the majority of motorcycle collisions take place at
fairly low speeds, between 30 and 60 kilometres per hour.
A TRL study12 found that approximately 75% of motorcycle accidents occur at impact
speeds of up to 48km/h (30 mph) and 96% at up to 64 km/h (40 mph). The study also
found that almost all (93%) of the serious and fatal head injuries occur at speeds
of up to 64km/h (40 mph).
These figures suggest that high speed riding and accidents are not the only area
of concern, and that interventions should also be directed towards motorcycle
riding at lower speeds.
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Helmets
and Clothing
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Motorcycle
Helmets
When a motorcyclist’s head hits another object, it is of vital importance that
the energy created in the impact is dissipated in a controlled manner in order
to prevent or reduce the risk of brain injury. Head and brain injuries can be
caused in very low speed accidents, and motorcycle helmets offer good protection
against such injuries (although they do not guarantee protection).
In the UK, motorcyclists must wear a helmet when riding on the road. Helmets sold
in the UK must comply with ECE Regulation 22 as amended, British Standard BS 6658
as amended or a European standard which offers a level of protection which is
the same as, or better than, the British Standard.
A literature review44 of the effectiveness of motorcycle helmets shows that helmets
reduce the risk of fatal head injury by around 50%. It is sometimes suggested
that the extra weight of a helmet actually increases the risk of neck injuries,
but research has found no evidence to support this. Full faced helmets offer greater
protection against facial and chin injuries than open-faced helmets, but may slightly
increase the risk of injury to other parts of the head.
However, the study of fatal accidents involving motorcyclists45 found that the
helmet came off in 20% of fatal crashes (12% before the crash and 45% during the
crash). There is also evidence that the protection offered against chin impacts
is inadequate (riders who suffer chin impacts frequently suffer fractures to the
base of the skull - the most threatening head injury).
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Advances in Helmet Technology As effective as motorcyclist helmets are, they can
be improved. Research is underway to improve the standards for helmets and visors,
which may lead to a rating scheme.
It is also important that helmet design follows motorcycle user behaviour. With
the growth in motorcycle use – especially as a mode of transport rather than a
hobby – the types of accidents motorcyclists are involved in may change. If there
are more accidents at 30 mph, then helmets should be primarily designed to mitigate
these.
TRL research47 found that current helmets were too stiff to provide the same protection
at lower speeds as they do at higher speeds. At lower speeds, less energy is generated,
but the helmet does not absorb it as efficiently and a larger percentage is transferred
to the wearer’s cranium. This suggests that helmet designs need to be optimised
to make them more energy absorbent at lower speeds, and increase the range of
severities that would be survivable for a rider wearing a helmet. An ideal helmet
would efficiently absorb energy over a wider range of speeds.
Future helmet design also needs to focus on reducing the rotational acceleration
of the rider’s head upon impact. This is frequently a cause of brain injury, especially
when combined with linear acceleration.
TRL’s Motorcycle Helmet Assessment Project48 assessed the relationship between
helmet design and injury risk, and developed a new advanced helmet that offers
better protection at a larger range of speeds. It was estimated that if all riders
had had an advanced helmet in the year of the study, then 93 of the 578 (17%)
motorcycle fatalities could have been prevented that year, as could 434 serious
injuries.
Unfortunately, the estimated additional cost of the advanced helmet was £150.
Real world use of the helmet and the rate at which motorcyclists invest in the
technology must be taken into account in order to get a realistic evaluation of
its actual casualty savings. Assuming that 10% of all helmet sales were the advanced
helmet, in the first 5 years of their introduction, 28 lives would be saved and
130 serious injuries prevented.
Once the technology is readily available, a strong case for the extra investment
needs to be put forward to motorcyclists to achieve rapid sustained sales growth.
As mentioned previously, published comparative ratings for helmets would lead
to more informed consumer choice.
Visors
Riders who use an open-faced helmet need to use a visor or goggles to protect
their eyes from wind, rain, insects and road dirt. If they normally wear glasses
or contact lenses they must wear them when riding. It is important that visors
and goggles are kept clean, and replaced if they become heavily scratched as scratches
which may distort the view, cause dazzle from oncoming vehicle headlights or cause
sun glare. TRL’s review of police reports of fatal accidents involving motorcyclists49
identified impaired vision caused by problems with the rider’s visor as being
associated with crashes in which a rider hit a stationary object.
Some motorcyclists wear sunglasses, tinted visors or goggles, and have sought
a change in the law to legalise very dark tints, with minimum light transmittance
of 18%, for daytime use. Research50 on the effect of tinted visors on seeing distances
and signal light recognition on unlit roads at night, supports a minimum level
of 50% transmittance. It found that very dark visors did not fundamentally help
wearers to see better in bright conditions. This research was conducted on fully
alert subjects with good eyesight wearing visors that were in good condition,
and so may have under-estimated the potential problems caused by the use of dark
tinted visors in less good conditions.
The Government has called on standards bodies to encourage the development of
technical solutions to enable longer-term visor designs to lend themselves equally
to both day and night time use
Riders should not wear tinted glasses, visors or goggles if riding in the dark,
dusk or conditions of poor visibility.
Noise
Regular use of a motorcycle can damage a rider’s hearing52. At 60 mph noise levels
(mainly wind noise) inside motorcycle helmets can be in excess of 100dB11. Extended
exposure to noise levels of over 90dB can lead to permanent hearing loss. Noise
inside the helmet may prevent the rider from hearing audible signals, such as
horns, sirens and traffic.
Noise levels vary with the style of helmet, whether the motorcycle has a windscreen
and the position of the rider behind the screen. Research by the University of
Southampton using a wind tunnel showed the main source of noise to be the turbulence
at the edge of the windscreen’s wake acting on the helmet. Low screens direct
the turbulence to the wake of the helmet and improvements to the helmet seal around
the neck can reduce noise levels on motorcycles with low screens. High windscreens
direct the turbulence to the helmet visor and the forehead and improvements in
the seal between the visor and the helmet result in an improvement. These modifications
can reduce noise levels by 5 – 8 dB at the ear.
The easiest way for most motorcyclists to achieve a reduction in noise levels
is to wear earplugs. These should be marked with British Standard BS EN 352-2:2002,
the hearing protector standard for Ear Plugs. Many UK police forces now provide
these for their motorcyclists as part of their health and safety policy. Riders
using earplugs for the first time should monitor their speed carefully since the
earplugs will reduce their level of feedback from the road environment.
VAT
In the UK motorcycle helmets have been VAT zero-rated since 1974. There were proposals
in the European Commission to remove this exemption. Fortunately, the Government
made it clear that the UK would not remove or reduce this exemption.
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Protective
Clothing
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Leg
and arm injuries are common for motorcyclists who are involved in crashes, and
leg injuries in particular can be serious, and often cause permanent disability.
Good motorcycle clothing can protect motorcyclists from the wet and cold and from
some types of injury. It is essential that it is comfortable to wear, does not
impede the movements of the rider and provide protection from the elements - riders
who are warm and dry are much more alert.
European standards have been developed for motorcyclist protective clothing (which
must be CE marked). There is now a wide range of such clothing available, including
one and two-piece suits, trousers, jackets, boots and gloves, which contain abrasion
resistant materials, such as Gortex, leather or kevlar and padding or body armour
to protect from impact injuries. Good gloves or gauntlets are essential when riding
a motorcycle. They protect the rider's hands from cold, wet weather, and from
injury if they fall off, and allow the rider to operate the controls easily. It
is equally important to wear good boots or strong footwear that cover the ankle
when riding.
However, as with helmets, there are accidents and injuries from which the best
protective clothing is unable to protect the rider.
High Visibility Clothing
Protective clothing that contains fluorescent and reflective material will increase
the conspicuity of the rider, and hence help to reduce the likelihood of an accident
occurring in the first place. In tests of motorcyclists’ daytime conspicuity54,
riders wearing a fluorescent jacket or waistcoat were detected by observers sooner
than riders not wearing any high visibility garments.
When riding in the dark, riders should wear clothing that includes reflective
materials on the legs and lower body, as this is where car headlights will shine.
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Rider
Behaviour - Conclusion
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As
with all road accidents, the causes and contributory factors of motorcycling accidents
are varied and complex.
The rider’s skills, training, experience and attitudes are fundamental to safe
motorcycling (although by no means the only issues). One of the key approaches
to improving motorcyclist safety is to ensure that riders receive appropriate
training when they start (or re-start) to use a motorcycle, that they receive
further training as they progress in their riding careers, especially as they
progress from smaller to larger motorcycles.
Research is underway to establish the most effective type of training schemes
for different groups of riders and to develop a range of appropriate courses.
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