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CHAPTER 3 |
There are about 780 single vehicle motorcycle casualty crashes and 2 200 multi-vehicle motorcycle casualty crashes in Victoria each year. [1] Motorcycle riders are more likely than other drivers involved in crashes to be injured.
Motorcycle riders and their pillion passengers comprise 10% of all serious road casualties in Victoria.[2]
Those who are injured are likely to suffer more severe consequences. The Royal Automobile Club of Victoria noted that:
...motorcyclists are about twenty times more susceptible to being fatally injured than car drivers or car passengers for any given amount of travel. [3]
Further, in its submission to the Inquiry, the Transport Accident Commission claimed that the severity of injury suffered by motorcycle riders involved in crashes is higher than for injured car drivers. About 56% of injured motorcycle riders are either admitted to hospital or killed whereas only about 30% of other injured road users suffer these severe consequences.[4] The other people involved in casualty crashes are treated in the accident and emergency department of a hospital or by a general practitioner and then discharged.
National figures show that 178 riders and 18 pillion passengers were killed in motorcycle crashes during 1992. [5] In Victoria in 1992, 48 riders and 8 pillion passengers were killed and 701 seriously injured. [6]
Figure 3 shows the level of motorcycle injury from 1977 to 1991.
Road crashes involving injury and Transport Accident Commission compensation must be reported to police. [7] Therefore, the fact that motorcycle riders suffer more severe injuries than most other road users means they are also more likely to be recorded in the official statistics.
Learner and first year probationary riders are banned from carrying pillion passengers.[8] The fatality rate for injured motorcycle riders travelling alone is one in 33 but the fatality rate for injured riders carrying a pillion passenger is one in 18.[9] Evidence before the Committee suggests that this occurs because a rider carrying a pillion passenger may be pinned to the motorcycle by the forward moving weight of the pillion passenger. Without a pillion passenger, a rider is likely to be thrown away from the machine in a crash, thereby reducing the risk and severity of injury.
Nearly 30% of riders in collisions in which a pillion passenger was killed or injured were aged under 21 years.[10] The issue of safety of motorcycle riders who carry pillion passengers needs further research.
This Chapter describes the personal and behavioural characteristics of motorcycle riders which are associated with increased risk of injury or death in a road crash. It makes recommendations on the categories of motorcycle riders which should be targeted in motorcycle safety initiatives.
3.2 MOTORCYCLE RIDERS INVOLVED IN CRASHES
Inadequacies in the motorcycle licence record system have been discussed in Chapter 2. The Committee was also unable to find reliable data about the number of motorcycle riders who ride unlicensed. These problems mean that the Committee is unable to compare motorcycle riders involved in collisions with those who ride safely.
However, the Committee is able to comment on the personal characteristics of motorcycle rider casualties. Those which may influence crash risk include gender, age, licence type and use of alcohol.
All of the data in this Chapter must be qualified by the lack of information about exposure.
This lack of data means that there is insufficient information available about the time spent on the road and the distance travelled by riders in different gender, age and licence categories.
3.2.1 Gender
Males comprise over 95% of motorcycle rider casualties and 60% of car driver casualties in Victoria. [11][12] The proportion of women among car driver casualties is increasing, whereas there has been no change in their contribution to motorcycle casualties since 1974.
3.2.2 Age
About 51% of motorcycle rider and pillion passenger casualties are aged between 18 and 25 years. [13] [14] Crash victims in this age group are more likely than other injured motorcyclists to be men. [15]
Seven per cent of motorcycle rider casualties are aged under 18 years. [16] This number includes about 170 young motorcycle riders injured in road crashes and admitted to hospital each year. A further 220 motorcycle riders in this age-group are admitted to hospital each year from off-road accidents. [17]
Riders aged under 26 years are more than twice as likely as older riders to be admitted to hospital following a motorcycle crash. [18] When property damage to motorcycles is considered, the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce stated that:
The claims experience of a leading Australian motorcycle insurance company is as follows:
The proportion of motorcycle rider victims aged under 25 years is still greater than that for other road accident victims. However, it has declined by 50% since 1974 (Figure 4).
The reduction in both the number of young motorcycle rider casualties and their proportion of the total motorcycle rider casualty population indicated above could be attributed to any or all of the following factors:
The change in young rider casualties means that there has been an increase in the percentage of older motorcycle rider casualties, aged between 26 and 49 years, in the motorcycle casualty population. These mature riders now make a substantial contribution to the motorcycle rider casualty statistics.
3.2.3 Licence type
About 23% of riders injured or killed in road crashes hold a learner's permit and a further 8% hold a probationary licence. [20], [21] Motorcycle rider casualties are more likely than their car driver counterparts to hold learners' permits and less likely to hold full licences.
The extent of these differences has changed over time because:
Risk of admission to hospital is two times greater during the first year of riding than in subsequent years (Figure 6). [22][23] This high rate is not influenced only by exposure because full licence holders travel about 1.25 times further than learner and probationary riders. 24 The rate of motorcycle injury in each licence category declined consistently between 1977 and 1985. The crash rate for learner permit and probationary riders increased in 1986.
Reliable information about the number of licences in these categories has not been available since 1987 (see page 11). The Committee therefore shares the view of VicRoads that :
... conclusions about the relative risk of accident involvement, within each licence group, can only be tentative. [25]
The Committee notes that there is little difference between the proportions of learner permit holders and probationary riders involved in crashes in Victoria. [26]
Further, American research suggests that motorcycle riders differ from car drivers because, for them, youthfulness is at least as important as inexperience in increasing accident risk. [27]
Despite the inadequacy of the Victorian data, the Committee is of the view that it is reasonable to conclude that motorcycle safety measures directed at novice riders should target those aged under 25 years.
3.2.4 Alcohol
Blood alcohol statistics are so unreliable that it is difficult to make reliable conclusions based on them. In its submission to the Inquiry, VicRoads reported that the blood alcohol concentration is available for only 50% of injured motorcycle riders in Victoria, [28] but there are some useful findings from this data as:
VicRoads' submission to the Inquiry reported that 7% of motorcycle rider fatalities and 3.5% of driver fatalities between 1983 and 1989 had blood alcohol concentrations in the 0.011 to 0.05g/100ml range. [33] However, only two motorcycle riders were included in this category of drink-drivers. Therefore, the Committee rejects, on the basis of inadequate numbers, VicRoads' argument that the proportion of motorcycle rider fatalities with blood alcohol concentrations between 0.011 and 0.05g/100ml is twice that for driver fatalities. Therefore, VicRoads argument in favour of zero blood alcohol limits for all motorcycle riders is unjustified.
3.2.5 Summary
In the absence of data establishing the relative risk of different categories of motorcycle riders, the data available to the Committee indicates that male, novice riders aged less than 26 years are at high risk. These people should be the primary target for motorcycle safety measures.
3.3 ROAD USER BEHAVIOUR INVOLVED IN MOTORCYCLE CRASHES
In Victoria, 65% of motorcycle casualty accidents involve more than one vehicle. [34] This proportion is lower for motorcycle collisions than for those involving other vehicles. [35]
Single vehicle motorcycle accidents cost about $49 million per year in person and vehicle-related costs. [36] Two-vehicle collisions involving one or more motorcycles cost the Victorian community a further $100 million per year. This total cost of about $149 million is about 6% of the cost of all casualty crashes in Victoria. [37]
The directions from which vehicles approach each other and the road user movements involved in motorcycle collisions have been discussed in the Social Development Committee's First Report on Motorcycle Safety. [38] This section will discuss the cost of motorcycle collisions which involve different road user movements and, on this basis, make recommendations with respect to their priorities for motorcycle safety measures.
3.3.1 Single vehicle crashes
Single vehicle accidents comprise 31% of those in which a motorcycle rider or pillion is injured or killed. In 86% of these crashes no object is hit. [39] In evidence before the Social Development Committee, Mr M. Scandrett-Smith, Manager, Driver Development, Driver Development Centre, Department of Road Transport, South Australia, described how these accidents can happen:
The Hell's Angel type found that riding a bike at high speed was a lot easier than riding one at low speed. When you go faster you acquire more stability and momentum.Obviously there is a point beyond which it is not stable, but at a low speed it becomes difficult to control. Many of these blokes found that low speed manoeuvring does test out the skill of balance and control of the bike and things they have never learned, because they jump on, wind it up and off they go.
...(One guy said) the only time he stopped was when he fell off at the finish. He would come into the car park and fall off because he had never learnt how to manoeuvre the thing in a small car park. [40]
There may be some doubt about the categorisation of many of these accidents because they include those in which no other vehicle is known to have contributed. Data collected by the Motorcycle Riders' Association 4B's volunteers, when they visit injured members in hospital, suggests that many motorcycles involved in single vehicle accidents may have been run off the road by a subsequently unidentified vehicle.
Andreassen, in his study of reported collisions (Appendix C) , found that on average, single vehicle motorcycle collisions cost the community about $76 000 each. Single vehicle motorcycle crashes in rural areas cost about the same as urban crashes. Single vehicle crashes involving vehicles other than motorcycles cost about $59 000 each. [41] [42]
The cost of injuries from single vehicle motorcycle collisions varies for different road user movements (Table 1). The two most expensive types of single vehicle crashes are those in which the motorcycle leaves the carriageway on a curve and hits an object, and those in which the motorcycle goes out of control on a straight road. Between them, these two categories of motorcycle crashes cost the community $22.6 million per year.
Motorcycle collisions are not significantly different from accidents involving other vehicles, in the frequency with which the vehicle leaves the carriageway on a curve and hits an object. [43]
Table 1 Annual Injury Costs For Single Vehicle Motorcycle Crashes 44
Accident Type Urban Collisions Rural Collisions Total
Number Total Number Total Number Total
(%) ($ m) (%) ($ m) (%) ($ m)
Off carriage way 10.3 6.1 13.2 5.9 11.4 12.0
on curve, hit object
Out of control, on 43.5 6.9 23.4 3.7 33.4 10.6
straight
Off carriage way on 11.0 5.8 4.0 1.0 7.5 6.8
straight, hit object
Hit animal 6.2 1.1 13.5 2.4 9.3 3.5
Off carriageway on 9.9 2.4 7.9 1.4 8.7 3.8
straight
Off carriageway on 5.3 1.5 13.9 3.9 9.1 5.4
curve
Out of control on 7.8 1.7 15.0 1.7 10.9 3.4
curve
Other 6.0 1.1 9.1 0.7 9.7 1.8
TOTAL 100.0 26.6 100.0 20.7 100.0 47.3
However, crashes in which the motorcycle goes out of control on a straight road contribute to 34% of single vehicle motorcycle collisions and only 6% of other single vehicle crashes. [45] Further, the costs of these crashes are nearly twice as high in urban areas as in the country. The Committee is of the view that these collisions result from riders' lack of fundamental riding skills. Therefore, these collisions may be reduced by improved motorcycle rider training and experience, particularly in urban areas.
3.3.2 Two-vehicle crashes
Andreassen's study also reported that, on average, reported two vehicle crashes involving at least one motorcycle cost the community about $82 000. These costs for other two vehicle crashes are about $45 000. [46] [47]
Person and vehicle costs in rural two vehicle motorcycle crashes are 1.3 times urban collisions. [48]
The cost of two vehicle collisions involving at least one motorcycle is different for different road user movements (Table 2). The two most expensive types of these collisions are intersection crashes in which the vehicles approach each other from adjacent directions, or one vehicle is turning in front of the other approaching from the opposite direction. Between them, these collisions cost the community $47.8 million per year in injury costs alone.
There is no significant difference between motorcycle and other vehicle collisions in the frequency with which collisions involve vehicles approaching each other from adjacent directions at intersections. [49]
Collisions which occur when vehicles are turning right or left against approaching traffic at intersections comprise 20% of two vehicle motorcycle crashes and 13% of those involving other vehicles. Most of these occur in urban areas. [50]
Table 2 Annual Injury Costs For Two-Vehicle Motorcycle Crashes 51
Accident Type Urban Collisions Rural Collisions Total
Number Total Number Total Number Total
(%) ($m) (%) ($m) (%) ($m)
Intersection
adjacent approach 26.6 22.8 20.2 3.0 26.1 25.8
Opposing
vehicles turning 20.1 20.0 13.1 2.0 17.4 22.0
Head-on 3.8 5.1 21.7 6.3 5.8 11.4
Rear-end 13.6 9.2 13.3 1.7 12.4 10.9
Lane changes 6.0 2.3 5.4 0.3 5.4 2.6
Parallel lanes
turning 6.6 4.9 8.1 1.1 6.2 6.0
U-turns 7.7 5.9 4.9 0.6 6.7 6.5
Vehicle leaving
driveway 4.0 2.8 3.0 - 3.5 2.8
Overtaking 2.2 1.0 3.5 - 2.2 1.0
Hit parked vehicle 2.7 2.4 2.2 - 2.4 2.4
Other 6.7 1.7 4.6 - 11.9 1.7
TOTAL 100.0 78.1 100.0 15.0 100.0 93.1
Nearly 80% of urban intersection two vehicle motorcycle collisions occur at signalised intersections. [52] In 75% of these crashes the motorcycle had the right of way. [53]
In these cases, it is clear that road safety measures must be directed at car drivers. Right-turn phases in traffic control installations have been shown to reduce right-turn against accidents by 44%. [54] The Committee is of the view that these measures are a potential motorcycle safety device. However, in view of the evidence before it that some car drivers react deliberately and aggressively toward motorcycles, the effects of these right-turn against signals need to be evaluated specifically for motorcycle collisions to see if any adjustment to phasing is needed to ensure motorcycles reap the same benefits as other vehicles.
There is also anecdotal evidence that two-vehicle crashes between a vehicle and a motorcycle travelling in the same direction can occur because the vehicle driver has not seen the motorcycle in the rear vision mirror. This may be caused by the so-called 'blind-spot' in vehicle rear vision mirrors. Most rear vision mirrors in use are a flat rectangular design and, depending on the seating position of the vehicle driver, reflect only a certain radius of rear vision to the driver. A motorcycle travelling in parallel but slightly to the rear of a vehicle can therefore be in the 'blind-spot' area and invisible to the driver. If the vehicle, with little warning, changes its position on the road (e.g., changing lanes) because the driver, having checked the rear vision mirror, considers it safe to do so, and there is another vehicle or motorcycle in this 'blind-spot', the likelihood of a crash increases.
Despite the evidence being anecdotal, the Committee believes the design of rear vision mirrors could be a contributing factor to some two vehicle crashes. Whilst not making a specific recommendation, the Committee considers that VicRoads should examine this issue.
The Committee supports public education programs like the 'Look Right, Look Left, Look Bike' campaign undertaken by VicRoads and the Federal Office of Road Safety in 1977 and later years. [55] These programs are targeted at the drivers who cause most multi-vehicle motorcycle collisions, rather than the motorcycle riders who come to notice as the victims of these drivers' mistakes.
In order to minimise both the incidence and cost of motorcycle crashes to the Victorian community, the following issues emerged as critical in the Committee's deliberations. These are:
The Committee recommends that: