One of the biggest factors in motorcycle accidents is motorist negligence or lack of motorist awareness.It’s important for motorists to understand that motorcycles are not like cars or trucks.Motorcyclists face peculiar challenges as they jostle for space with motorists, and it helps motorcyclists if other people on the road are more aware of these challenges.
The Motorcycle Safety Foundation has tips for motorists and truck drivers to help them look out for motorcyclists.Here’s a brief rundown of just some of those tips.
· Look out for motorcyclists especially closely at certain spots, like intersections. Because of a motorcycle’s small size, it may be easier to miss.
· A motorcycle may look much further away than it actually is.It may also be difficult for a motorist to judge a motorcyclist’s speed accurately.
· Because of the motorcycle’s narrow frame, it can easily be hidden in a motorist’s blind spots.
· Most motorcyclists aren’t speeding – it only seems like they’re riding at excessive speeds because of their thin frame.
· Survival for a motorcyclist depends on being visible to motorists.A motorcyclist often needs to adjust his position simply to be visible to motorists around him.He’s not doing this to show off or as a stunt.
· Never overestimate a motorcyclist’s power of maneuverability.A motorcyclist is definitely in a position to navigate through congested traffic better than someone in a car, but that doesn’t mean that he can always maneuver his bike to avoid an accident.
As Atlanta motorcycle accident lawyers see, most motorcycle accidents are caused because of negligent motorists, and not, as many motorists would like to believe, because of reckless motorcyclists.All it takes is awareness of motorcyclists and respect for their rights to share the road with you, to significantly reduce the number of fatalities in these accidents every year.