Motorcycle Awareness for Car Drivers

The Motorcycle Safety Foundation reaches out to car drivers to enhance traffic safety and keep the roads safe from many accidents every year. They are the people who know the many challenges surrounding motorcycling the best and know the ins and outs of interacting safely with motorcyclists. These safety tips are important whether you’re a manager of a large company, somebody who drives truck for a living, or one of the many concerned car drivers. The mission of the Motorcycle Safety Foundation? Make motorcycling safer and more enjoyable by ensuring access to lifelong quality education and training for current and prospective riders.

Facts For Car & Truck Drivers
There are some things that all car and truck drivers should keep in mind when they are sharing the roads with motorcyclists. These include:

• Over half of all fatal motorcycle crashes involve another vehicle and the motorist is typically at fault.
• Motorcycles are easily hidden due to their small size.
• Motorcycles may look further away than they are due to their size.
• Car and truck drivers should always allow more following distance, as in about 3 or 4 seconds due to the fact that motorcyclists will often slow down by downshifting.
• Make sure that a motorcycle’s signal is for real and not just a forgotten signal from when they made a previous lane change.

SEE Strategy
The Motorcycle Safety Foundation also promotes a three-part process with the acronym SEE, which stands for Search, Evaluate, and Execute. They understand that operators of motor vehicles require visual, cognitive, and motor skills.

• Search: On a visual side, this means to actively scan and identify factors that could create increased risks.
• Evaluate: This is a cognitive requirement that means to consider potential problems arising from the interaction of certain factors.
• Execute: This refers to the physical motor skills used to prevent or avoid the resulting hazards.

So, why use SEE? SEE is an easy-to-remember acronym that will be placed as a reminder in the minds of many people. It is also relevant to the driving and riding tasks in and of themselves. The SEE process is also limitless in some aspects. For instance, it is not only applicable to the operation of any type of motor vehicle, but can work equally as well as a risk-management strategy for bicyclists or even pedestrians that are interacting within a motor vehicle environment. The Motorcycle Safety Foundation believes that this process’ simplicity and effectiveness may prove to be as beneficial in reducing traffic collisions as other strategies that it complements.

Key Messages for Drivers

What messages does the Motorcycle Safety Foundation have for others sharing the roadways? Here are some messages that are centered toward protecting motorcyclists, a vulnerable party:

• Use your eyes and mirrors to look for motorcyclists and pay attention to what is around you at all times. Also remember to check the blind spots when you’re changing lanes or turning at intersections.
• Focus on driving by hanging up your phone, putting down your MP3 player, and settling accompanying passengers.
• Signal your intentions for everyone’s safety by using your turn signals all the time.
• Take your time and remember: Nothing is important as the safety of your loved ones and the lives of those who you share the road with.