TxDOT: Share the Road: Look Twice for Motorcycles Campaign
Even though there was less traffic on the roads in 2020, Texas Department of Transportation Safety Officials say there was a 17% increase in Texas motorcycle fatalities compared to 2019.
TxDOT is kicking off the annual Share the Road: Look Twice for Motorcycles campaign in honor of May being National Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month.
In 2020, 54% of Texas motorcycle fatalities occurred in an urban area with 46% in a rural area.
Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio and Arlington made the top 5 with Amarillo coming in at #10.
In 2020, the number of motorcycle traffic crashes in the Amarillo District totaled 134. These crashes resulted in seven motorcyclist, operators and passengers, deaths and 40 motorcyclists being seriously injured.
In just the city of Amarillo, the number of motorcycle traffic crashes totaled 100. These crashes resulted in four motorcyclist, operators and passengers, deaths and 31 motorcyclists being seriously injured.
TxDOT has these safety tips for drivers to protect motorcyclists and prevent crashes:
- Take extra care when making a left turn. It’s safest to let the motorcycle pass to avoid turning in front of the rider.
- Pay special attention at intersections. Nearly one in three motorcycle fatalities happens at a roadway intersection.
- Give driving your full attention. Even a momentary distraction, like answering a phone call or changing the radio station, can have deadly consequences.
- Look twice when changing lanes. Check mirrors and check blind spots and always use turn signals.
- Give motorcyclists room when passing them. Move over to the passing lane and don’t crowd the motorcyclist’s full lane.
- Stay back. If you’re behind a motorcycle, always maintain a safe following distance. When a motorcyclist downshifts instead of applying the brake to slow down, it can catch drivers off guard since there are no brake lights to signal reduced speed.
- Slow down. Obey posted speed limits and drive to conditions.
