TOLEDO, Ohio — After a cold winter, motorcyclists across Ohio are finally bringing their bikes back out, but more riders on the roads again, means more risks.
“It’s just so many things that go into motorcyclists being injured or hurt in crashes in circumstances they can’t control,” said Lieutenant Jonathon Gray, the Van Wert Post Commander for the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month but officials ask drivers and motorcycle riders to be cautious year round.
Since January 2020, there have already been nearly 2,000 motorcycle crashes across the state.
“I think a lot more people want to get out and that includes our riders. If we’ve already had 1,900 crashes – that’s really a high number already,” said Jamie Blazevich, the Lucas County Traffic Safety Coordinator.
Locally, there have been more than a dozen accidents in Lucas County this year, but there are ways to avoid accidents to keep the numbers low for the rest of 2020.
“Always ride properly endorsed. If you’re endorsed, that means that you’ve taken the steps to take the test, pass the maneuverability portions of the driving test through the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, as well as riding trained,” explained Lieutenant Gray.
With more people in quarantine, there are less people on the roads. OSHP says speeding has increased.
“As we’re on our roadways with less congestion, we’ve got the lead foot syndrome, so we tend to see higher speeds on the roadways right now, so this is a perfect time to remind our riders and drivers to obey the speed limit,” Blazevich said.
Using a blinker, maintaining a safe bumper-to-bumper distance, and checking blind spots are also critical in saving lives.
“Got to look for them at intersections, anytime your changing lanes, and making those turns, make sure you’re not looking past the motorcycle, because the motorcycle is such a much smaller vehicle, only one headlight, things like that, sometimes people miss those,” Lieutenant Gray advised.
Helmets aren’t required for most bikers in Ohio, but wearing one can be life changing.
“In those crashes that could be relatively minor crashes, if you fall off the motorcycle and your head strikes the pavement, that could be a very serious injury, where if you have a helmet on, that could help prevent that injury,” Lieutenant Gray explained.
Troopers also encourage riders to drive with their headlights on, no matter the time of day.
Both drivers and riders should always drive sober.
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Source: NBC24 News