Antigo Times

Top Menu

  • E-Editions
  • Contact Us

Main Menu

  • News
    • Business
  • Covid 19
  • Opinion
  • Courts
  • Arts & Ent
  • Sports
    • Sports News
    • High School Sports Scores
  • Classifieds
    • View Ads
    • Place Ads
  • Legal Ads
    • Our Legals
    • Statewide
  • Obits
  • Video
  • Best of 2022
  • E-Editions
  • Contact Us

logo

Antigo Times

  • News
    • Business
  • Covid 19
  • Opinion
  • Courts
  • Arts & Ent
  • Sports
    • Sports News
    • High School Sports Scores
  • Classifieds
    • View Ads
    • Place Ads
  • Legal Ads
    • Our Legals
    • Statewide
  • Obits
  • Video
  • Best of 2022
News
Home›News›May is National Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month

May is National Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month

By Antigo Times
April 30, 2015
1188
0

Drivers urged to share the road, riders urged to get licensed

More than a half million Wisconsin residents have a motorcycle license or permit, and many of them have already started this year’s riding season. As motorcycles continue to grow in popularity among men and women of all ages, safety is a constant concern. Last year, 73 motorcycle riders and passengers died in Wisconsin traffic crashes.

“May is National Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, which is an opportunity to remind drivers to share the road and watch for motorcycles, especially at intersections and while making turns and lane changes,” says Greg Patzer, manager of the Wisconsin Motorcycle Safety Program (WMSP). “Drivers can easily misjudge the speed and distance of an approaching motorcycle because of its smaller dimensions. To prevent crashes, drivers should check the position of a motorcycle at least two or three times before they proceed through an intersection or make a turn.”

To protect themselves and others on the road, motorcyclists are legally required to have a motorcycle endorsement on their driver license. Nearly 42 percent of motorcyclists’ fatalities in 2013 involved riders who had not completed the safety training or skills test required to obtain a motorcycle endorsement on their license.

“Too many people have been riding for years without a valid motorcycle endorsement on their driver license,” Patzer says. “It’s a serious problem especially for those who have not ridden a motorcycle for several years and are beginning to ride again. Members of the motorcycling community are aging, and the average age of a motorcyclist involved in a fatal crash increased from 30 years old in 1992 to 48 in 2012.”

Motorcyclists can obtain their motorcycle endorsement in two ways:

  • Pass a written test and a road test at a DMV service center.
  • Successfully complete an eligible rider education course that waives the requirement for the DMV road test. More information about rider education courses—from beginner to advanced—is available online at www.dot.wisconsin.gov/safety/vehicle/motorcycle.

To help promote rider education, the WMSP is teaming up with ABATE of Wisconsin, a motorcycle riders’ advocacy group, to distribute hang-tags that dealers can display on their motorcycles in showrooms urging riders to get endorsed.

In addition, the WMSP will use radio and TV public service announcements, billboards and social media to remind motorcycle riders and drivers to share the road. Electronic message signs on major highways this riding season will urge motorists to look twice for motorcycles.

Patzer emphasizes that motorcyclists need to make responsible decisions to reduce their risks of serious or fatal injuries. “Motorcyclists must obey all traffic laws, such as speed limits, and never ride while impaired. They should always wear protective and conspicuous clothing and gear, including a helmet that meets or exceeds US DOT standards. Tragically, approximately two out of three motorcyclists who died in crashes from 2009 to 2013 were not wearing helmets.

Patzer concludes, “Now more than ever, we need well-trained and responsible motorcycle riders along with motorists who share the road and look twice for motorcycles to help reach the goal of reducing the number of preventable traffic deaths to Zero In Wisconsin.”

 

Previous Article

Langlade County Healthy Ways: Guide to Workout ...

Next Article

Chamber holds ribbon cutting for Drew Lundt ...

Related articles More from author

  • News

    Mattoon Market Stocking Giveaway a Success

    December 12, 2014
    By Dan Turczynski, Editor
  • BusinessNews

    2014 North Woods Women in Business Week Winner Announced

    December 16, 2014
    By Dan Turczynski, Editor
  • News

    Langlade County Board Welcomes New Veterans Service Officer

    December 18, 2014
    By Dan Turczynski, Editor
  • News

    Famous Saved by the Bell actor arrested in Wisconsin

    December 26, 2014
    By Dan Turczynski, Editor
  • NewsSports

    Northern Snowmobile Trails to open in Langlade County on 12/31

    December 30, 2014
    By Dan Turczynski, Editor
  • BusinessHealth

    Health Insurance Coverage: A Message from the USDA

    January 5, 2015
    By Dan Turczynski, Editor
Copyright © 2020 Multi Media Channels LLC.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied, modified or adapted without the prior written consent of Multi Media Channels LLC.
×