Motorcyclists are at risk on Colorado roads, and local police hope to reduce the number of accidents involving motorcycles by raising awareness among other motorists. Recent fatal motorcycle accidents helped fuel authorities to take action. One of the biggest risks motorcyclists face — drivers of larger motor vehicles — is not something that they can control.
An officer who heads up the traffic section for his department reiterated the risk that other drivers pose to motorcycle riders. He mostly chalked this risk up to distracted drivers specifically. Drivers who are looking at their phones or messing with their radio usually fail to notice motorcycles on the roads. Even having children in a car can make a driver much less likely to see a motorcycle rider.
Vehicles turning left in front of motorcycles is one of the most common causes of accidents. A wreck in Aug. 2016 ended in the death of a 22-year-old man when a car failed to noticed the motorcycle he was riding and turned left in front of him. Two other people were killed in Sept. 2016 when they struck a minivan that turned left in front of them. The day after that wreck, a 52-year-old man died because yet another vehicle did not notice an oncoming motorcycle and turned left in front of him.
Since Jan. 2016, 87 people have been killed in motorcycle accidents on Colorado roads. For many, wrecks are not a matter of protective gear or safe practices, it is other drivers on the road who fail to watch out for motorcyclists. Nothing can ever bring back a loved one, but families who have lost someone in a motorcycle wreck often turn to wrongful death suits that, when navigated successfully, can address damages and costs related to the accident.
Source: aurorasentinel.com, “Authorities, experts offer tips on motorcycle safety after string of Aurora fatalities“, Brandon Johansson, Sept. 15, 2016
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