North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month
Here in North Carolina, we just concluded North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month (May) as promulgated by Governor Roy Cooper. Here is what the North Carolina Department of Transportation set out in its May 1, 2018, news release regarding Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month:
Vehicle drivers can unintentionally become huge dangers to a motorcyclist’s safety,….Motorists need to pay more attention to their surroundings and drive more safely when motorcyclists are on the road with them.
This sentence in the NCDOT News Release really says it all. When any of us are in our cars or trucks, we need to pay more attention to our surroundings. I particularly like the Concerned Bikers Association (CBA) accident prevention campaign slogan of “Look Twice Save a Life.” In other words, if you are in your car or your truck (or, yes, even on your motorcycle), look twice, not just once, before you pull out into the road from a stop sign/side street/parking lot/driveway, etc., and also look twice before you make that left hand turn across e oncoming lanes of travel. It only takes a second or two for that one extra look to make sure “the coast is clear and that extra look could make all the difference in the world.
North Carolina Governor Cooper Proclamation
Here is Governor Cooper’s entire proclamation:
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has declared that May is North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month.
WHEREAS, the safety and security of the people of North Carolina are vitally important; and
WHEREAS, motorcycle riding is a popular form of recreation and transportation for thousands of people in our state; and
WHEREAS, according to the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles, our state has 188,571 registered motorcycles; and
WHEREAS, the month of May is traditionally the time that the number of motorcycles on roadways increases, and
WHEREAS, in 2017, there were 3,600 motorcycle-related crashes that resulted in 592 people being seriously injured and 141 fatalities; and
WHEREAS, the safe operation of a motorcycle is enhanced through a combination of rider education and training, experience, good judgment, knowledge of traffic laws and licensing requirements, and the use of highly visible safety gear, including a compliant helmet; and
WHEREAS, the North Carolina Governor’s Highway Safety Program and its initiative, BikeSafe North Carolina, join the North Carolina Motorcycle Safety Education Program and other interested organizations in promoting motorcycle safety and awareness, and encouraging all motor vehicle operators to join in the effort to keep our highways safe.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, ROY COOPER, Governor of State of North Carolina, do hereby proclaim May 2018 as “MOTORCYCLE SAFETY AWARENESS MONTH” in North Carolina and commend its observance to all citizens.
Gary Poole – North Carolina Motorcycle Accident Attorney “On the Side of Those Who Ride”