Be on the Defense When Driving Around Motorcyclists

During the summer tons of people choose to commute using their motorcycles. When using their regular vehicles, it costs more in gas and time. During the spring, summer, and fall when it’s not too cold to travel via a motorcycle, they are the best choices for saving money on gas. For other vehicles on the road, a motorcycle is loud as it comes rushing by their vehicles. It may even startle other drivers from the noise of the motorcycle. Motorcyclists are simply at more risk of injury.

For the other vehicles on the road, seeing a motorcycle can bring on fear. Fear of getting too close, of hitting the person on the bike, or even causing a fatality. Motorcyclists are very easy to miss if they appear in your blind spot. There are a few things to remember when you are coming up on a motorcycle or see one coming up behind you.

• Use the rearview and side mirrors. When a motorcycle is behind you, keeping it in your rearview and side mirrors to help locate his position at all times is ideal. This can be the difference between switching lanes and hitting a motorcyclist or being able to gauge what your next move is to avoid any type of accident.
• Always use the left lane to pass a motorcycle. Bikers normally stick to their outside lanes and only use the left lane when passing another vehicle. For this reason, you should never pass a motorcycle using the right lane. It’s difficult to tell if he is going to plan a lane change and maneuver into the outside lane.
• Allow enough space to fit two cars in between you and the motorcycle. This also works for other vehicles as well. This can prevent the motorcycle from making an abrupt decision that causes you to quickly maneuver. With enough space to fit two cars in between the motorcycle and your vehicle you have enough time to react to anything that the motorcyclists chooses to do in a sudden manner.
• It is dangerous to cut off another vehicle and that danger increases when it’s a motorcycle. Due to the size and velocity of a motorcycle, making abrupt changes in course or speed can cause the rider to lose control of the bike and could end in a fatality.
• Be calm when interacting with motorcyclists and other vehicles. Although a motorcycle might scare you while its zooming by, motorcycle accidents can be avoided. When there are a higher number of riders on the roads, mainly in the spring and summer months, there will be an increase in fear and stress while driving on the road. By following the above tips and remembering that they are at higher risk of danger than anyone in a car or truck, the number of motorcycle accidents will decrease.