May is Motorcycle Awareness Month in Pa.

Motorcycles are everywhere, and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation wants drivers of other vehicles to realize that. Today they issued a press release encouraging drivers to pay attention to motorcyclists, check their blind spots for them and give motorcycles enough space on the road and not try to invade their space in a lane. PennDOT didn't mention scooters in this press release, but obviously it meant any two-wheeled, motorized, road-worthy vehicle.
The reason for the release is that the weather (supposedly) is getting warmer, and that means motorcyclists are returning to the roads in force. Well, after getting back from a warm vacation I'm disputing the "getting warmer" reason, but it's true, motorcycles are going to be on the roads more often. And because many of those motorcyclists haven't been riding all winter, they're likely to be rusty and not as responsive and practiced in maneuvering their vehicles, at least until they get their initial practice in.
PennDOT is also concerned because there are more and more people signing up for motorcycle licenses. But to get a license all you have to do is pass a written test and a road course, and as all drivers can attest, it's really not that hard, or an accurate test of what could endanger you and the road and whether you can handle it.
PennDOT said there were 12,000 more people licensed to ride motorcycles, but only 3,000 more registered motorcycles. Does that mean the rest are riding unregistered motorcycles or have they been riding without a license all this time? (You can renew your learner's permit repeatedly in Pa., which means many riders may have some experience but never been properly taught how to handle their bike.)
Problem is, and I think PennDOT recognizes this but hasn't pushed for better licensing laws like Europe's graduated permits, there are thousands of people killed while riding motorcycles in the state each year. Just this week a former volunteer firefighter was killed on a highway near me while riding his motorcycle. Police said he crashed because he was going too fast, and though he was wearing a helmet, the force of him crashing into the guide rail threw it off his head. That's pretty fast.
I don't know what his riding experience was or if something caused him to crash, but he's one of several area motorcyclists who have been killed in this area this past weekend. Half the time it seems, at least to me as I write about these accidents, the fault is the cyclist, who couldn't handle their speed going around a curve, but the other half of the time a driver is to blame for not paying attention and cutting in front of the motorcyclist. It's one of the reasons I was so nervous, and still am, about riding on the roads around here. I realize I'm a novice, but the bigger fear is other drivers.
After I posted the brief on the Web site I work on, immediately drivers complained that PennDOT wasn't saying anything about the motorcyclists needing to be more attentive. But if drivers were more attentive to what they were doing overall, instead of goofing around, talking on their cell phones, texting, or even zoning out, then at least half the people who currently lose their lives when riding motorcycles (more if you consider how this would prevent accidents between cars and cars and cars and trucks) could be saved.
Motorcycles and scooters are always going to be dangerous for inexperienced riders, and you can't prevent every accident. Sometimes the elements just work against you, but training and awareness would reduce the danger for both motorcyclists and scooter riders. That isn't going to reduce the danger. Isn't that what everyone likes about motorcycle riding the danger. It's what makes it "bad." But that is turning out to bad for a lot of people who don't know what they are getting into.

Photo by Marc C. Psoras of the Lansdale Reporter