THE AIM/NCOM MOTORCYCLE E-NEWS SERVICE is brought to you by Aid to Injured Motorcyclists (A.I.M.) and the National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM), and is sponsored by the Law Offices of Richard M. Lester. If you’ve been involved in any kind of accident, call us at 1-(800) ON-A-BIKE or visit www.ON-A-BIKE.com.
NCOM BIKER NEWSBYTES
Compiled & Edited by Bill Bish,
National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM)
FEDERAL AGENCY SEEKS ANTI-LOCK BRAKES ON NEW MOTORCYCLES IN THE U.S.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recommended that all new motorcycles built for road use in the U.S. have anti-lock brakes and electronic stability control as standard equipment. The federal safety agency says that ABS has been required on passenger cars since 2000, and electronic stability control has been required since the 2012 model year, but the technology has lagged for motorcycles and requiring it would save lives.
The NTSB voted unanimously 5-0 during their September 11 open board meeting to make the recommendations to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which has authority to impose regulations.
NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt said that the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) determined that anti-lock brakes could reduce motorcycle fatalities by 31%. “That is a sizeable safety benefit that the U.S. is leaving on the table, leaving on the pavement, actually,” he told the Associated Press (AP).
Eric Emery, the NTSB’s Safety Research Division chief, said anti-lock brakes would allow riders to use maximum braking force without fear of the wheels locking up and skidding, improving the chances of keeping control of bikes in an emergency.
Anti-lock brakes are currently standard on 8.9% of U.S. motorcycles and are optional on 13.3%. Anti-lock brakes were required in Europe starting in 2016 on motorcycles with engines larger than 125 CC, agency officials said. Other countries are discussing or requiring it, including Australia, Japan, China and Brazil.
NTSB ISSUES NEW RECOMMENDATIONS TO “IMPROVE MOTORCYCLE SAFETY”
Safety issues surrounding the causes of motorcycle crashes, and the prevention of crashes through better integration of motorcycles in crash warning and prevention systems and the use of advanced braking and stability control systems, were the subject of a National Transportation Safety Board meeting conducted Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018 in Washington, D.C.
During the public hearing, staff from the Office of Research and Engineering and the Office of Highway Safety presented findings and recommendations from the “2016 Motorcycle Crash Causation Study” on select risk factors associated with the causes of motorcycle crashes, which were adopted unanimously by the five-member board.
Among 10 recommendations included in the report, “Select Risk Factors Associated with Causes of Motorcycle Crashes,” are calls for all new on-road motorcycles sold in the United States to be equipped with antilock braking systems and that the federal government establish performance standards for electronic stability control on motorcycles sold in the U.S.
Additionally, the report recommends that motorcycles be fully incorporated in the development of technology for on-board crash prevention and vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure systems.
It also calls for further study and strategies regarding alcohol and drug use on rider crash risk, and to evaluate the effectiveness of motorcycle licensing procedures.
The NTSB does not typically investigate motorcycle crashes, but it conducted a motorcycle safety forum in 2006 and issued recommendations as a result. It has been more than 10 years since the NTSB has issued new recommendations “to help reduce motorcycle crashes and improve safety.”
ENDING CARB
The Trump Administration has announced plans to revoke a special waiver that currently allows California to regulate vehicle tailpipe emissions differently than what the federal government mandates, which would eliminate California’s more stringent greenhouse gas standards imposed under CARB (California Air Resources Board).
CARB’s stricter smog standards have been adopted in thirteen states and the District of Columbia, representing nearly 40% of the nation’s new vehicle sales.
SIKH HELMET EXEMPTION GRANTED IN ONTARIO ON RELIGIOUS GROUNDS
This winter, Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation says Sikh riders will be exempt from the province’s mandatory motorcycle helmet law due to the wearing of turbans. The possibility of an exemption has been a contentious topic for years throughout Canada, with some arguing that it would pose a safety risk, but now Premier Doug Ford says he will make the change in recognition of Sikh motorcycle riders’ civil rights and religious expression.
The change, if it goes forward, will see the province of Ontario fall in line with Alberta, British Columbia and Manitoba, where exemptions are already in place. Helmet exemptions in other provinces have also proven to be controversial, with safety being a sticking point for some.
In Alberta, the exemption went into effect April 12, and the insurance industry is taking a wait-and-see approach to the exemption, with insurance providers unsure if the new risks would translate to higher insurance premiums for Albertans.
EUROPEAN MOTORCYCLE SALES ON THE RISE
As a tariff-burdened American motorcycle industry struggles, the European market boasted a 7.2% growth in nearly all its two-wheeled sectors in the first half of this year.
In an industry that supports 156,000 employees throughout Europe, it’s good news that the overall two-wheeled sector continues to gain traction. Within the first 6 months of 2018, new motorcycle ownership across Europe increased by almost 42,000 over the same period in 2017– from 526,889 to 564,851.
Antonio Perlot, Secretary General of the European motorcycle industry association ACEM, said: “Our latest registration figures for the EU show, once again, the importance of two- and three-wheeled vehicles as a solution to the mobility needs of people, particularly in large urban areas that suffer from congestion problems.”
“The latest increase in sales, particularly in the motorcycle segment, is a very positive development. Newer and more environmentally friendly vehicles are being added to the European vehicle fleet, which according to our estimations is now close to 36 million units.”
SELF-RIDING MOTORCYCLES BEING DEVELOPED
BMW Motorrad recently demonstrated a completely autonomous motorcycle at their testing facility in the south of France, when an R-1200 GS independently drove off, accelerated, circled a winding test track and automatically slowed down to a stop, dropping neatly onto its kickstand.
BMW says it is “by no means aiming for a completely independent motorbike,” but the technology is being developed to further improve safety systems, especially those around riding dynamics – how a bike behaves in certain situations on the road and how it can help the rider in an emergency situation,” according to a Motorrad spokesperson.
The autonomous bike is also a testbed for V2V (Vehicle-to-Vehicle) communication and digital networking.
So in the future, when your Smart Bike is plugged into the sensors and networked information sources that will be here soon, it will be able to step in and prevent a much wider range of accidents…with data from a self-driving car in a blind turn ahead of you, your bike will ‘know’ that a possible impact is ahead and warn you to take action.
Plus, a very advanced set of safety algorithms may be able to step in when riders make errors of their own — like panic-braking mid-curve or not leaning over enough to get round a tight corner. If your bike knows exactly where it is, what’s around it, and what it’s doing, it can predict a situation and take over — leaning the bike farther, reducing engine torque, applying some rear brake, etc.
So why are BMW and other bike firms working on smart, autonomous, self-riding ‘robot bikes’?
Because self-driving cars and smart highways are coming — sooner than you think, and whether we like it or not — and there’s currently little regard being paid to the needs of motorcycling, and how it will fit into the infrastructure of the future; so if the manufacturers don’t provide an answer to ‘how will bikes become safer and work with other autonomous vehicles’, no-one else will.
FEMALE BIKERS UNITE IN WORLDWIDE RELAY
As the name implies, the Women Riders World Relay aims to unite lady bikers with one aim; passing a baton around the world on two wheels, across even the most remote of locations.
WRWR, as it’s now known, was formed at the end of August by Hayley Bell from Warrington, England, in an attempt to wake the motorcycling industry up to the sheer number of female riders on the road. “I want to unite women riders globally, do something that’s never been done before, and to show the industry the force behind the market that is so blindly overlooked,” the 27-year old said.
Hayley set up the WRWR Facebook page just weeks ago and has already gathered more than 5,700 members, from as far afield as Pakistan, Bangladesh and South Africa. Australia is by far the most heavily represented country on the page, followed by the U.K.
Hayley aims to have got at least 17,000 women bikers on board by December 2018, with a plan to launch the world relay in Spring 2019.
BATTERY BUYERS IN ENGLAND COULD FACE CHARGES
Laws in the U.K. regarding motorcycle batteries have changed to help counter terrorism. A new law states that anyone purchasing a dry motorcycle battery with a separate acid pack will now require a valid Explosives, Precursors and Poisons (EPP) license.
The ruling, effective July 1, 2018, means that anyone purchasing a battery of this kind without the correct license could be charged with a criminal offence and comes as part of a larger British counter terrorism initiative. Battery acid packs contain sulfuric acid, which could be used as a precursor to the production of explosives.
The change in the law is expected to have huge implications for the motorcycle battery market, with many retailers already deciding to end the sale of dry batteries in their stores and online.
NCOM BOARD MEETING AND REGION V SEMINAR
The Board of Directors of the National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM) will meet on November 10, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee, in conjunction with the Region V Meeting of NCOM Member Groups from Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee (NCOM Region V).
Following the conclusion of NCOM business in an open board meeting, attendees will gather from throughout the Southeastern region to discuss motorcycling matters unique to or occurring in their states.
This is a FREE event and all motorcyclists are invited to attend on Saturday, Nov 10, 10am-6pm at the Radisson Hotel Nashville Airport, 1112 Airport Center drive, Nashville TN 37214 tel:615-889-9090, or contact NCOM at (800) ON-A-BIKE for additional information.
RIDER BUSTED AFTER COPS VIEW 120MPH FOOTAGE ON SEIZED HELMET-CAM
He came to police attention after rear-ending a taxi in Southampton, England, leaving his female passenger with minor injuries. Officers seized his helmet-mounted GoPro as part of their investigation into dangerous driving charges; on which they found footage of him riding at 120mph along a major highway just four days earlier, as well as 105mph on another busy thoroughfare.
The footage was shown during a two-day trial, and the 19-year old motorcyclist was found guilty of two counts of dangerous driving and sentenced to 50 hours of unpaid community service, and he was also disqualified from driving for 15 months, after which he will have to pass an extended re-test before he is allowed back on the road.
~ John Stuart Mill (1806-1873), philosopher and economist
–Photos and images from the Bob T. collection–
