Motorcyclists need better protection - Thomas Mitchell

The number of motorcyclists killed on Scotland’s roads is increasing. In 2020, deaths soared from 16 to 30. Serious injuries among motorcyclists also increased from 241 to 277 in 2021 with total casualties, including minor injuries, up eight per cent to 455. This increase came despite a fall in casualty numbers across other groups of road users. Pleasingly, figures released by Transport Scotland last year showed the total number of casualties across all road users had fallen by 0.5 per cent between 2020 and 2021 (5,047 to 5,023), the lowest number since annual records began in 1950.

Any death on Scotland’s roads is one death too many, but why are motorcyclists being left behind? The answer isn’t as obvious as you may think.

Unlike car drivers, cocooned in two tonnes of metal to help take the sting out of an impact, a motorcyclist has a helmet and luck. Motorcyclists make up only one per cent of all traffic in Scotland and yet account for 17 per cent of all road deaths.

Any message on motorcyclist safety from Police Scotland always relates to speed. A united front from Road Safety Scotland, Police Scotland and the Scottish Government seems intent on labelling motorcyclists the “bad boys” of the road.

Motorcyclists make up only one per cent of all traffic in Scotland and yet account for 17 per cent of all road deaths

In my experience representing the families of motorcyclists killed on Scotland’s roads, very rarely is speed the singular cause of an incident. If anything, speed is, at most, a contributory factor. Even then, I wouldn’t describe it as common.

Nevertheless, action is required to address motorcyclist safety. The question is what action? Some answers to this question have been suggested by Caroline Hood, a Lecturer in Sociology at Robert Gordon University who wrote a very interesting research paper about motorcycle safety in September 2021. Motorcycle Safety Strategies in North East Scotland was funded by the Transport Scotland Road Safety Framework Fund, and made nine key recommendations for improving safety for motorcyclists:

Motorcycle trained officers from the Road Policing Division should be prioritised for participation in engagement strategies with motorcyclists. ‘Stop and blether’ engagement initiatives such as roadshows that involve civilian participants alongside motorcycle trained officers from the Road Policing Division would allow shared experience of motorcycles and motorcycling and introduce the topic of road safety to promote further training opportunities. A more nuanced approach should be adopted to communicate the purpose of road safety initiatives, prioritising engagement, and education over enforcement. Establish road safety initiatives which seek to expand education to other road users to raise awareness and understanding of motorcycles and promote responsible sharing of road space. Introduce initiatives that build on motorcyclists’ lived experiences of riding, and seek to develop riders’ skills and improve riders’ roadcraft, are favoured over risk-based or enforcement-based campaigns. Raise awareness within Local authorities of the unique hazards that engineering and road surface conditions can present to motorcyclists so that appropriate mitigating measures can be taken. Initiatives such as Rider Refinement North should form the basis for future campaigns promoting motorcycle safety in North East Scotland. Emphasising the benefits of further training to motorcyclists focusing on the practical benefits of motorcycle training, rather than solely focused on risk reduction and overt road safety messages. Investigate the potential for initiatives such as Rider Refinement North to be offered as an alternative to prosecution for motorcyclists reported to the COPFS in connection with certain road traffic offences.

The message from the recommendations is crystal clear; education over enforcement. The long arm of the law should be a guiding hand, helping to educate motorcyclists and equip them with the tools they need to stay safe. Instead, Police Scotland have pursued prosecutions of motorcyclists, some of whom have sustained life-changing injuries following their collisions. Last summer, I encountered numerous cases where the Police appeared to adopt a policy of charging first, asking questions later. These cases have eventually fallen apart as it has become clear there was indeed no evidence to support the allegations.

Thomas Mitchell is an Associate, Motorcycle Law Scotland

In truth, thanks to Miss Hood, we have several recommendations which could be implemented to hopefully reduce the number of motorcyclists killed - but the powers-that-be have failed to implement these and bizarrely appear to be doing exactly the opposite of the recommendations. No wonder fatality numbers are rising.

Thomas Mitchell is an Associate, Motorcycle Law Scotland