By WHITNEE ICE
St Joseph Post
Motorcycle deaths have increased compared to this time last year according to state wide statistics.
Missouri Highway Patrol Troop H Spokesperson Jake Angle says they often look at the common factors when crashes occur.
“Fail to drive within their lane, speed is a contributing factor in a lot of traffic crashes, and also drug and alcohol impairment is a big factor when we talk about traffic crashes as well,” Angle tells St. Joseph Post.
Angle says motorcycles are a much smaller vehicle out on the roadway, making them less visible.
“Much easier for people to lose in their blind spots, not as visible as you know a full-size vehicle such as a car or a pick-up truck something like that so right there you know that can make them a little bit more difficult to see when you’re driving down the road when like when you’re making lane changes or if they’re making lane changes, things like that,” says Angle.
Angle says traffic safety is a two-way street, no pun intended.
“it’s dependent on the driver of those motorcycles to make sure that they are as visible as they can possibly be, wearing more visible clothing, maybe having their headlight on. Some motorcycles, the head light flashes as they go down the road to make them more visible. Just things like that, also motorcycle drivers giving vehicles a wider berth,” says Angle.
The Missouri Department of Transportation says during the first half of the year there were more than 450 people that lost their lives in a traffic accident on Missouri roadways. Comparing the first half of the year in 2020 with two riders killed to this year with 6 being killed, there has been a 33% increase in unhelmeted motorcycle riders killed in crashes following the Missouri helmet law being lifted.