Staff
At the end of an especially long winter, the warm weather is finally arriving and the Grey County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) expects to see motorcycle enthusiasts taking advantage.
All drivers must share the roadway and drive courteously to avoid potentially dangerous incidents. The following tips are offered to help avoid colliding with a motorcycle:
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Be sure that you are safe to proceed before doing so; check your mirrors and all around your car
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Over 1/3 of all crashes with motorcycles are intersection related. Slow down as you come to an intersection and look carefully for traffic, traffic control signals, cyclists, pedestrians.
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Be extra cautious when turning left in front of a motorcycle. It’s difficult to judge their speed and the turn signal may unintentionally be on as some models don’t shut off automatically.
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Watch for signs, such as shoulder checking or leaning, that indicate the rider is going to change lanes.
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A motorcycle is more difficult to see than other vehicles and its profile is smaller from most angles.
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Drivers can easily misjudge a motorcycle’s speed or distance.
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Make sure you don’t pull out in front of, or cut off, a motorcycle.
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Speed and other aggressive tactics such as tailgating can be more dangerous to the motorcyclist who has less protection on a smaller open vehicle.
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Give other drivers space to change lanes, avoid cutting them off, signal your turns and lane changes properly.
Respect motorcycle riders; they are just as entitled to use the road as you are. Aggressive or unsafe drivers need to be reported to police.
