Riverside police to focus on dangerous motorcycle riders

News headline from the Riverside Police Department:

The Riverside Police Department will be conducting a specialized Motorcycle Safety Enforcement Operation on August 21. Extra officers will be on duty patrolling areas frequented by motorcyclists and where crashes occur. Officers will be cracking down on traffic violations made by motorcyclists as well as other vehicle drivers that can lead to motorcycle collisions, injuries and fatalities.

Motorcycle fatalities have been on the rise in California, increasing 175 percent in the last decade, from 204 killed in 1998 to 560 killed in 2008. Riverside County is not immune to motorcycle fatalities! In a five year span from 2004 to 2008, Riverside County accrued a total of 142 fatalities and 2,520 injuries from motorcycle crashes.

Many people are riding motorcycles without the proper motorcycle license endorsement and without the skills necessary to ride safely. In 2008, 37% of motorcycle operators killed were not properly licensed. Improper licensing is a greater problem among younger riders, where 63% of the 16-24 year old operators killed were not properly licensed. Riders, young and old, are encouraged to seek training and safety information.

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