Over at Ride It Right, the British Motorcyclists Federation (BMF) in Northern Ireland have become involved with other Organisations – Agencies – Motorcycle Clubs and the Motorcycle Community to work together in cooperation to bring together “Ride It Right”.
Ride It Right is the only initiative in Northern Ireland that focuses specifically through a partnership of organizations that have the same common goal – to reduce motorcycle casualties.
The motorcycle community is diverse and has a range of ages with various riding skills and experience, these motorcyclists own different types and styles of bikes. They include:
- Younger motorcyclists who do not have the necessary skills or experience regarding how their motorcycle handles, nor understand the risks on the road.
- Riders who consider that they have the necessary skills and experience but have not taken any further formal assessment or post test training since passing their test.
- Individual riders and/or groups of motorcyclists, who are considered “high risk takers” of whatever age, riding skill or experience.
- Other road users such as car drivers who may not be aware of the risk of collision with motorcyclists due to factors such as “inattentional blindness”, distraction, or faulty judgement at intersections. Raising awareness of motorcycles to these potential customers would be beneficial for a greater reduction of motorcycle casualties, as collisions with other vehicles represents approximately 50% of motorcycle casualties.
Howard Anderson, BMF Northern Ireland, said, ” The bmf Northern Ireland are delighted to be part of the road safety initiative at Ride It Right to promote responsible motorcycling in order to reduce motorcycle casualties and to make other vehicle drivers motorcycle aware.”
Ride It Right recently received a development award from UnLtd, the Road Safety Challenge programme, funded by the Department of the Environment (DOE).
Ride It Right is looking forward for 2011 to promote the initiative across Northern Ireland, with the involvement of all those interested in road safety.
Link to the bmf website – www.bmf.co.uk
Link to the Ride It Right website – www.rideitright.org
Speak Your Mind