With around 80% of all motorcycle collisions leading to injuries or death, it’s important to do all you can to be safe when you ride. Wearing the right gear, brightening up your attire and using light can all help you avoid a crash.
One common method riders use to make themselves more apparent is to make their motorcycles louder. Does this help, though?
Louder motorcycles might be safer, or they might not
There is no specific set of data that shows if riding a louder motorcycle is safer, but proponents of riding louder motorcycles claim that it is safer to do so thanks to making themselves more obvious to other drivers.
Those who don’t care for louder motorcycles state that they don’t think it helps, because it can be hard to hear where the motorcyclist is coming from. Even with a louder motorcycle, there is still a risk of not being seen.
This is a current and common debate in the motorcycling community. It makes sense that a louder motorcycle may be more obvious, but with noise pollution, it could be harder to hear where they are. This is reflected in the statistics from 2018 in which it was found that 5,115 motorcyclists were killed, many of which may have involved riders in the right gear or using a louder approach.
If the volume of the motorcycle doesn’t matter, what does?
A combination of things will make a motorcyclist safer, such as riding on roads where there is less traffic, choosing a brighter motorcycle and gear that stands out, having a horn or noise to let others know about their presence and driving defensively.
As a motorcyclist, you should know that just making your motorcycle louder isn’t likely to make a big difference in your safety level. However, a combination of safety techniques could, so that might be something to look into.
If you are hit, the driver who is responsible for the motor vehicle crash may be held liable. Look into your legal options, so you can be fairly compensated for what you’ve been through and afford the medical care and time off that you need.