In 2016 there were 248 motorcyclist fatalities (240 riders and 8 million passengers), up 22.2 per cent on 2015. This was almost one in five road deaths. In 2016 motorcyclist deaths increased in Victoria, Western Australia and Queensland, and decreased or stayed constant in other jurisdictions. The 2016 total represents an increase of 7.4 per cent on the National Road Safety Strategy base period (2008-2010). Exposure has increased significantly over the last ten years, with motorcycle registrations increasing by approximately 5 per cent per year and estimated kilometres travelled up by 4 per cent per year. While the number of motorcyclist fatalities today is similar to ten years ago, increased exposure (particularly for riders over 25) means that fatality rates have decreased by 40 per cent. In 2012 the fatality rate per kilometre for riders aged 15-24 remained substantially above other age groups. Most motorcyclist deaths (93 per cent) are male. Over the last 10 years the age profile for deaths has changed significantly: Young riders (17-25) now comprise approximately one in five motorcyclist deaths, down from one in four deaths. In 2016 less than half of motorcyclist fatalities were aged under 40 years, down from approximately two thirds in 2007. Ten years ago, the average age of a fatally injured motorcyclist was 36. Today it is 40. In terms of hospitalised injury, motorcyclists accounted for just under 1 in 4 and passenger car vehicle occupants just under 1 in 2 cases of traffic hospitalised injury in 2013. For every motorcyclist killed, 35 more are hospitalised due to traffic related crashes. This ratio is far higher than that for pedestrians (1:16), or for vehicle occupants (1:18). Crashes involving a motorcycle fatality peak in the day (9am to 3pm) and evening (3pm to 9pm). One third of fatal motorcycle crashes occur on a weekend between 9am Saturday and 9pm Sunday. Deaths under 40 are skewed towards urban areas while deaths for over 40s are skewed towards non-urban locations. Non-urban fatal crashes are particularly skewed towards the weekend. In urban areas, more than 30 per cent of crashes involving a motorcyclist fatality are on local roads, whereas in non-urban areas arterial and sub-arterial roads predominate. In the four years to 2015 there has been a shift in the proportion of crashes involving a motorcyclist fatality from major cities to regional and remote areas. While national trends in motorcyclist fatality rates per registered vehicle and kilometre travelled have improved, the number of motorcyclist deaths is similar to 10 years ago. This underpins the need to identify further improvements and focus efforts on reducing fatalities and hospitalised injuries. This information sheet provides a broad overview of the current status of motorcycling safety in Australia. First, data definitions and sources are outlined, then a brief summary and background of key issues for motorcycling safety is provided. The crash and casualty analysis section presents statistics and analysis of motorcycle safety and crash characteristics covering both Australia and the international context. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting