Motorcycle drivers much more likely to be in crash: report

Motorcycle drivers account for only two per cent of all B.C. drivers, but new statistics say they are 15 times more likely than other vehicles to be involved in a crash.

"We've gone from back in 1996 at about 24 to 25 deaths a year, to the last few years we've been over 45 deaths a year," said Insp. Norm Gaumont with the RCMP Traffic Services of the new statistics, from the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia Thursday.

One in 10 traffic deaths in B.C. involve motorcyclists, and in many of those crashes the motorcycle is the only vehicle involved, the ICBC statistics say.

The problem is inexperience, which creates factors for disaster, said ICBC safety manager Sonny Senghera.

"One is speed. [In an accident] the motorcyclist was going too fast. The other is ability. They weren't able to brake before they went off the roadway or they went into oncoming traffic," Senghera said.

According to ICBC statistics, the riders who cause the most crashes are between the ages of 16 and 25.

Gaumont said he would like to see a graduated licensing system for motorcycle drivers, similar to the one currently in place for drivers of other vehicles in British Columbia. The system restricts when new drivers can drive, limits how many passengers are allowed in the vehicle and requires drivers to have zero blood alcohol content.