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A motorcycle, often called a motorbike, bike, or cycle, is a two- or three-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising, sport including racing, and off-road riding. Motorcycling is riding a motorcycle and related social activity such as joining a motorcycle club and attending motorcycle rallies.
A motorcycle helmet is a type of helmet used by motorcycle riders. Motorcycle helmets contribute to motorcycle safety by protecting the rider's head in the event of an impact. They reduce the risk of head injury by 69% and the risk of death by 42%. Their use is required by law in many countries.
A bicycle helmet is a type of helmet designed to attenuate impacts to the head of a cyclist in falls while minimizing side effects such as interference with peripheral vision. There is ongoing scientific research into the degree of protection offered by bicycle helmets in the event of an accident, and the effects of helmet wearing on cyclist and motor vehicle driver behaviour.
In the United Kingdom, the term Compulsory Basic Training is a preliminary vehicular training course which must be completed by people wishing to ride a motorcycle or moped unaccompanied on the road, and remains valid for 2 years upon completion. It was introduced in Great Britain on 1 December 1990 as a means of reducing accidents on the road caused by inexperienced drivers by reviewing aspects of riding both on and off the road with a qualified motorcycle instructor registered with an Approved Training Body (ATB). If a full car licence was obtained before 1 February 2001 it is not necessary to complete a CBT course to ride a moped.
Motorcycle safety is the study of the risks and dangers of motorcycling, and the approaches to mitigate that risk, focusing on motorcycle design, road design and traffic rules, rider training, and the cultural attitudes of motorcyclists and other road users.
A motorized bicycle is a bicycle with an attached motor or engine and transmission used either to power the vehicle unassisted, or to assist with pedalling. Since it always retains both pedals and a discrete connected drive for rider-powered propulsion, the motorized bicycle is in technical terms a true bicycle, albeit a power-assisted one. However, for purposes of governmental licensing and registration requirements, the type may be legally defined as a motor vehicle, motorbike, moped, or a separate class of hybrid vehicle.
State motorcyclists' rights organizations (SMROs) exist in about 32 US states, 25 of which call themselves "ABATE of ," the rest going by various other names. SMROs advocate for a point of view in motorcycling that is, in general, opposed to mandatory helmet laws, required motorcycle safety inspections, mandatory rider training and licensing, and other similar regulation. Instead SMROs favor optional or voluntary motorcycle rider safety education, training, and licensing, and greater public awareness of motorcyclist safety issues. They also favor stronger penalties for car driver infractions such as right of way violations, or when drivers are at fault in accidents that harm motorcycle riders. SMRO activities include lobbying legislatures, letter writing campaigns, and paying for public service announcements and political advertisements. To carry out lobbying at the national level, a coalition of SMRO's created the Motorcycle Riders Foundation (MRF) to lobby in Washington DC. The SMROs and MRF are often allied with the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) on legislative issues.
This is a list of numbers of motorcycle deaths in U.S. by year from 1994 to 2014. United States motorcycle fatalities increased every year for 11 years after reaching a historic low of 2,116 fatalities in 1997, then increased to over 5,000 around 2008 and then plateaued in the 4 to 5 thousands range in the 2010s. In nine years motorcycle deaths more than doubled from the late 1990s to 2008. Despite providing less than 1% of miles driven, they made up 15% of traffic deaths in 2012.
Many countries have enacted electric vehicle laws to regulate the use of electric bicycles. Countries such as the United States and Canada have federal regulations governing the safety requirements and standards of manufacture. Other countries like the signatories of the European Union have agreed to wider-ranging legislation covering use and safety.
Motorcycling is riding a motorcycle. For some people, motorcycling may be the only affordable form of individual motorized transportation, and small-displacement motorcycles are the most common motor vehicle in the most populous countries, including India, China and Indonesia.
Motorcycle training teaches motorcycle riders the skills for riding on public roads. It is the equivalent of driver's education for car drivers. Training beyond basic qualification and licensing is available to those whose duty includes motorcycle riding, such as police, and additional rider courses are offered for street riding refreshers, sport riding, off-road techniques, and developing competitive skills for the motorcycle racetrack.
The Snell Memorial Foundation is a nonprofit organization created to provide a high quality standard of safety for helmets. Founded in 1957, the foundation is named after William "Pete" Snell, a popular sports car racer who died in 1956 of head injuries he received when the racing helmet he wore failed to protect his head. A group of friends, scientists, physicians, and others joined together to create a group that would promote research and education as well as test and develop standards to improve the effectiveness of helmets.
The Federation of European Motorcyclists' Associations (FEMA) is a motorcycling advocacy group based in Brussels, Belgium. It was formed on 10 January 1998 from a merger of the Federation of European Motorcyclists (FEM) and the European Motorcyclists' Association (EMA).
The Hurt Report, officially Motorcycle Accident Cause Factors and Identification of Countermeasures, was a motorcycle safety study conducted in the United States, initiated in 1976 and published in 1981. The report is named after its primary author, Professor Harry Hurt.
The British Motorcyclists Federation (BMF) is a motorcycle riders' rights group in the United Kingdom. The BMF was founded in 1960 as the Federation of National One Make Motorcycle Clubs to counter accusations of "leather-jacketed hooligans". It renamed itself the BMF in 1965. The group lobbies for motorcyclists' interests at local, national and European levels.
The following outline is provided as an overview of motorcycles and motorcycling:
Some countries and lower jurisdictions have enacted laws or regulations which require cyclists to wear a helmet in certain circumstances, typically when riding on the road or a road-related area. In some places this requirement applies only to children under a certain age, while in others it applies to cyclists of all ages.
The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) is a motorcycle riders' rights group based in the United Kingdom.
The Federation of European Motorcyclists (FEM) was a motorcycling advocacy group based in Brussels, Belgium. It was formed in 1988 by representatives of various national motorcyclists' representative organisations at a meeting in Strasbourg which followed the 'Eurodemo' of that year, a major demonstration by motorcyclists against what they perceived to be anti-biker European legislation.
A sport moped is a moped that resembles a sport bike and often performs better than standard mopeds. They were created to circumvent UK legislation, called the "Sixteeners Laws", aimed at taking young motorcycle riders off the road. The new laws, introduced in 1971 by Conservative Party Minister for Transport John Peyton, forbade 16-year-olds from riding motorcycles of 250 cc (15 cu in) capacity, thus limiting them to 50 cc machines until they turned 17.
References
- ↑ "MOTOR CYCLISTS (HELMETS) (Hansard, 5 April 1973)". Hansard. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
- ↑ "About » British Motorcyclists Federation". British Motorcyclists Federation. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
- ↑ The Effect of the 1992 California Motorcycle Helmet Use Law on Motorcycle Crash Fatalities and Injuries. Jess F. Kraus, MPH, PhD; Corinne Peek, MPH; David L. McArthur, PhD, MPH; Allan Williams, PhD. JAMA. 1994;272(19):1506-1511
- ↑ "Rules for motorcyclists (83 to 88) - The Highway Code - Guidance - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
- ↑ "Standard No. 218; Motorcycle helmets" (PDF). Code of Federal Regulations, Title 49, section 571.218. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. 1 October 2007. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
- ↑ "ECE Regulation 22: Protective Helmets and their visors for drivers and passengers of motor cycles and mopeds" (PDF). Economic Commission for Europe. 20 February 2002. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
- ↑ "Motorcycle and bicycle helmet use laws". Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. August 2012. Retrieved 2 August 2012.