Insurance giant Allstate has started a nationwide campaign to raise awareness of motorcycle safety and one of their first stops is Dallas County, Texas. In 2010 alone Dallas County saw more than 600 motorcycle accidents within its borders, many of which resulted in serious injury or death.

Texas Department of Transportation said almost half of all these crashes occurred at intersections and involved a car or truck. This makes the new warnings, permanent signs being installed at Allstate’s expense, all the more important to Texas and the people who live and ride there.

May is National Motorcycle Awareness Month and a nationwide effort to focus attention on motorcycle safety has been underway in every state. With the price of gasoline rising nearly every week more and more Americans are turning to two-wheeled, more economical forms of transportation. More bikes on the road means more chances for serious, often deadly collisions.

And anything that cane be done to make those numbers go down is worth the effort.

Allstate Insurance Co. is putting up permanent signs in more than 30 cities in hopes of preventing crashes at major intersections. The company posted a sign at East Main and 14th streets in Grand Prairie.

Dallas County had almost 600 accidents involving motorcycles in 2010, according to the Texas Department of Transportation. Thirty-five percent occurred at intersections.

“Motorcyclists are easily overlooked,” said Dusty Wallace, an Allstate agent in Flower Mound. “It is always a safety concern, because generally when you’re driving, you’re not thinking about a motorcycle, you’re thinking about another vehicle out there.”

Wallace, who rides motorcycles, said he constantly has to be on a lookout when he is on the road. Motorcyclists always have to think ahead and be aware of things in the road that cars run over or drivers running red lights.

In Florida, a bill is moving through the Senate which would increase penalties for drivers who seriously injure a motorcyclist in a vehicle accident.

In fact, it’s called the Stiffer Penalties Bill, and it’s no joke. Florida legislators recognize that their state’s abundance of sunshine and good weather attract a large number of motorcycling enthusiasts. Mix an abundance of motorcyclists with an abundance of out-of-state drivers you get the perfect storm of serious vehicle crashes.

Florida Senate Bill 1754 increases criminal penalties for a driver who causes serious bodily injury or death to a motorcyclist. In part the bill says that causing serious bodily injury translates to a second degree misdemeanor, and includes paying a fine, incarceration, and a loss of license.

The bill does more than protect motorcyclists, however. It extends to bicyclists and pedestrians as well, making any vehicle crash that causes death to someone walking or riding any kind of bike a much more serious offense with much more severe penalties.

If the bill is approved, which seems likely given it has the support of multiple motorcycling and bicycling groups, it would go into effect on July 1 of this year.

In the meantime anyone who drives the streets in Florida should be aware that they share the roads with people who are not riding in two-ton steel and plastic vehicles with seat belts and air bags. In fact, some riders have nothing but a pair of leather pants to protect them and just because your vehicle is bigger and tougher doesn’t give you the right to run into them, crowd them, cut them off or endanger their lives.

There is plenty of room on the road ways for everyone. And if your vehicle is bigger that makes it all more important that you yield even if you have the right of way and drive with caution and care at all times.

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A crash this week involving a local news producer has Georgia State Patrol officials reminding motorists they are sharing the road with all sorts of vehicles.

WALB News 10 operations manager Bill Gilbride was riding his motorcycle south on US 19 when the driver of Chevy Tahoe unexpectedly turned in front of him. Georgia State Troopers are still investigating, but they expect charges will be filed against the Tahoe driver for failure to yield the right of the way. In the meantime, Gilbride is undergoing surgery at a local hospital where his condition his listed as critical.

Defensive driving is not just for people who drive cars, you know. Whatever kind of vehicle you use on the road you need to be aware of what is happening all around you. Not everyone is a safe driver and sometimes they are downright unsafe. Drivers cut off over drivers, run red lights, speed, drive erratically and do all sorts of things in their cars, truck and SUV’s that can create a safety hazard for themselves, their passengers and other drivers, especially motorcyclists.

Drivers need to be totally aware of their surroundings; know who they are sharing the road with at any given time and what those other drivers might be doing. You can’t anticipate everything that is going to happen, but you sure can mitigate the risks you run when you get behind the wheel (or the handlebars.)

Georgia is home to thousands of motorcyclists. Because the weather in the state is mild most of the year you can find hundreds of these riders out on the roads just about any day of the year. Motorcyclist must receive special instruction before they are issued a motorcyclists license, and many are known for being safe riders; responsible defensive drivers. Unfortunately, because they have so little protection, not much except a helmet and maybe a pair of leather pants, there is the great likelihood they will sustain serous injury in the event of a crash.

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net