Washington State Patrol stresses importance of motorcycle safety, awareness

The July 11 collision scene on Hwy 104, courtesy Washington State Patrol.

Every year when beautiful weather arrives, it brings more motorcycles to our roadways. The Washington State Patrol wants to stress safety and awareness to avoid some of the tragic collisions that have occurred over the past couple months and especially the last couple weeks.

It is imperative that motorcycle riders ride responsibly especially when it comes to adhering to the speed limit. Motorcycles are more difficult to see by other vehicles on the roadway and speed decreases the reaction time of every driver/rider. The WSP also wants to make it very clear that it is not legal to split lanes or ride on the shoulder. WSP communications receives daily 911 calls reporting these actions by motorcycle riders. Beyond not being legal, it is extremely unsafe as the motoring public is not expecting motorcycles to be doing this.

The WSP also wants to remind vehicle drivers to be extremely alert as motorcycles are harder to see and can easily be completely in their blind spot. Make an extra check in the mirrors when changing lanes to avoid any potential collisions.

Since May 1, 2018 in King County alone, there have been 34 collisions involving motorcycles. Out of this number 17 were injury, 3 were serious injury and 3 were fatal collisions. Above is a picture from the scene of the most recent one that occurred on July 11 on SR 104 near Shoreline where two riders tragically lost their lives. This collision was directly related to excessive speed and this tragedy could have been avoided.

The Washington State Patrol wants to challenge all drivers/riders to be respectful and responsible during this beautiful time of year and beyond so more tragedies can be avoided.

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