Many riders may not realise that if they are involved in a crash, they may not be covered for what could be a very long and expensive ambulance ride.
Freebies
The good news for permanent Queensland and Tasmanian residents is that they are covered. Even if they travel interstate and crash. That includes all emergency pre-hospital ambulance treatment and transport Australia-wide.
If you crash outside the state and receive an invoice for ambulance treatment and transport, just send it to the Queensland or Tasmanian ambulance service with proof of residency for payment.
Interestingly, Queensland won’t pay up if a Tasmanian makes a clam in that state!
Costly ambulance ride
However, if you are not a resident of those states, the cheapest ambulance callout fee is $382 in NSW. Then it rises massively.
NT is $790, ACT $959, Western Australia $967, South Australia $976 and Victoria – a popular destination for interstate riders – is a massive $1204.
That’s just for starters.
Depending on the length of the ambulance ride and the services required, it can cost thousands.
And you will still be liable for the cost even if someone else calls an ambulance for you and you refuse service.
Insurance
Many riders erroneously believe they are covered by Medicare.
Others believe their private medical insurance will cover the ambulance ride, but that may not always be the case.
Have a look at the fine print in your insurance now before you head off interstate these Christmas holidays.
If not, you can pay a fairly small membership fee (usually under $100 for a family) to the ambulance service in your state. But that still won’t cover you interstate.
You can also upgrade your insurance to include ambulance cover, or you can opt for a specialist ambulance cover.
But again, make sure it covers you Australia-wide.
Also, find out if the cover includes just emergencies or non-emergencies as well and includes all pre-hospital treatment.
Some pensioner and concession cards may either provide free cover for an ambulance ride and treatment or at least a discount on ambulance insurance.
If you only need insurance while you are interstate, the cheapest option could be set-period travel insurance. Just make sure ambulance services are included.
Roundabouts are a particular danger for riders not being seen by drivers as this video clearly shows.
Even though rider Brendan Sellers of Adelaide is wearing bright red and white leathers and is on a bright red Kawasaki Ninja on a clear and sunny day, the Honda sedan driver just drives straight out in front of him.
Peachey/petherton roundabout tuesday 20-11-18 @ 4:30pm.Honda driver blatently failed to give-way as can be seen by his position entering the roundabout (as far left as he could go).He almost caused a severe accident.Open your eyes i have a right to return home safely as every one does, the 2 seconds they saved could have cost me dearly with no recourse for thier blatant stupidity
Brendan posted the video on Dashcams Adelaide to alert drivers to open their eyes.
“I have a right to return home safely as every one does,” he writes. “The two seconds they saved could have cost me dearly with no recourse for their blatant stupidity.”
Many riders have experienced similar situations at roundabouts and wonder why drivers either don’t see us or deliberately ignore us.
While roundabouts were designed to be safer than 90-degree intersections, even Austroads has acknowledged the danger for riders.
They have called for physical changes to roundabouts to make them safer for vulnerable road users such as motorcyclists, scooterists and cyclists. Click here to read more.
ROUNDABOUTS: PROBLEMS
There can be a number of reasons why vehicles drive out in front of riders that can be attributed to both the nature of a roundabout and the attitude of drivers.
Traffic flow
Austroads says Australian roundabouts are designed to allow plenty of vision so traffic can continue to flow, rather than coming to a complete stop every time.
They rarely have stop signs, only give-away or simply roundabout signs.
This means drivers are not preparing or hoping to come to a full stop. They are anticipating a smooth flow through the roundabout. Some even straight-line the roundabout without slowing at all.
Approaching speed
At a crossroads intersection, drivers can have a difficult time estimating the approaching speed of a rider coming at them from a 90-degree angle.
When the rider is changing direction around a roundabout, it may be even more difficult to estimate their approach speed, so drivers can misjudge and drive out in front of them.
Blind spots
Since the rider isn’t approaching them from 90 degrees, but more like 60 degrees, that places them in the car’s A-pillar blind spot not in the driver’s window.
With curtain airbags in many modern cars, this pillar is thick and can easily obscure a narrow motorcycle.
Of course, there is also the theory that a small motorcycle is not received as much of a threat compared with a vehicle the same size or bigger.
Consequently, some drivers have a tendency to miscalculate the risks.
There is also less of a perceived risk when the impending crash is more of a glancing blow of “sideswipe” because of the approach angle on a roundabout, rather than a head-in or t-bone crash at a crossroads intersection.
ROUNDABOUTS: SOLUTIONS
We’ve heard it all before, but we need to approach a roundabout the same way we approach any riding – ride like everyone else is out to get you!
There are many other scenarios at roundabouts other than the one above. All require a lot of caution and attention.
A typical sideswipe crash at a roundabout
Slow and cautious
That means a slow and cautious approach. Grab a lower gear and cover your gently apply the brakes.
If you need to stop you have already set up the brakes and just need to apply more pressure.
If you need to avoid a car by speeding up, then you have the right gear selected.
Look left right and behind
Obviously you need to look to your right to slow for traffic on the roundabout (opposite in left-drive countries).
But you also need to look left for vehicles stealing your right of way. Make sure you look the driver right in the eye to see that they have actually seen you.
If they haven’t, maybe give a quick blast of the horn to attract their attention. Don’t flash your lights was this is both illegal and could give the wrong impression that you are letting them go in front of you.
Rear-enders
You also need eyes in the back of your head!
Many riders are rear-ended at roundabouts. This is because they may be cautiously approaching and probably stopping while the traffic behind is anticipating continued progress and shunt the rider from behind.
Loud pipes?
The rider in the top video vents his frustration by loudly revving his bike. That really does nothing to alert the driver and it’s after the incident, anyway.
If you believe drivers have not seen you, a short blast on the horn will do more to attract attention than a loud exhaust. But that’s another debate!
There is no doubt that potholes are dangerous to riders.
A pothole can cause a big jolt in the front suspension, kick the handlebars about and possibly damage a rim. But at least the suspension is set up to absorb most of the impact.
They can lift the front wheel off the ground, kick the bike left or right into the bush or oncoming traffic, or cause a tank slapper where the handlebars oscillate wildly.
Bumps are also harder to see and seem to be less likely to be fixed than potholes in yet another example of how the authorities ignore and neglect motorcycles.
Permanent cameras can be mounted on and hardwired to the motorcycle.
The latter is becoming more popular, especially for commuters as they are a fixture, difficult to steal and will start recording as soon as you start the bike.
Basically they are a set-and-forget option … until you need them.
Then they supply looped intervals of recordings so you can easily find the bit you need.
Latest bike dashcam
A new dashcam with the easy-to-remember name “Model MCDV2HD-W2G” is available online in December for $320 and through some specialist installers.
Not that you will need a professional installer.
Installation is easy with a Smart Power module that connects directly to the battery and switches power to the dashcam automatically after the engine starts and switching off when it stops.
With more bikes now using CANBus (a simplified wiring loom) and not having easy access to accessory/ignition power, the Smart Power module solves this issue.
The unit consists of two small front and rear cameras which are permanently fitted and difficult to see on most big bikes.
The front camera is a full HD 1080P device with a Sony IMX323 sensor that has a low light facility while the rear camera is a HD 720P unit.
This new model has a weatherproof main unit (IP65) and, of course, weatherproof cameras (IP67).
One of the niftiest features is that it has built-in Wi-Fi so you access it from a smartphone app (iOS or Android).
That should make it easy to access recordings while out on the road.
It includes GPS included to automatically confirm time and location of an event.
The handlebar controller is retained from previous models to allow the rider to save particular files in a simple-to-find format.
You won’t need to search through a large number of video files to find just the one or two events that were notable. Pressing the button saves a file with a different prefix to allow quick and easy sorting and location.
Data storage is by Micro SD card up to 128GB.
Distributors Chipatronic recommend and supply Samsung cards when you order (SD cards cost extra and depend on the size you order.)
Video files can be re-played using the smartphone app or the card can be connected to a Windows PC where the files can be accessed and viewed in the same way as any external storage device.
Files are saved in MOV format which can be played by most up to date media player software including Windows Media Player, Photos, VLC and others.
To be able to view the maps from the GPS data on PC the user will need to download a free software package.
Witnesses are being sought after a 2004 blue Honda Accord sedan merged into a lane with a 2012 blue Harley-Davidson causing it to crash on the Logan Motorway at Springwood last Wednesday (November 7, 2018).
Forensic Crash Unit investigators have released this video as part of an appeal for information.
The crash happened about 4.50pm on the Logan Road on-ramp, towards the southbound lanes of the Pacific Motorway.
A 55-year-old Harley rider was hit when the Accord to merged into his lane. He remains in the Princess Alexandra Hospital in a serious but stable condition.
A 21-year-old Woodridge man “continues to assist with the investigation”.
The driver did not pull up after the Harley crashed at the side of the road.
However, a second motorcyclist pulled the driver over for a short conversation before riding on.
Police now want to speak with the second motorcyclist to continue investigations into the crash, or any other witnesses, particularly those with dash cam footage.
Eye witnesses can contact Policelink on 131 444, fill out the online form 24hrs per day, or call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or via crimestoppersqld.com.au.
German automotive technology company Continental AG plans to be the first with a motorcycle emergency brake-assist system that applies extra brake pressure when it senses a crash.
Their system would not be automatic like in some cars that take over braking duties from the driver.
Continental recognises that motorcycles are different to cars and say their system would only assist the rider.
It works by using accurate fifth-generation radar sensors to detect imminent crash dangers.
However, the system would have to be different to cars as motorcycles lane filter close to vehicles which could easily activate emergency braking systems and send riders tumbling into traffic.
Continental motorcycle spokesman Christian Pfeiffer says their system would first alert the rider via “haptic” vibrations in the handlebars.
“Low initial braking pressure then helps the rider with the active braking operation,” he says.
“If the rider does not react to the warning, emergency brake assist automatically builds up braking force if the rider has both hands on the handlebars. The deceleration is much less pronounced than in a passenger car emergency braking system.”
A few years ago ABS was an optional safety system for those who wanted it. From the end of next year it will be mandatory in Australia. (See details at the end of this article)
How long before emergency brake assist also becomes mandatory on motorcycles?
The United Nations #STOPTHECRASH campaign has called for mandatory autonomous emergency braking that activates at slow speeds if an obstacle is sensed in front of the bike.
Of course, the makers of many of these electronic safety devices, Continental, Bosch and Denso, are supporters of the UN program.
Emergency brake assist is not the only electronic safety technology Continental is developing.
They are also working on sensors that detect roadside speed signs and display them to the rider, adaptive cruise control, blind spot detection and automatic switching to high beam.
Sign detection
Adaptive cruise control
Blind spot alert
Headlight assist
All these systems are based on Continental’s fifth-generation radar that go into production in 2019.
They use improved object detection algorithms that detect even smaller objects such as an exhaust that has fallen off a car.
The heights of objects can also be calculated by an elevation measurement device that detects the tail of a traffic jam under a bridge or road boundaries such as kerbs.
Continental claims their tech is now smaller and lighter.
It consists of a sensor cluster that measures acceleration and yaw rate, a radar system that analyses this data, plus brake and engine control units that activate on demand.
Continental say these can be fitted to motorcycles of all sizes from a single source, including the instrument cluster, that warns the rider of an imminent collision.
ABS will be mandatory on motorcycles, trikes and scooters over 125cc, while either ABS or CBS will be mandatory on those under 125cc.Trail bikes under 250cc and all enduro and trials bikes are exempt.
If the bike has switchable ABS, the default setting when the bike is turned off and turned back on again will be for ABS to be active.
Countries with mandatory ABS on designated motorcycles in all European nations, Japan, India, Brazil and Taiwan.
Even the USA – the land of freedom of choice – is now considering making ABS mandatory.
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