Watch For Motorcycles Campaign Underway

UNION CITY, CA —The Union City Police Department is reminding motorists that May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month and asking drivers to help prevent fatal collisions with motorcycles.

Police officials noted that motorcyclists accounted for 14 percent of all traffic fatalities in 2015, but comprised only 3 percent of all registered vehicles in the U.S., according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

In California, 560 motorcyclists were killed in motor crashes in 2016, an 11 percent increase over the previous year, police said. With that in mind, drivers are cautioned to always use a turn signal with changing lanes or merging with traffic, to alert motorcyclists.

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Drivers who see a motorcyclist with a signal on should be careful: Motorcycle signals are often non-canceling and could have been forgotten.

Drivers should always ensure the motorcyclist is actually going to make a turn before proceeding.

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Drivers should check all mirrors and blind spots for motorcycles before changing lanes or merging with traffic, police said.

— Bay City News; Image via Shutterstock