Police eye bikers

By Kelly Yates
MOTORCYCLISTS behaving badly and continuing to flout the law, putting other road users at risk, are being targeted by Casey traffic police.
Police from Casey Highway Patrol are cracking down on motorcyclists speeding excessively and failing to wear protective clothing with Operation Yellow Flag Black Flag.
As part of the operation, which ran throughout the City of Casey over the weekend, police pulled over every motorcyclist they saw during their patrols.
Senior Constable Allen Inderwisch from Casey Highway Patrol said police detected any offences and then spoke to the motorcyclists about safe riding.
Police also handed out brochures on road safety.
Education and enforcement are the two main aspects of Operation Yellow Flag Black Flag, which is sponsored by TAC and the Victorian Motorcycle Advisory Council.
Leading Senior Constable Glen Ziino led the operation last weekend, with police speaking to 58 motorcyclists.
They nabbed two motorcyclists for speeding, one who was unlicensed, two motorcyclists on unregistered bikes and one motorcyclist obscuring the number plate.
Sen Const Inderwisch said police were “disappointed” with one motorcyclist who was clocked at 130km/h on an 80km/h section of the South Gippsland Highway, only metres away from where a serious collision occurred that same day.
So far this year there have been 32 motorcyclists killed on Victoria’s roads, compared to 17 that died last year.
A 29-year-old man died when he fell off his bike in Hampton Park in April.
The Hampton Park man lost control of his motorcycle as he was travelling west along Willow Drive. He died at the scene after he slid along the road and hit a parked car.
A Frankston man, 33, also died this year after he fell from a motorcycle in Cranbourne North.
Sen Const Inderwisch said police had received a number of calls over the past few months, with residents complaining about young motorcyclists riding unregistered trail bikes and not wearing helmets.
Deputy Commissioner for Road Policing Ken Lay said independent research showed that riders were 38 times more likely than car occupants to be seriously injured or killed in a crash, with around 75 per cent of motorcyclists involved in a fatality being at fault.
A world-first trial of on-road coaching for beginner motorcycle riders was announced last week as part of a State Government strategy to improve motorcycle safety on Victorian roads.
Roads Minister Tim Pallas launched the unique VicRide on-road coaching trial on Wednesday.
“The VicRide trial is a world first. No other on-road motorcycle safety program has been implemented on such a large scale or evaluated as comprehensively,” he said.
“This on-road trial will include 2,400 newly licensed riders and will show how effective coaching can be in making motorcyclists safer road users.”
Mr Pallas said half the participants involved with the coaching trial would be given on-road guidance from experienced coaches, while the other half would ride without coaching.
The results of the two groups will then be compared to determine the effectiveness of the program.
The trial, developed with the support of the Victorian Motorcycle Advisory Council, will be conducted by Monash University Accident Research Centre and independently evaluated by The George Institute for International Health.