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Latest Gardena Police Department Operation Aims to Improve Motorcycle Safety

The Gardena Police Department will be conducting a specialized Motorcycle Safety Enforcement Operation on Sunday, August 24, 2014 in an effort to lower the number of deaths and injuries. Extra officers will be on duty, patrolling areas frequented by motorcyclists where crashes most often occur.

Officers will be looking for violations committed by drivers and motorcycle riders including speeding, making illegal turns, driving/riding under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and other dangerous activity that can lead to crashes.

In 2013, the Gardena Police Department investigated several motorcycle collisions that had resulted in injuries to seven people. Operations like this one are intended to curb such motorcycle incidents and prevent future fatalities.

California collision data reveals that the primary causes of motorcycle-involved crashes include speeding, unsafe turning, and impairment due to alcohol and other drugs by both riders and drivers alike. Motorcycle fatalities dropped significantly by 37% during 2008 to 2010, but then rose by 23% in 2012.

The Gardena Police Department reminds all motorists to be alert and especially vigilant when turning and changing lanes. Riders can get more information and training through the California Motorcyclist Safety Program at www.CA-msp.org or 1-877-RIDE-411 (1-877-743-3411).

Grant funding for this program was provided by the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, whose message to all drivers and motorcyclists is: share in the responsibility and do your part by safely “sharing the road.”