Is it Safer to Rider a Motorcycle on Streets or the Highway?
In the case of German
In Taiwan, motorcycles have been banned from highways for years. Some may think motorcycles will be in more danger than cars on the highway because of the less protection for bikers. Taiwan is also one of the four countries that forbid motorcycle riding on highways in this world. However, in the case of Germany, Autobahn (no speed limit highway) is open for every kind of vehicle including motorcycle which can catch the lowest speed limited Engine displacement. There seems to be more accidents on no speed limit highway, but the truth is not. Nowadays, motorcycles being banned from the highway seems to be unreasonable. There are three reasons why Germany does not ban bikers from highways.
Figure 1.
Many think motorcycles are more dangerous than cars; however, there is less accident rate for motorcycles on any type of road. As shown in figure 1.
The first reason is there are many things that people do that are dangerous on the roads. One of the most common issues is weaving. Weaving happens when a driver quickly moves back and forth between lanes. They may cut off other drivers or try to squeeze into spaces that aren’t really spaced out enough for them to merge. Instead, there’s enough space for drivers to slow down to drive into Interchange on autobahn which can reduce traffic weaving. Apparently, there is much less weaving on highways and less chance for accidents to happen.
Secondly, road quality always relates to road safety. Especially on autobahn, to accommodate higher speed traffic, Autobahn Road surfaces are constructed with multiple layers of concrete. Autobahn roads are also inspected regularly for irregularities in the road surface or any damage. If anything is found during these inspections, the whole area of road around the damaged section is replaced. Under such strict conditions; autobahn has better and safer roads for drivers.
Lastly, Table 1 shows that in Germany, although there’s an increase in the total accidents, numbers of accidents on autobahns are always minimal, only 0.0007% of the total.
Table 1.
Source: Federal Highway Research Institute
The numbers of casualties on the autobahn compared to others clearly indicate the safety of the autobahn. The less traffic weaving and better road quality create a safer driving environment on autobahn in Germany which can make accidents less likely to happen.
In our opinion, we think it should be legal for bikers to use the highway. According to the above, motorcycles are definitely as safe as cars, and using highways can not only give bikers a safer road but also provide a more efficient way to move. That’s why we think motorcycles on highways should be legal.