Police campaign launched to highlight awareness of motorcycle accidents in Hampshire

HELP us stop the needless number of motorcycle deaths on our roads by taking an extra look '“ you could be saving someone's life.

That is the plea from police officers as a national campaign aimed at raising awareness of motorcycle safety gets under way today.

There were 737 collisions involving motorcycles across Hampshire last year, leading to 768 casualties and nine deaths.

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Across both Hampshire and the Thames Valley operations unit, there were 
1,366 collisions involving motorcycles in which 1,423 motorcyclists were injured and 22 died.

With the summer approaching, officers from Hampshire Constabulary and Thames Valley Police are supporting the National Police Chiefs Council’s national drive.

The campaign, which runs from today until next Wednesday, will see officers out on patrol speaking to both motorcyclists and drivers across the Solent region, informing them of the steps they can take to reduce the risk of a collision.

Road Safety Sergeant Rob Heard of Hampshire Police said: ‘Many collisions with motorcycles occur at 
junctions and we all need to make sure we look out for approaching motorcycles, which may merge into the background as we approach.

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Motorists just need to give themselves a little extra time to look out for motorcycles, while riders need to 
make sure they ride safely and do not take unnecessary risks.’

Officers pinpointed the M27 stretches between Junction 12 (Portsmouth) and 10 (Fareham) and Junction 8 (Hamble) and 5 (Southampton Airport) and the M3 stretch between Junction 11 (Winchester) and 10 (Alresford) as particular hotspots in the area for motorcycle crashes.

The A34 between the M3 and the A33 Junction was listed as a blackspot for crashes.

Sgt Heard said: ‘This is not about us targeting one group of road users, we are simply reminding people of the potential dangers and hope that both riders and motorists will look out for each other.’

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As part of the campaign, the force will be sharing short videos of a police officer on a motorcycle to show the dangers that motorcyclists can face on our roads.

Sgt Heard added: ‘We have created some short films for safe riding from a police officer’s view which highlight what hazards riders need to be aware of and how to reduce the risks of riding in different situations.’