Loved seeing a dear friend today who was up for Street Vibrations! [Warning: Rant ahead] Speaking of...I have heard a lot of people at various locations around town griping about all of the traffic this weekend because of Street Vibrations. All sorts of claims about accidents and traffic. I have a lot of friends who ride motorcycles. Many of them are doctors, lawyers and professionals in their hometown. They are responsible and respectable people who enjoy riding. They are not, contrary to some opinions, all partiers, or even mostly partiers anymore. Street Vibrations is a major tourist event, one that seriously impacts the revenue of places like Virginia City, a wonderful historical town in Northern Nevada. There are a number of businesses in Reno that count on the bikers to boost their businesses in anticipation of colder and slower months for these industries. I heard some complaints today as we had lunch with our friends about the surge in accidents when Street Vibrations is in town. Is it possible, I wonder, that the surge in accident numbers is due to the surge in vehicles? In 2010 there were 21 DUI arrests (not sure if they were all motorcycles), 15 accidents and two of those were fatal. National statistics put the average accident rate among motorcycles at about 73 per 100,000 bikes. With somewhere around 30,000 bikes in town (and this is a very conservative estimate) that 15 accident number is WELL below the national average for non congested driving. More than half of all motorcycle related deaths involve at least one other vehicle, while 42% of fatal crashes involving a motorcycle involve a vehicle turning left while the motorcycle was going straight, as in yesterday’s fatal accident on S. Virginia. In fact, yesterday’s fatality was an off duty officer, and I highly doubt many would blame him for the accident, yet the assumption for most if not all other accidents is that it is the biker’s fault, probably partying too much. As far as the drunk driving goes, in 2011 Nevada had 11,834 DUI arrests, that’s an average of 32.4 a day. During the three day event in 2010 there were only 21. While the statewide average includes Las Vegas and other areas, I suspect this is still a lower than average number, even with increased law enforcement for the event. So I agree that the increased traffic is an inconvenience. And the increased traffic from the Niners and Raiders games are inconvenient in the Bay Area, and the increased traffic from the concerts are an inconvenience in Sacramento and other large venue cities. I love what Street Vibrations does for the part of our population that enjoys bikes. I love what it does to the energy of those in Virginia City. And I love that it allows another segment of our society to connect. So, this weekend, while I am loving all of the good it does, I will be held up in my house, letting the bikes have the road and enjoying my family time. (It’s as good an excuse as any, right?)
Posted on: Sun, 29 Sep 2013 04:43:54 +0000
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