The Antelope Valley Times

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Motorcycle Safety Enforcement nets 52 citations

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LANCASTER – Personnel from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department conducted a specialized Motorcycle Safety Enforcement Operation on Saturday, May 31, 2014 in the city of Lancaster.

The purpose of the specialized Motorcycle Safety Enforcement Operation was to continue LASD’s commitment to lowering deaths and injuries in traffic collisions.

Extra deputies were on duty patrolling areas frequented by motorcyclists and where motorcycle crashes occur. Deputies were looking for drivers and riders under the influence of drugs or alcohol and cracking down on traffic violations made by motorcyclists, as well as other vehicle drivers, that could lead to motorcycle collisions, injuries, and fatalities.

The operation resulted in:

  • 52 vehicle stops
  • 52 vehicle drivers cited for various primary causal factor violations.

The message to all drivers and motorcyclists is: share in the responsibility and do your part by safely “sharing the road.”

Riders can get training through the California Motorcyclist Safety Program. Information and training locations are available at www.CA-msp.org or 1-877 RIDE 411 or 1-877-743-3411.

Funding for the operation was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

(Information via press release from the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station.)

11 comments for "Motorcycle Safety Enforcement nets 52 citations"

  1. I wonder what the “primary causal factors” are. Seems like motorcyclists are vulnerable to a lot of errors by drivers.

    • Yeah, who would think that motorcycle riders who drive between lanes on the freeway and elsewhere would ever be subject to car driver errors?

      Do motorcycle riders realize that cars cannot accelerate, stop or manuevre as quickly as they can? Some times you wonder.

      • I guess you don’t ride let alone drive very well. It’s that mentality that drivers have “I see you coming but I’m protected so I’ll just pull out in front of you” what I really like is when a driver of a car that’s pissed because they sitting their try’s to block the riders path.

        • I agree Danny. I am not a rider but I know for a fact it is perfectly legal in California for riders to split lanes in certain conditions. I always try to watch for faster moving cycles coming up behind me, give a little extra space when I can. But I have seen other jerks cut off riders on purpose.

          As for Williams second paragraph, yes motorcycles realize cars do not accelerate as fast, that is why they pass and get ahead. They realize they can not stop as quick, which is what worries them when some dummy is driving right on their tale, so they will try to get out of that situation any legal way they can to avoid being hit by a car driver that does not realize a bike can stop much faster. Same with maneuvering.

      • I don’t think that you realize that most motorcycle accidents happen when cagers like you make left turns in front of us because you weren’t observant enough to see the motorcycle coming in the opposing lane. Also if you actually ride then you would realize that motorcycles cannot stop as efficiently as cars. If we brake to hard then we can lock up our tires and the situation can go from bad to worse. So stop being mad about motorcycles lane splitting which is perfectly legal in California and start worrying about being more observant and looking out for motorcycles.

  2. Seems rather simple to me, you have a bar on M a bar on L and two on I all have bikes parked there for hours, I would think the average person at a bar has 2 drinks or more in 1 hour, if the bikes sit there for 3 hours maybe 5 drinks in? Let alone these clowns just ride from bar to bar.

    • What about the “clowns” in the cars that do the same and then run a truck through a house!

  3. That kind of targeted enforcement is scary. 100% citation rate? This will certainly influence my avoiding Lancaster while on my motorcycle. Sounds like the Sheriff’s office was more interested in writing citations than taking advantage of opportunities to educate. Considering the statistics regarding cars causing accidents with motorcycles (especially left turns), perhaps they should be focusing on car drivers as much as motorcycles…

    • I did a quick search and found a similar article at local.nixle.com/alert/5201321/ which broke out their numbers that day and it weighed more on vehicle drivers than motorcycle riders.
      Which makes me wonder here since it states vehicle and drivers rather than motorcycles and riders.

    • If you are obeying the speed and traffic laws you have no reason to be avoiding Lancaster. They pulled the bikers over for a reason, not just out of a hat. I’m glad they got 100% citation rate. Bikers have gotten sloppy in regards to how they ride and obey traffic rules.