Talk:Motorcycle fatality rate in U.S. by year

Drawing Conclusions?

In the second paragraph, the statement "This combination of older riders on higher-powered motorcycles is partially responsible for a steady increase in motorcycle deaths from the late 1990s until 2004" seems to be drawing conclusions and is unencyclopedic. There is a difference between correlation and causation. There could be many other factors - cell phones, increased highway speeds, etc. At the very least, I would recommend changing "is partially responsible" to "may be partially responsible". Timdearborn (talk) 03:51, 8 May 2011 (UTC)

The data shows the increase in deaths tracks exactly with the increase in older bikers on ever more powerful machines. I know of additional analysis that blames lack of skill among these older riders, who are typically returning to motorcycling after a hiatus of 20 years, with little caution or training. The NHSTA page linked to is a lightweight summary, but there is plenty of depth to the research that it rests on. Returning older riders are also reluctant to wear helmets and they take advantage of the increasing number of US states that don't require helmets. And then there's alcohol. This is why it says "partially" responsible. The source does not say "may be". Cell phones and increased speeds make little sense, because those factors would also cause an increase, not decrease, in car fatalities -- hence a lack of sources that assert these alternate theories.

If you have good sources that contradict the NHTSA on this, feel free to cite. But to water it down based on your own opinions or hypotheses is original research. --Dennis Bratland (talk) 04:23, 8 May 2011 (UTC)

Your claim that there is a lack of sources that assert alternative theories is wrong. Actually lots of peer reviewed sources posit it is the price of gas. If you look 1980 to 2014 (the most recent complete data) the motorcycle fatality rate relative to automobile fatality rate tracks and correlates to fuel price changes, suggesting very large increases in motorcycle miles driven due to preference in better fuel economy. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2741504/

I should also note that on a per capita basis, which is the normal way epidemiological data is presented, the increases are considerably lower than indicated on the raw data chart.

Motorcycle sales and registrations also increased significantly during the period of increased fatalities

The data, and the peer reviewed work, show it is multifactorial.73.132.139.167 (talk) 12:41, 31 January 2016 (UTC)

Knowing death numbers without knowing the total number of riders or number of miles ridden, etc, seems useless. It may also be important to relate the number to the total number of vehicles (congestion) on the road, and the percentage of deaths involving solo vehicles vs multiple vehicles. It may not be possible to provide meaningful statistics at all. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.7.83.5 (talk) 21:36, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

The primary data , which is available for most years from the NHTSA, would be fatalities per mile. This has shown distinct increases only in states that have repealed laws requiring helmets. I don't think the article implies that motorcycling is becoming more dangerous other than for this reason. On the other hand, it is much more dangerous than most riders and their families are aware. A patient of mine took a low speed fall without a helmet, was in a coma 40 days, and still has residual losses. When i asked why he was riding without a helmet he told me that it was legal, so he assumed it was safe. Our society accepts that people have the right to engage in extremely dangerous sports, but in most cases the risk is well understood. Many motorcyclists today support families who depend on them. Do their families understand the risk they are taking? If the motorcyclist dies in a collision, will the family press for the other driver to be charged with manslaughter? A friend of mine cut his finger on a saw and passed out while driving to the hospital. He may spend the next ten years in jail, his own family destroyed, because when he lost consciousness he collided with another man who decided to ride without a helmet, and his pregnant wife demands that someone be punished. Life is filled with tragedy. We should not take risks without discussing them with our family, and ensuring they are prepared for the consequences. Motorcycling is unique among extreme sports in that many participants are thrilled by the sense of danger but do not appreciate the fact that the danger is real.Danwoodard (talk) 20:26, 18 March 2019 (UTC)

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Title: motorcycle deaths in U.S. by year vs List of motorcycle deaths in U.S. by year

I do believe that the title List of motorcycle deaths in U.S. by year is wrong and that motorcycle deaths in U.S. would be better.

• The new title would be shorter.
• The new title would allow to cover Motorcycle-Fatalities-by-State such as [[23]], including Reasons for changes in motorcyclist fatalities, helmet use in the US, alcohol impairment int he US, speeding in the US, training, share the road and also Motorcyclist Traffic Fatalities by State

Bad Citation

I removed the sentence about lane splitting being more dangerous. While this may or may not be true, it is a hot topic of debate and the webpage cited gives no facts about lane splitting. In fact, every sentence citing reference 25 should be removed as the reference is simply an advertisement for a lawfirm and it only gives hand waiving generalizations with no data or proof.