A comparison of rider attitudes and behaviours between crash-involved and non crash-involved returned motorcyclists

Older motorcyclists (aged 25 and over) can be categorised into three groups: continuing riders, returned riders and new riders. While there is widespread concern about the safety of returned riders, little is known about the factors contributing to their crash involvement. Returned riders accounted for 24% of the 2,116 motorcyclists who responded to an on-line survey that asked about their riding patterns, attitudes and behaviours, and crash involvement. Attitudes and behaviours were compared between returned riders who had been involved in an on-road crash in the last five years (n=92) and returned riders who had never crashed (n=150). Crash-involved riders indicated a greater propensity towards risky riding behaviours than riders who had never crashed. Across the range of comparison variables, most of the behaviours for which statistically significant differences were evident related to speeding, both exceeding the speed limit and riding too fast for the prevailing conditions. The results support the use of insight training to help crash-involved returned riders better understand and manage their exposure to risk.