Banning Bikes

DK reminds me of something rotten in the state of Europe that has been festering away for a number of years now; the banning of motorcycles.

The goal of stopping deaths on the roads has been set by a number of countries including Norway, Australia and Sweden, where the programme has been called “Vision Zero”.

But Norwegian safety expert Rune Elvik said for it to happen, policy makers should consider the radical step of banning motorbikes.

“If they are serious about these lofty road safety ambitions that have been announced then I think such a discussion is needed,” he said in an interview with Motor Cycle News.

“Motorcycling would definitely not be allowed.”

Over the years that I have been riding, I’ve come to accept that control freakish politicians who think that my safety is their concern and that for my own good, I should not be allowed to ride, are an occupational hazard. Fifteen years or so ago, we had the infamous twat, Martin Bangemann to contend with. This was the man who wanted to legislate for leg protectors on all motorcycles. What this brain dead prick didn’t appreciate – because like all politicians, he was preaching from a position of ignorance – was that in the event of an accident, the rider is safest parting company from the bike. Leg protectors as proposed would have made that more difficult, making, therefore, the bike more dangerous in the event of an accident. Vigorous lobbying from rider groups such as the Motorcycle Action Group and the British Motorcyclist’s Federation eventually killed it off.

Rune Elvik’s biased comments contained in a report for the European Transport Safety Council were noted by the Motorcycle Action Group late last year. In December it was presented to the Flemish parliament for consideration, but MAG Belgium with the support of MPs presented the FEMA (Federation of European Motorcyclists Associations) agenda for motorcycle safety as an alternative. The consequence of this was that the Flemish parliament rejected the ETSC report in favour of the FEMA one. There’s no direct link to this story, but if you search on “Rune Elvik” on MAG’s site, you will find it easily enough it.

So, although I’ve not discussed it here before, I am aware… It’s just that my attention has been taken by more pressing items. It doesn’t mean that I don’t see this as a serious threat; just that from a pragmatic position, the imposition of a ban on a whole section of road users is fraught with practical difficulties making it an unlikely proposition in the short to medium term. And, FEMA have an effective track record when dealing with these people – they’ve had plenty of practice.

For a ban to work, firstly, they will have to put motorcycle manufactures, factors, parts and accessories manufacturers and vendors out of business. Will BMW and Triumph take this lying down, I wonder? That’ll do the economy a power of good, no doubt. Then they will have to confiscate our bikes en masse. We may be a minority, but we are a big enough one to make a nuisance of ourselves. There would inevitably be mass ride-outs in major cities throughout Europe in protest. What will they do? Arrest all of us? And what about those police riders? Will they be banned, too?

This idea is so extreme that certainly in the short to medium term, it is unworkable. Far more likely will be a slow stranglehold approach. Already we are a smaller group than we once were. A generation before mine saw bikes as a stepping stone to getting a car. Now they are more of a leisure vehicle – I am in a minority, using as I do, my bike for daily transport. All they have to do is make getting a bike license more difficult and expensive, thereby putting off potential riders before they start. Oh, wait…

And, as DK points out, there are other practical issues at play:

My mole informs me that this, like many other things, does not need to be worried about yet. There is, my mole says, an unusual logjam of legislation; in other words, there is not nearly the volume of legislation emanating from the EU Commission (they are the only ones who can initiate legislation, remember) as there usually is.

So in the short term, nothing much will happen. In the medium term, they will make life increasingly difficult for us and MAG, BMF and FEMA will have their work cut out fighting a rearguard action. The long term aim then would be that we will fade away. It will be that much easier to impose a ban when there are next to no motorcyclists on the road rather than the awkward brigade we currently have. The smoking ban worked because most of those people affected tended to think it was a good thing. A motorcycle ban will not get the same level of agreement – indeed, quite the opposite.

So, we remain vigilant.