MoToRcyclE RoAD SAFETy REpoRT 2010 - Dekra

1Example 4SINGLE-VEHICLE ACCIDENT CAUSEDBY EXCESSIVE SPEED AND INADEQUATETREAD DEPTHSequence of events leading up to the accident:A motorcyclist was travelling along a winding roadoutside a built-up area. Following a depressionin the road, the motorcycle became unstable andcrashed into the right-hand safety barrier. It wasraining heavily at the time of the accident.Vehicle involved:Yamaha FR 1300.2 3 4Consequences of the accident/injuries:The motorcyclist was hurled beneath the safety barrierand sustained serious head and chest injuries,to which he succumbed at the scene of the accident.Causes of the problem:Before the motorcycle became unstable, it hadnegotiated a depression in the road on a right-handbend. The rear wheel tyre had a tread depth of 0.5mm in the centre and a tread depth of 1.6 mm atthe edge of the tread section. With the appropriateamount of water on the carriageway in conjunctionwith the reconstructed speed, the bank of the curveand the inadequate tread depth of the rear wheeltyre, the cause of the cause of the accident can beexplained by the handling of the motor cycle andthe technical deficiency of the tyre.Avoidance possibilities/approach to road safety measures:Instability as the cause of the accident could havebeen avoided if the speed limit had not been exceeded(especially considering the heavy rain!) and,in particular, the rear wheel tyre had had adequatetread depth. The fact that protectors were not fittedto the safety barrier posts at the time of teh accidentdid not have a negative effect in this case, as the motorcyclistdid not impact against the safety barrierposts. The motorcyclist’s injuries were caused by theimpact on the carriageway or by the impact of themotorcycle against the motorcyclist.Other characteristics of the accident:Initial speed of the motorcycle before it becameunstable: approx. 120–130 km/h.Speed of impact against the safety barrier:105–110 km/h.Permissible maximum speed in the area where theaccident happened: 80 km/h.571 Shape of the curve before the site ofthe accident2 Vertical post coverings not fitted at thetime of the accident3 Marks on the carriageway4 Rear tyre worn to below the minimumtread depth685 Marks on the safety barrier6 Motorcycle involved in the accident7 Impact marks on the safety barrier8 Stress marks and skid marks28 | 29