POLICE yesterday announced the introduction of a new programme to help combat the alarming number of deadly and serious motorbike accidents which have occurred on the island in recent years.
According to the figures presented yesterday at a news conference given by the Chief of Police Michael Papageorgiou, 271 motorbike riders and bike passengers have lost their lives in the past ten years.
Last month alone there were four motorbike deaths on the island’s roads,
The new programme launched yesterday is called Bikesafe and is based on a similar programme which is successfully running in the United Kingdom at the moment.
“The objective of the programme is to use specially trained members of the Traffic Police to train and educate young motorbike drivers, and all motorbike drivers which are in the high risk group of drivers.” Papageorgiou said. He continued by saying that an effort is being made to reduce the numbers of deaths and serious accidents which involved motorbikes.
According to further figures presented by Papageorgiou the 271 that lost their lives represents 27 per cent of the total number of traffic casualties in Cyprus. Furthermore he added that 65 per cent of the 271 dead were not wearing a protective helmet, and 50 per cent were under the age of 25.
The programme Bikesafe which was introduced by the Traffic Department Chief Demerits Demetriou, Lieutenant Harris Evripidou and the Chief of Police, will start next Saturday and take place every Saturday after that between 8am and 1pm at the Lecture Hall of the Park of Traffic Safety opposite the Police headquarters in Nicosia.
Demetriou and Evripidou explained that applicants for the programme need to fill out the relevant form and submit it to the email address bikesafe@police.gov.org or by fax to 22607092.
All applicants must hold a valid motorbike licence and arrive at the park with their own bike which should be in good condition with all the necessary paperwork in order.
In addition motorbike drivers need to bring their own safety equipment such as helmet, jacket, pants and gloves however they will not be required to pay any fee to take part, unlike the scheme in the UK, which costs 100 pounds sterling.
In addition Demetriou said that to motivate young motorbike drivers to take part, all persons successfully completing the course will be given a special certificate which could help them pay lower insurance fees, if specific insurance companies agree to the appeal by the police.
Bikesafe is a two part course. The first part is a theory course and consists of guidance in subjects such as, how to overtake, how to acknowledge possible dangers, group trips and awareness while on the road.
Following the theory course, successful applicants will undergo a practical test where the designated instructors will advise and evaluate them while driving on the open road.
Demetriou stressed that correct training was needed for young motorbike drivers in the attempt to lower the startling number of causalities.
He concluded that while the number of overall deaths on the road were decreasing yearly, the number of motorbike deaths remained constant between 21 and 36 every year. However he was confident that that by taking part in the programme, motorbike drivers would improve their ability and help them have more confidence on the road which in turn would allow them to enjoy their motorbike experience even more.
Police launch scheme to educate bikers – Cyprus Mail.
