Swedish motorcyclists’ organisation SMC – a member of FEMA – asks the Swedish Transport Administration to include several recommendations regarding friction, railings and the inclusion of motorcyclists in the design of streets and roads to increase traffic safety for motorcyclists.

The Swedish Transport Administration’s rules for how roads and streets should be designed, VGU, are to be released in a new version by the summer of 2024. In its consultation response, SMC was critical of several points, including the placement of protective devices half a meter from the roadway. A railing directly adjacent to the road gives no room for turning for either the cars or the motorbikes and is not a safe space for vehicles that have to stop for any reason. SMC regrets that wire barriers remain as an alternative protection device despite the obvious risks to motorcyclists, higher maintenance costs and the placement of dangerous objects along the carriageway such as posts that rust over time.

Dominique Faymonville, SMC’s Public Affairs Manager, said: “Guard rails with underslip protection for motorcyclists can be found in VGU 2024 and SMC is working with the Swedish Transport Administration and representatives from the industry to get a standardization in place in Sweden so that it will be easier for producers to know what requirements are set and to develop products that can be installed along our roads in Sweden. That is important work to improve our safety as motorcyclists.”

In 2023 SMC and FEMA compiled a document, ‘Safer Roads for Motorcyclists’, which is the result of a motorcycle safety expert group, which included representatives from motorcycle clubs, the manufacturers, riders’ organisations, transport and infrastructure specialists at research institutions and professional organisations and national and regional road authorities. SMC asks the Swedish Transport Administration to include several recommendations (chapter 10) from the report regarding friction, railings and the inclusion of motorcyclists in the design of the streets and roads in Sweden to increase traffic safety for motorcyclists and all other road users.

SMC also invites the Swedish Transport Administration to take a closer look at chapter 9 ‘Guidance before curves’ as well as the possibility of developing a new sign and introducing new road markings in blind left curves in the form of bars or ellipses. Several countries in the EU already have introduced these new road markings and the new signage with notables progress in road safety for motorcyclists and cyclists. SMC looks forward to developing a joint working group to get such a project in place shortly.

Jesper Christensen, SMC’s general secretary, said: “Bringing those who travel on two-wheelers more clearly into the Swedish Transport Administration’s requirements is a positive development, but there is a long way to go to reach the goal of a road infrastructure that includes motorcycles, everything from planning and design to operation and maintenance.”

Source: SMC

Photography courtesy of SMC

This article is subject to FEMA’s copyright