The scene at a crash at the corner of Gargan Rd and SH29 near Tauriko. Photo/file
The scene at a crash at the corner of Gargan Rd and SH29 near Tauriko. Photo/file
The number of Bay motorcyclists hospitalised after road accidents has increased by 56 per cent in the past year.
Local bike riders are four times more likely to be hospitalised than the national average, the Bay of Plenty District Health Board (BOPDHB) Trauma Service's report stated.
Almost a third of motorcycle accidents were due to driver error of oncoming cars.
The report into the district's road traffic crashes stated there was 50 hospitalisations resulting from motorcycle accidents this year compared to 32 in 2013.
Trauma-orientated consultant Mr Barnaby Smith said as the holiday season approached, the report's authors hope its findings would act as a warning to road users to remain vigilant and take all safety precautions.
"There has been an alarming increase in motorcycle accident-related admissions to Tauranga and Whakatane hospitals over the last 12 months," he said.
"And 16 per cent of the motorcyclists admitted to our hospitals were not wearing helmets. This impacts on the severity of sustained injuries and has potentially life-altering effects."
Although motorcycles represent just 0.5 per cent of total vehicular travel time and usage, 31 per cent of hospital admissions from accidents in 2014 were motorcyclists.
Motorcycle crash sites ranged from Waihau Bay in the eastern Bay to Waihi Beach in the west.
Nationally motorcyclists were 16 times more likely to be involved in an accident compared with other road users.
However in the Bay over the last year this statistic was multiplied fourfold said BOPDHB Trauma Service Clinical Nurse Specialist Katrina O'Leary.
"This trend was seen in both the eastern and western Bay, with motorcycle crash sites from Waihau Bay to Waihi Beach," she said.
"Notably the majority of accidents in the region occurred within the urban streets of our district's towns and cities."
The 50 motorcyclists admitted to hospital stayed for an average of five days.
The causes of their accidents were given as:
15 - vehicles pulling across path of motorcycle 10 - alcohol related 9 - excessive speed 7 - hit an object 4 - road conditions 4 - lost traction 1 - medical condition
"Almost a third of motorcycle accidents were due to driver error of oncoming cars," said Ms O'Leary.
Each year every trauma admission to Tauranga and Whakatane hospitals was recorded and analysed by the Trauma Service. Since its inception in 2011 there had been an increasing proportion of accidents involving motorcycles.
The 50 motorcycle accidents formed part of a total 174 motor vehicle crashes on the Bay's roads in 2014. This compared to 162 in 2013. The report covered data in the 12 months to October 31, 2014.
"We found that nearly a third of traffic accident patients in the last 12 months were riding a motorcycle. With the holiday season approaching, and inevitably more vehicle-miles being driven on our roads, it is important for all road users to be aware of the risks and to ride and drive with caution," said Ms O'Leary.
