Police Hit the Street Friday in First Motorcycle Safety Sweep of May

On Friday morning, Pasadena police officers will be watching for the same behavior that California traffic researchers say kills more motorcycle riders than any other: drivers who never noticed the motorcycle was there.

The Pasadena Police Department is launching its first motorcycle safety enforcement operation of May on Friday, May 1, with officers specifically targeting violations — by both drivers and riders — that are most likely to cause crashes.

The department will deploy extra officers citywide throughout the month as part of Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, funded by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The stakes, according to state and federal data, are not abstract. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 6,335 motorcyclists were killed in traffic crashes across the United States in 2023 — 15 percent of all highway fatalities that year, despite motorcycles representing just a fraction of registered vehicles. In California, the California Office of Traffic Safety reported 583 riders died on state roads in 2023, more than one per day.

The top crash factor in California, according to University of California, Berkeley’s Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC), is unsafe speed, involved in 28.2 percent of fatal and serious injury motorcycle crashes in 2023. Improper turning and right-of-way violations follow closely, patterns that researchers associate with crashes in which a driver fails to yield to an oncoming motorcyclist.

“Motorcyclists are out in greater numbers as the weather warms, and we’re reminding everyone to share the road,” said Lieutenant Mathew Campeau of the Pasadena Police Department. “Most crashes involving motorcycles happen when drivers simply don’t see them. Taking a few extra seconds to look twice can prevent a tragedy.”

The department has identified five leading crash factors: unsafe speed, improper turning, right-of-way violations, driving under the influence, and unsafe lane changes. PPD is urging drivers to check mirrors and blind spots before changing lanes, maintain following distance behind motorcycles, and not assume a motorcycle with a turn signal on is actually turning before proceeding. For riders, the department recommends wearing a U.S. DOT-compliant helmet with eye protection, keeping headlights on during the day, wearing protective clothing with reflective details, and never riding impaired.

Friday’s enforcement operation will run throughout the city. Additional patrol operations are expected throughout May.

The program is funded by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, according to the Pasadena Police Department. The Pasadena Police Department’s traffic section can be reached at (626) 744-7159.

California’s 583 motorcycle deaths in 2023, while a 10.2 percent drop from the 649 killed in 2022, were still nearly 19 percent higher than the 491 riders who died in 2019 — a reminder, as warm weather returns and riding season opens, of how far the numbers still have to fall.