Compulsory Retests for Older Drivers? Other news 18 January 202418 January 2024 The family of a couple killed by an 80-year-old driver have called for compulsory retests for older motorists. At the moment, drivers and motorcyclists over 70 simply have to renew their licence every three years, declaring that they are fit to drive, including to an eyesight standard. Roger and Christine Barton were killed when 80-year-old Michael Hamburger pulled out in front of their VW Tiguan, which was pushed into the opposite lane of traffic and struck by another car. Winchester Court heard that Mr Hamburger had an “unobstructed” 500-metre view of traffic in clear and dry conditions. Georgina Abbot, daughter of the Bartons, said, “I think we should all be retested at a certain age. Relying on a driver to declare their
Dazzling Headlights Getting Worse – RAC survey Other news 17 January 202418 January 2024 The RAC is calling on the Government to run an independent study into the issue of headlight glare, after a survey in November 2023 found that 85% of drivers affected said they thought the problem was getting worse. The survey of 2000 drivers, commissioned by the RAC, found that 89% stated that some car headlights are too bright, with three in four of those they were dazzled regularly. More than two-thirds said they had to slow down until they could see clearly again. About the same proportion (68%) said it took between one and five seconds before their sight recovered, while more one in ten said it took six or more, quite sobering when you think how far a 60mph car
London Tops the Slow Charts Other news 16 January 202418 January 2024 It’s official, London’s streets are the slowest in the world. That’s according to a survey by sat nav maker Tom Tom, which analysed traffic speeds in 387 cities across 55 countries. That showed a typical three-mile journey through the capital taking 24 minutes at an “optimal traffic time,” (ie not rush hour) and 49 minutes for a six-mile trip. During rush hour, time spent on the six-mile commute stretched to 88 minutes – nearly an hour and a half – with average speeds in the city centre typically 15mph. The chronic traffic congestion also led to more pollution, with London, closely followed by Paris, coming out as the biggest emitter of CO2 emissions among the cities analysed. An average petrol car
Honda Tempts New Riders with All-In Finance Package Other news 15 January 202418 January 2024 The BMF has welcomed Honda’s New Rider Programme, which aims to simplify the process of getting on the road as well as spreading the cost. The new package seeks to tempt novice riders into motorcycling with an all-in-one finance package which includes a new bike, training, and riding kit. The company hopes that, as well as spreading the sometimes-daunting upfront costs over a longer period, this all-in-one package will simplify the whole process of getting on the road for the first time. The New Rider Programme is being offered by the Honda School of Motoring, which can provide tailored packages to suit complete beginners or those who already have their CBT or A2 licence and want to progress. Instruction takes place at
BMF joins JCB, AA and others to launch National Pothole Partnership BMF News 15 January 2024 To launch National Pothole Day and the start of the new National Pothole partnership, Paul Morgan from BMF attended a media event earlier this morning in Staffordshire alongside representatives from JCB, the AA and Staffordshire County Council. Today's event was held to highlight the new Pothole Partnership between Road User organisations, including the British Motorcyclists Federation, the National Motorcyclists Council and to provide a demonstration of the capabilities of JCB's new "Pothole Pro" machine that can repair a pothole in only 8 minutes to provide a permanent and effective repair rather than the temporary "patch and dash" approach that has often been employed by local authorities. The aim of the new partnership is to bring together the key players in one
No extra European import taxes on US motorcycles (yet) FEMA News 15 January 202415 January 2024 The European Union has decided to extend the suspension of its rebalancing tariffs on US products, such as Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In 2018, the then president Trump signed two proclamations to impose additional duties of 10% and 25% respectively on certain imports of aluminium and steel products into the United States, introducing tariffs on €6.4 billion of European steel and aluminium exports. These measures followed investigations carried out by the US Department of Commerce, which concluded that imports of these products threatened US national security and recommended action to restrict imports. In response, the European Union introduced rebalancing tariffs on US exports to the EU of a value of €2.8 billion; this included import tariffs for US products such as Harley-Davidson motorcycles, making
New National Partnership to fight POTHOLES #nationalpotholeday BMF News 15 January 202415 January 2024 BMF joins new National Partnership between Road User organisations, including the National Motorcyclists Council, and the road repair industry to press Government and Local Authorities to deliver effective and permanent road repairs through a comprehensive 5-Point Plan launched today on "National Pothole Day." Paul Morgan CBE, Government Relations Executive, British Motorcyclists Federation said: “Potholes and other road surface related defects are extremely dangerous for motorcyclists and the top concern for BMF members. Action is needed now to urgently clear the backlog of repairs and address the appalling state of UK roads. We call on Government to front-load the £8.3billion funding that has recently been announced for road repairs and to prioritise the necessary work to make the UK road network safe
NMC in New National Partnership to Tackle Pothole Epidemic NMC News 15 January 2024 Shock figures on National Pothole Date (15th January) show pothole damage at record high New Pothole Partnership formed with 5-point plan AA Pothole Index shows 2023 worst for 5 years for car damage Damage to vehicles estimated at almost half a billion pounds Motorcyclists and Cyclists most at risk of injury A new partnership has been launched today (15 January) between road user organisations and the road repairs industry to help tackle the scourge of potholes, as shock new figures from the AA show pothole damage to vehicles has hit a five year high. The Pothole Partnership has been formed by the AA, the National Motorcyclists Council, British Cycling, IAM RoadSmart, the British Motorcyclists Federation and manufacturer
Verge Claims New 360-Vision Radar Tech NMC News 12 January 202429 February 2024 A motorcycle that can alert the rider potholes is the claim of Finnish manufacturer Verge, whose TS Ultra is a state of the art electric bike. There’s nothing new about using radar technology on bikes – Yamaha, BMW and Ducati, amongst others, already fit radar systems to warn the rider of nearby traffic which could be out of view. Verge’s ‘Starmatter Vision’ tech claims to be a major advance on all of these, with a promised 360-degree view around the bike. Front and rear radars plus six cameras feed data to a central computer on the bike, which is combined with data from sensors, processed and then fed to the rider as visual information on the TFT screen, or as an
Help STOP Camden bike charges! BMF News 12 January 2024 Help STOP Camden bike charges! Camden Council have brought forward new proposals for motorcycle parking charges. We need YOU to help stop the charges! This might not directly affect you, but if we don't fight parking charges wherever they appear they will spread, including to your local area. Please sign and share the petition from our friends at Save London Motorcycling against the charges. It should only take 30 seconds of your time! Find out more and sign the petition against the plans at... savelondonmc.com/camden/petition Camden tried to bring in motorcycle parking charges 2020. It was a petition just like this that stopped them, with your help we can stop them again! A quick reminder of Camden’s plans: parking permits for residents', businesses' and doctors' motorcycles the same
Yamaha Boss Downplays Hydrogen Other news 11 January 202410 January 2024 Eric de Seynes, Yamaha’s European President and Chairman of its supervisory board, has downplayed the potential role of hydrogen as an alternative fuel for bikes, highlighting the many practical difficulties. “Hydrogen is obviously a next-generation technology, but it requires a lot of energy (to produce),” he said when interviewed by Motorcycle News. “So until the world is producing more energy, cleaner energy, green energy, hydrogen is a dream. We know how to make a scooter run with hydrogen, how it works and how we can manage it. But to make it real for our customers is another story.” He added that hydrogen needs three times the space of petrol for storage and if kept in liquid form needs to be cryogenically
Fibre Optic Lasers coming for bikes Other news 10 January 2024 Bright, long-lasting LED lights may now be standard issue on modern motorcycles, but the next generation of illumination is already under development – lasers. Some cars have already have laser headlights, which offer a brighter light even than the latest LEDs, illuminating the road up to 600 metres ahead. So far they haven’t made it onto bikes, thanks to bulky packaging and a high price, though BMW showed a K1600GT with prototype laser headlight in 2016. However, we could see laser lights on motorcycles before too long, with two major manufacturers having submitted patent applications which look like serious production options. Both Honda and Yamaha are developing systems which place the bulky laser unit under the seat, rather than try and