I've recently started commuting on my bicycle again. My new commute takes me through some heavy traffic zones, which isn't really a problem, as I'm reasonably comfortable in traffic. And ride as if I was invisible.

A friend at work has purchased a motorcycle, we've discussed riding etc and it seems that the experiences are simular. Many times on my commute, I wonder if I could keep up with traffic, if I would be safer.

So, what do you all think, which is more dangerous, motorcycle or bicycle. Assuming that both are ridden in a defensive manner.

I think a motorcycle as there is more opportunity for mechanical failure, speeds are higher, clothing is usually not bright colored, cars aren't looking for you (this last one is same for a bike though admittedly). I have had many more stop your heart moments on a motorcycle than a bicycle. You run all the same risks but at higher speeds so thus the capacity to be seriously injured is greater.

I have two of each and 99% of the time commute on the bicycle. Since my commute is only 5 miles and parking at my destination is a complete nightmare the bicycle is actually faster than the motorcycle. As far as safety... I guess I'd think the motorcycle is marginally safer only the sole reasoning that no one is over-taking you on the road as you go. Only thing you have to worry is people turning in front of you (extremely common) and people rearending you which you also have to worry about on the bike. But on the bike you have people's side mirrors wizzing by 6 inches away constantly. This all assumes that you have no smaller / less busy roads you can take.

I'd vote for the bicycle being more dangerous.

It's not so much speed that makes the difference as it is speed differential. You may be going faster on a motorcycle but my gut-instinct tells me you're still safer travelling at the speed of traffic on a motorcycle than you are having cars blow by you at 2x (or more) your speed.

Then, of course, you have gear to add to the equation. I never ride my motorcycle in less than full gear (leathers or cordura jacket/pants, gloves, boots, full-face helmet), that makes a big difference in crashes as compared to a bicycle where the only protective gear I have is a cycling helmet.

-Trevor

don't know about statistics but I've seen a lot more motorcycle accidents than I have bike ones, and to me the motorcycling accidents are much worse. if anything get a vespa man.

Dangerous = at higher risk...

I suspect there isn't a simple, one-size-fits-all answer as it depends on the types of roads, density and speed of the traffic, the time of day, and of course your experience and skill as a pilot on the motorized or non-motorized machine.

That said, I suspect if you checked the stats, you're probably far more likely to have an accident on a motorcycle than the bicycle. As a subset of the motor vehicle accident stats, motorcycles are probably involved in more accidents with other vehicle traffic than bicycles because they interact directly with the motoring public and compete for the same lane space. In either case, you're more likely to be seriously injured in the less frequent encounter between your bicycle or motorcycle and a car.

But, for sake of argument....

Highest risk / frequency = bicyclists and pedestrians in dense urban areas.

Highest risk / severity = motorcycles ridden on multi-lane highways or through highway intersections during rush hour.

Lowest risk / frequency = motorcycle in rural/suburban/urban areas on two lane roads in light to moderate traffic.

Lowest risk / severity = bicycle in light rural/suburban/urban areas on two lane roads in light to moderate traffic.

Oh yea, I do a short training ride on my bicycle at 4:30am before hopping on my motorcycle for my commute to work at 6:15. Rural/Sub-development areas near home and four lane city roads closer to work.

I think a motorcycle is much, much safer. With the motor you have the option of staying with or ahead of traffic. You don't have to ride to the extreme right of the lane as cars squeeze by. On the pedals you're at the complete and total mercy of every car that overtakes you, zipping by inches away with enough speed differential energy to knock you out of this life with the merest inattention/indifference of the driver.

Even so I enjoy riding the pedal bike so much more than a motorcycle.

I have commuted on both motorcycles and bicycles for 15 years. I no longer ride a motorcycle. While it is obvious that you are very exposed on a bicycle, you are just as exposed on a motorcycle. A drunk running up behind your honda a 100 mph on the freeway is just as bad as a geriatric running up on your Surly at 30 mph on the street. An oncoming car crossing into your lane is just as bad as a truck swerving into the bike lane. On a motorcycle you do have the power to get ahead and stay ahead of traffic. But on a bicycle you have the option of riding the side walk if traffic is truly horrific. Running into something or loosing control and crashing on a bicycle sucks bad enough. But running into something or loosing control of and crashing on a motorcycle - while travelling 3 or 4 times the speed - sucks even worse. You stand a much better chance of walking away from the former. DanO

My question stemmed from an incident on my commute this morning.

Waiting at a light behind a bus, since the bus was slow, i decided to take the lane behind it (I was not drafting). Figuring that since it was a bus most people would naturally want to move over. Most people did. Young punk, to make a point shoves his car into my space from behind, leaving me inches. Then looks at me before passing. Essentially, stating that I had no right to the lane. So he passes me, then has to immediately change lanes to get around the bus. Besides anger, I wondered, would that of happend if I had been on a motorcyle?

Interesting responses, thanks.

It's quite possible that someone that inconsiderate would have treated you the same way regardless if you had an engine beneath you or not. When I commuted on a motorcycle I twice had people encroach into half of the lane I was riding in while passing me at high speed - and coming quite close to hitting me in the process. Perhaps they felt justified because they sometimes get passed by motorcycles splitting lanes - that is, sharing the same lane with a car when traffic slows or stops altogether. Perhaps they simply didn't care if they frightened and/or endangered me by their reckless driving. It is also possible they - as well as the young man who offended you - had been likewise offended by a motorcyclist or bicyclist in the past. That's the reason I do my best not to offend anyone in a car. This includes running traffic lights and stop signs or otherwise taking someone elses right of way. Even if they don't catch up to me, they might take it out on the next cyclist they encounter.

Tagging on to DanO220's comments, I think his description of being on a motorcycle and having a car encroach on your "space" (aka, cut you off) is very typical and it doesn't matter if you're riding a pink BMW in a neon Aerostich jumpsuit or a black Harley with 120db's of exhaust note. It happened to me two nights ago and it's not at all unusual when you're in late afternoon city traffic approach intersections and some idiot in a cage decides to jump into the left lane so they don't have to slow down for traffic turning right at the light, or on the freeway as traffic begins to slow in their lane.

I would also note that your description of riding a bicycle and having a car encroach on your space is also not that unusual. The HUGE difference is, in the motorcycle scenario the motorist does a quick check of the mirror and fails to check their blind spot and litterally cuts you off while you're both rolling along in traffic at 25 - 70+ mph. The results can range from either one or both of you making a minor evasive manuever to avoid a collision to an accident from which you as the motorcyclist will lose in ugly fashion: there's a reason that first responders and troopers call it scraping 'em off the road.

In the bicycle scenario, what you usually have is a motorist who not only sees you, but who makes a conscious decision to share the lane. However, the big difference is, the latter happens as you describe it, while stopped in traffic or while taking the left lane to make a left turn. These encounters are usually more psychologically upsetting than they are physically harmful.

As for the left hook, cyclists and motorcyclists are equally at risk in this scenario. The biggest difference in terms of "danger" is the severity of the injuries that will result from the speeds involved. If you're riding on a motorcycle at 30 mph and T-bone a car that pulls out in front of you you'll fly just as far as you would on a bicycle travelling at 30 mph. If and how much protective gear you wear on the motorcycle is about the only thing that will mitigate some of the trauma from the impacts with the car, ground, and any other cars or objects that you hit (or that hit you) along during your trajectory.

According to bare statistics, an hour of riding a bike is about equal in danger of death as an hour of driving a car.

According to the same statistics, riding a motorcycle is about 30 times the risk of death of driving or cycling.

("Why is motorcycling so dangerous if you are keeping up with traffic?" you ask. The answer: speed kills.)

But statistics aside, motorcycling is a totally different animal from bicycling. The main difference: the motor.

I have more experience on motorcycles than on bicycles. In my opinion bicycles are far more dangerous than motorcycles. My experience has been most car drivers are more cautious around a motorcyclist than a bicyclist. That being said I would still rather ride a bicycle than a motorcycle. Motorcycles can become quite expensive: insurance, monthly payment, maintenance, essential accessories....(and it goes on & on) Bicycles have also provided me with health benefits that I would not otherwise have acquire riding a motorcycle. (But I am still love them)
ON A MOTORCYCLE YOU HAVE MORE DEFENSIVE OPTIONS. Motorcycles like bicycles can be ridden safely, but accidents do happen even if you do everything correctly.

Bicycle- Miyata 1000LT

Motorcycles- Honda 400 (minimum size needed for highway use- or trucks will blow
you off the roadway)

Suzuki GS1000 E
Honda GoldWing 1500

Yup. I was originally thinking about statistics based on motorcycle ownership that I had recently seen when I first posted my note regarding frequency of accidents for cars v motorcycles v bicycles. I've since adjusted my data...

FWIW: If you drill down on the motorcycle statistics using "per hour of exposure" or "miles ridden" instead of using the number of motorcycles licensed and owned as part of the equation you find that riding a motorcyle makes you twice as likely to be involved in an accident than if you drove a car. If that's not bad enough, you're six times more likely to be injuried as a result of those accidents than a motorist, and four times more likely to be killed.

I think that if you can safely ride a bicycle in traffic that you will also be able to ride a motorcycle safely too,

I agree with Lt.Gustl - As far as staristics go, you will have to make your own judgement call on acceptable risks. If you are going to worry about the risks then please don't ride. Ride what you will enjoy.
Keep in mind the records on motorcycle accidents are probably more accurate than for bicyclists: the DOT and the insurance industry have a large interest in the accident rates for motorcycles. As for fatalities, when you are on a motorcycle or on a bicycle you are afforded little protection. If you get into an accident with a car it is likely to be serious - You have to be defensive and use good judgement at all times.

Thinking about it a little more I think it really depends on the road conditions where you ride. If there aren't any cars around then the pedal bike is much safer. If the roads have a good shoulder then the pedal bike is probably still safer. If it's like around here where the roads are narrow with no shoulders and twist and turn and bicycles are rare then the motorcycle is safer. I've ridden motorcyle and bicycle for over 40 years and wouldn't think twice about riding the motorcycle on any road. For the bicycle probably half the roads in a 20 mile radius of me I would consider strictly off limits and about half of the rest I try to avoid.

So how do we get the state to make the roads that are reasonably safe for bicycles?

Response to message #9-
Young Punk may have had too many lumps in his oat meal that morning. Cars will cut off other cars for no apparent reason as well as motorcycles and bicycles- The driver could not be thinking, or could be having a bad day. Unfortunately, exposure to these drivers is common place no matter what you drive or ride.
To answer your message- Too many drivers see bicycles as toys, rather than as a mode of transportation. I believe the average car driver is more accepting of sharing the road with a motorcycle. But the average is not everybody and we all run into wingnuts and hot heads from time to time.

It depends on how you ride. There are too many cyclists out there who are just plain dangerous and are looking to become road kill. I also see many motor cycles, especially those with racing bikes who think they're the next coming of the fast and the furious! I find the saftest motor cyclists are those riding around with huge cruisers going at or slower than traffic.

That said, if you're going to ride a motorcycle, you might as well get the loudest muffler because that may very well save your life.

Safest is bicycle with a handgun.

Actually looked at a motorcycle, went back to the shop a few times. I didn't buy it because i realized as i looked at the bike that one day, eventually, i would wreck. I decided i didn't want to do that.

Looking at a bicycle u can say the same thing; which would you rather wreck on a bicycle going 15 or a motorcycle going 40?

I'd be so dangerous on a motorcycle, at least if I rode it how I ride my bike (hardly ever stopping, moving through every gap in traffic I can find,etc)

A guy who used to work for my dad once told me there were two types of motorcyclists - those that have wrecked, and those that will. He had two bikes, one was a cheap yamaha dirt bike or something, the other was a harley. He wrecked the dirt bike every time that he got on it, he wrecked the harley once a week...

Can anyone point us some statistics that compare bicycle versus motorcycle safety? I do know that the most common way to loose a limb traumatically is riding a motorcycle. I lost my left leg below the knee in an automobile accident and as a result I have met a quite a few people who have lost a leg in a motorcycle accident though actually the most common way to loose a leg overall is through circular problem mostly from diabetes. I have never known of anyone loosing a limb through bicycling. Death is the most common result of a well publicized bicycle versus automobile accident.

I like to think being on the right side of the white line seperting bike lanes from the road gives us a safety margin. ? Motorbikes crash faster than road bikes, except on a steep downhill.
Motorbikes no appeal to me...Pedals don't turn and they are loud and emit smoke.

Very few roads with white lines around here.

For me the biggest danger on a motorcycle is something (car, deer, etc.) suddenly appearing in front of me. On a bicycle the biggest danger is a being hit by a passing car. On wider roads with shoulders the bicycle feels pretty safe. On narrow roads with blind spots, no shoulders, and heavy traffic the bicycle feels suicidal.

IF you get a motor, take the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF, aka MOST) course! Even if you used to ride years ago, it's a great idea to take a refresher course!


And yet, I see many idiots who think their scooter is just a chair on wheels.

A 30mph crash is a 30mph crash, regardless if it's a bike, scooter or motor. Wear proper protection, always.

If you're wearing motorcycle boots, DOT+SNELL helmet, plus body armor (at least the jacket and jeans), there's no way you can say a bicycle is safer. I've gone down twice on my motorcycle and have had far worse wrecks on my mtb. Haven't gone down on my roadie yet.