ADDRESS TO CITY COUNCIL (or County Commissioners Court) re: STR signs

Motorcycle Safety and Awareness has been a work in progress for many years. Texas motorcyclists have obtained Proclamations from County Commissioners Courts and City Council Meetings all over the state proclaiming May as Motorcycle Safety and Awareness month. Each year we go back and request these proclamations, hoping to remind residents of each community once again to please be aware of motorcycles on the road. Our goal is a message in the local newspaper, and/or a TV broadcast of the meeting showing our City Council’s support of motorcycle safety & awareness within the community.

The majority of injuries and deaths sustained in motorcycle/4 wheeler accidents happen because the four-wheel driver "did not see" the motorcyclist. We have road signs to watch for (1) ice on bridges; (2) slick roads when wet; (3) pedestrian crossings; (4) trucks that may be crossing the road; and even (5) duck crossing signs … but we don't have enough road signs that alert drivers to watch for motorcyclists.

As the proclamation states, "motorcyclists are roughly unprotected and much more likely to be injured or killed in a crash than other vehicle drivers." Under current law, there is a penalty for failure to yield right of way to any motor vehicle. New motorcycle operators are required to take a safety training course before being licensed. But in order to effectively decrease motorcycle injuries & fatalities, there needs to be equal consideration given to increasing driver awareness.

Cities in Texas can help by simply installing "Share the Road" signs at major entrances, exits and intersections where motorcycles frequently enter & exit onto a roadway. These signs are made to TXDOT specifications, but are not approved to be placed OUTSIDE of city limits or on state highways. Placed within city limits, they are effective in decreasing motorcycle injuries & fatalities.

To date there have been over 230 STR signs installed in 35 cities around the state. We would ask this City Council to please seriously consider putting up as many signs as it believes this City would need to protect the motorcyclists who live in this community, as well as those visiting and those simply passing through.

My name, address, contact numbers and email address are on the back of the attachments I have provided for you. If you have any questions or need any additional information, please let me know. Thank you for your time.

NOTES:

**Have someone distribute handouts to each member of the City Council as you begin your presentation so they will have a visual aid to look at while listening to your information.

*Make sure your name & contact info is printed on each handout.

**If you have any newspaper articles of motorcyclists who were injured or killed in your city recently, make a copy of the article and include it with your other handouts.

**Best to have as many local riders as possible show up for this presentation.