Several motorcycle deaths throughout the Treasure Valley over the last week or so are causing alarm and raising questions about safety.
In a little over a week, five people around the Valley were killed in motorcycle accidents: three in Boise, one in Canyon County and another in Boise County.
The five deaths in such a short amount of time are particularly surprising given there were just five motorcycle deaths across the Treasure Valley in all of 2010.
Motorcycle experts and police both say there’s no one thing they can point to as the reason for the sudden spike in crashes. They say the value of proper training on motorcycles can’t be understated.
According to the Statesman, motorcyclists in the Gem State must pass a written test and a skills test, and that’s it. Police who ride motorcycles undergo a two-week training course to master their BMW bikes and subsequently participate in up to 80 hours per year of additional vehicle exercises.
A majority of the riders recently killed were not wearing helmets. While Idaho law does not require motorcyclists to wear a helmet, countless studies have shown wearing a helmet reduces the chance of death or serious injury on a bike.
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