This is probably going to be the most exciting blog ever, where I go over all the numbers, stats and conclusions I've drawn from my survey. Three hundred sixty-five respondents X 7 questions = 2555 answers to talk about. Told you it was going to be interesting. So after way more people than necessary responding to my survey and SurveyMonkey shafting me for £25 to see all the responses I've finally analysed all the results, and annoyingly it isn't quite what I'd hoped for. When only 40 or so people had responded to my survey there were a few clear answers and conclusions that were more frequent; the most common cause of accidents was being rear-ended by cars in residential areas, CBT's were considered too easy to obtain, gears & cancelling indications were the toughest parts to master when learning to ride. Well, now that there are more respondents, it seems tricky to pull any overwhelming conclusion. Answers vary too much, with very few strong categories standing out. Below are the questions to the survey and how people answered:
Q1 - How Much Experience Do You Have Riding Motorbikes?
Beginner/Still Learning: 3.88%
<2 Years: 6.65%
2 - 5 Years: 12.75%
5 - 10 Years: 15.24%
10 + Years: 61.50%
Q2 - What Got You Interested In Riding Motorbikes? (Answers sorted into general categories)
Family/Partners: 29%
Just cool aren't they?: 27.7%
Freedom: 14.4%
Cheap Transport: 12.2%
Friends: 9.4%
Racing/Sport: 5.2%
Country: 2.1%
Q3 - What Did You Find Most Difficult When Learning To Ride Motorbikes?
Complex Manoeuvres: 22.4%
Nothing: 18%
Slow Riding: 11.48%
Other Road Users: 10.66%
Clutch Control: 8.47%
Gears: 5.74%
Corners: 5.46%
Speed Limits: 4.1%
Cost: 3.28%
Weather: 3%
Dealing With Instructors: 2.12%
Staying Aware: 1.9%
The CBT: 1.37%
Braking: 1.1%
Indicators: 0.5%
Hill Starts: 0.42%
Q4 - What do you find to be the biggest issue facing motorbike riders today?
Other Road Users: 78.9%
Road Conditions:13.24%
Theft: 3.24%
'Nanny State'/Legislation: 1.62%
Lack of Training: 1.62%
Bad Reputation: 0.5%
Nothing: 0.5%
Drugs: 0.27%
Weather: 0.11%
Q5 - Do you think it's too easy to obtain your Compulsory Basic Training (CBT)?
Yes: 31.69%
No: 68.31%
Q6 - Have you ever been involved in an incident on a motorbike?
Yes: 67.92%
No: 32.08%
Q7 - If yes, what happened?
This question is quite tricky, to sum up into subcategories, as everyone has a slightly different experience, even if the fundamentals of the crash were the same. Most people talk about crashes in low-speed & residential areas with cars that didn't see them, rather than anything at high speed.
Regarding the crashes that were at high speed, most seem to be down to rider error - taking corners too fast, skidding out, slipping on diesel etc.
As I've said previously, there are a load of conclusions and design ideas that can be taken from this information, and even though it proves what I already was the case with most bikers, it's nice to hear opinions from people active within the community.
What I would like to look into next is the opinions of pillion riders (passengers). Not just those on the back of motorbikes, but maybe also trikes and sidecar users.
I'd also like to look more into what gets people riding. I know I asked why people ride, but I want to look more into the passion behind it. Unlike driving a car, riding a motorbike is far more of a lifestyle rather than just a way to get from point A to B. The same way you might tour in exotic cars, there is a vast subculture around motorbiking holidays, and it costs nowhere the same amount as driving supercars.
Quite a few people mentioned throughout the survey that they feel enough young people aren't taking up motorbike riding. The blamed government legislation, a timely licence structure, costs and parental fears, so I also want to look into how to get more of my generation to look at biking differently from just organ donation.
That's it for today's blog - I promise the next one will be more interesting.
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Cover Photo Image:
Murch, B. (2010) Member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, Argentina. Available at: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hells_Angels_MC_Argentina.jpg (Accessed:25/10/2019).
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