In 2010 the Swedish riders’ organisation – Sveriges MotorCyklister (SMC) – commissioned a survey to find out the views of motorcyclists regarding advanced rider training.
1733 Swedish motorcyclists responded to the web questionnaire which focused on their opinions about the impact of advanced training. The survey was compiled and analyzed by Right To Ride’s Director of Research, Dr Elaine Hardy.
The results, which indicated a beneficial effect of the training lessons, was presented to the 1800 participants of the VTI (Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute) Transport Forum, the biggest of its kind in Sweden.
In the SMC survey about 70% of the respondents stated that they have participated in some sort of advanced training for motorcyclists.
The responses clearly demonstrate that participants of advanced training courses feel more secure and confident about the handling of their bike.
Two thirds are of the opinion that the risk of accident involvement reduces after an advanced course.
More than 70% say that advanced training gave them improved abilities to avoid critical situations.
Almost 90% of the survey participants stated that their skills had improved after advanced training.
A high number also pointed out that they had gained important tools to focus better on traffic situations as a result of advanced training.
The booklet “Full Control” that is sent out to SMC members with the MC magazine MC-Folket, was also considered to have improved their knowledge about motorcycling.
Less Motorcycle Accidents in Sweden
“This is a very good rating for the courses we offer in the SMC School. The result also shows that motorcyclists are safety oriented” says Jesper Christensen, General Secretary of SMC.
“Every year thousands of motorcyclists make huge investments of time and money to improve their own safety with motorcycle training courses. The results show a clear trend towards an increased safety consciousness among motorcyclists and today we are indeed observing a significant drop of killed and severely injured motorcyclists in accident statistics.”
The study reveals that most people ride a motorcycle because it is fun or because it provides a sense of freedom.
Participation in advanced training makes it even more fun to ride a bike.
The study also shows that the majority of the respondents considered renewing their skills through training on a regular basis to be helpful.
For the SMC study – SMC Survey of Motorcyclists and their views on Advanced Training – 2011 pdf 1.4mb
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