Excitement is building ahead of the second National Young Rider Day, which takes place on 1 October.
Founded by the National Young Rider Forum (NYRF) in 2023, the purpose of Young Rider Day is to focus exclusively on riders aged 16-24 years, who typically ride bikes of 125cc or less.
Young motorcyclists feature in more road crashes than young drivers, despite accounting for less than 1% of all traffic using the road network.
In support of the day, events (both online and in person) are being hosted across the country.
On 30 September, Essex Police and the Safer Essex Roads Partnership will be delivering a P2W Roadshow at the Colchester Institute and Writtle College, Chelmsford.
Attendees will get the chance to use a P2W Simulator – used originally for police rider training purposes – to test their muscle memory, reflexes, skill sets.
Attendees will also be asked to complete a survey before and after the event, to gain data on expectations from the session and reflections afterwards.
Meanwhile, the variety of events will culminate in a specially designed online event, for young people who could already be motorcyclists or are thinking of becoming one.
The Young Rider Webinar is being organised by the Warwickshire Safer Roads Partnership and registration remains open.
Cllr Andy Crump, portfolio holder for community safety at Warwickshire County Council, said: “Young riders are amongst our road users of the future and at 16 years old their lack of road experience and influence from other internal and external factors, can make them particularly vulnerable.
“It is therefore so important that they receive proper advice and guidance before taking their bike out onto our busy road network and this free webinar is an excellent opportunity to support them, and their families, so they can feel well prepared, confident and safe.”
The day has been scheduled to fall within the National Police Chiefs’ Council’s Young Driver & Young Rider Operation, which runs between 23 September and 6 October 2024.
Police forces supporting the campaign will be engaging with young riders to discuss important topics such as PPE, bike maintenance, Highway Code knowledge and riding while under the influence of drink or drugs.
Many of those subjects can contribute to a young rider being involved in a crash and police officers will be signposting riders to the NYRF website for further information.
For any stakeholders interested in supporting the campaign – both with events and on social media – a toolkit is available to download via the Warwickshire Road Safety Partnership website.
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