A while back, some work friends and I used to joke about the scholarly journal we were all writing for, which we referred to as "The Journal Of S**t I Could Have Told You." (Clearly, we thought our opinions were both correct and hilarious.)
And I have to say, if you've spent a good chunk of your life commuting to and from work during the most common commute times in the US, and especially if you've done it on a motorbike, then you may view a new infographic from the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration through a very similar lens.
Yes, those observations I've gleaned over years of commuting are anecdata, and I normally wouldn't put a lot of stock in anecdata because it's never a great sample size, is it? I mean, you can talk about your own experiences, no doubt; but just because it's your experience doesn't automatically mean that it's the same as everyone else's (or anyone else's, even), right?
Back to the NHTSA infographic. The org posted a helpful graphic on its Facebook page yesterday, showing a handy graph of the times of day (according to 2024 data) that it found the most fatal motorcycle crashes to happen on US roadways.
When were the deadliest times? The absolute top of the list, according to NHTSA, is between the hours of 6 p.m. and 8:59 p.m., which is when 23 percent of fatal motorcycle crashes occurred. The second deadliest time was just before that, from 3 p.m. to 5:59 p.m., at 21 percent of fatal crashes.
The third deadliest time was from 9 p.m. to 11:59 p.m., when 16 percent of fatal crashes occurred. And finally, the only other double-digit dangerous time found by NHTSA was from 12 p.m. to 2:59 p.m., when 15 percent of deadly crashes occurred. All the other time ranges reported were in the single digits.
What are two major factors that are often true during the deadliest hours of the day, as calculated by NHTSA? One is, of course, that roadways are more congested because a lot of people are commuting from work or school back home (and maybe hitting some errands along the way). After a long day at work or school, maybe you're anxious to be home, or you have evening plans, or you're in a big hurry for some other reason.
Add to that normal human and environmental factors like fatigue, stress, and of course the sun setting directly in your eyes (and maybe impacting your vision, of course assuming that you're paying attention to the road and not your phone, even if you know you shouldn't be on your phone), and you have a recipe that's almost guaranteed to up the chances of road conflicts. Obviously, you're hoping it's nothing more than some yelling and maybe flipping someone off, but everyone gets home safely.
But clearly sometimes, that's not how it works out. Add up more people (and vehicles) on the road at the same time, along with all the many and various human and environmental circumstances that might come into play, and the math seems pretty obvious.
If you're an experienced rider, chances are good that you already know that you have to ride like there's a target on you at all times. Keep an eye on all traffic around you, observe vehicular body language, try to anticipate what the drivers around you are going to do next, and take appropriate evasive action to stay away from danger.
Wearing all the gear all the time (ATGATT) and incorporating hi-viz into your regular gear routine helps, but it can't do the job alone. Unless you live someplace where there are absolutely no other people on the road, I'm pretty sure you've witnessed all manner of distracted drivers out there by now. Folks who are eating or drinking, playing on their phones, scrolling Facebook Marketplace on their phones (yes, really, I've personally witnessed this more than once), turning around to yell at their kids in the back seat while their foot is still firmly on the gas pedal; you get what I'm saying.
None of us, as much as we might like to, can control how other road users are driving. The only thing we can control is ourselves, and what we choose to do about it. Be ready to act at all times, so that hopefully, you don't have to react in a moment of panic. If a situation is getting hairy, either get ahead of it, or else let it get around you so it's ahead of you and you can keep an eye on it. Sure, you're probably faster than whoever it is that's riding your ass unnecessarily, but do you really want them behind you?
It doesn't matter who's right in a road argument if you end up dead. And if you're the one riding a motorbike and the other person in this hypothetical situation is driving a car, we all know who's more likely to end up seriously injured or killed. I have my pride, sure (we all do), but my pride isn't worth dying over because some idiot was either road raging or just completely unobservant.
Let it go, listen to some music you like to get yourself in a better mood, and go on to ride another day.
