Allstate Installs Permanent Warning Signs to Promote Motorcycle Safety at Dangerous Intersections in Dallas

These signs will be permanently installed today in Grand Prairie, Texas at the corner of E. Main St. and 14th St.

DALLAS – In an effort to help standardize warning signs for motorcycle safety and help reduce the number of motorcycle crashes at intersections involving other vehicles, Allstate Insurance Company announced earlier this month plans to permanently install motorcycle warning signs in more than 30 U.S. cities this year. Currently, there is no standard sign for motorcycle awareness.

The yellow, diamond shaped warning sign was created following two years of development, which included 140 temporary installations in various U.S. cities between 2010 and 2011.  The signs were designed to establish a standardized warning device that can be used by any local or state agency and would be recognizable to riders and motorists across the country.  Simply reading, “Watch for Motorcycles,” the sign was developed by Allstate as part of its “Once is Never Enough” (ONE) program – an awareness campaign that encourages people to look twice for motorcycles at intersections – and are being donated and installed  in Dallas to help prevent motorcycle crashes in the future.

According to the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), there were 569 crashes involving a motorcyclist in Dallas County in 2010, and of those crashes, 35 percent occurred at intersections.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 46 percent of all multi-vehicle crashes occur at intersections, oftentimes as a result of a vehicle turning left, impeding the motorcyclist’s right-of-way.

[If you've been involved in a motorcycle accident, contact Texas Biker Lawyer]

“It’s for all of us who share the road to remember to always look twice at intersections, especially on our crowded roads,” said Dusty Wallace, Allstate Agent.  “The addition of these motorcycle warning signs will be a great reminder to help keep everyone safe.”

Through its ONE program, Allstate works with local traffic authorities – like TxDOT – to identify dangerous intersections for riders and then donates and installs warning signs at the determined locations to increase awareness of motorcycles.

The signs will be permanently installed today in Grand Prairie, Texas at the corner of E. Main St. and 14th St.  Additional signs will be installed in Dallas during the coming weeks.

In honor of National Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, Allstate is also encouraging people throughout the month of May to take the ONE Pledge – committing to look twice for motorcycles at intersections – and share with at least ONE other person to spread the message. For every pledge shared, Allstate will donate ONE dollar toward the creation and installation of more “Watch for Motorcycles” signs at dangerous intersections across the country. To take the ONE Pledge and help make our roads a safer place to ride, visit Facebook.com/AllstateMotorcycle.

Now in its fourth year, Allstate’s ONE program has evolved from general motorcycle awareness education, to installing temporary warning signs at dangerous intersections in more than 30 cities over the past two years, to the permanent installations of the new warning signs promoting motorcycle safety.

*The Fatality Analysis Reporting System shows 46 percent of all multi-vehicle motorcycle fatalities (5,746 out of 12,571 fatalities from 2006-2010) occurred at intersections.


***FACT SHEET***
Dallas County Crash Statistics
Provided by Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)

• According to TxDOT, there were 569 motorcycle crashes documented in Dallas County in 2010
• Of the documented crashes, 33 resulted in a fatality (6 percent)
• In nearly two-thirds of the motorcycle crashes, another vehicle was involved (362 out of 569)
• According to national figures from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) Encyclopedia, 54 percent of fatal motorcycle crashes were multi-vehicle crashes
• Thirty-five percent of all motorcycle crashes occurred at intersections (199 of 569)
• The goal of Once is Never Enough (ONE) is to prevent motorcycle collisions with other vehicles at intersections
• In 2010, more than half of the Dallas County motorcycle crashes (312 of 569) took place in Dallas, and 10 percent (56 of 569) occurred in Irving

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(Allstate Press Release, Beaman & Taylor,  May 29, 2012)

Have You Had Your Bike Checked?

Back in October we reported that Harley-Davidson had recalled over 300,000 motorcycles for a possible brake failure. Fox News had shared the information that there was a switch problem that can cause failure of the brake lights and possibly even the brakes themselves.

This recall applies to HD Touring, CVO Touring, and Trikes from 2009 thru 2012 model years.  So we ask, "Have you gotten your bike checked out?"  You would have received notification in the mail directly from Harley-Davidson, and it should have directed you to reputable dealers that would install a new switch kit free of charge.

Texas Biker Lawyers of the Cole Legal Group know a thing or two about the dangers of manufacturers defects, and we take recalls seriously.  Automotive defects can cause catastrophic injuries and even death.  Brake failure tops a list of common defects that statistically claims numerous injury victims.

While proving these cases can be difficult, the Cole Legal Group is committed to improving vehicle safety and protecting Texans from these unsafe defects and designs. We will immediately secure and inspect your vehicle for manufacturing or design defects to purse justice from the auto manufacturer, distributor, or retailer who contributed to your injuries.

It's a different story when the manufacturer offers up a recall notice.  They're not always the first to find out about product defects, as many of those victims of the statistics can attest.  We advise you to check your bike out soon, before you make that trek to one of the many summer motorcycle rallies going on this year.

If you've been involved in a motorcycle accident in Texas, contact an attorney with riding experience.

Annual 'Party in the Pines' Memorial Day Weekend returning to East Texas

They ride fast and close, and they make it look easy.

That’s how Rodney Blackwell described a new addition to the annual Party in the Pines motorcycle rally, which returns for its seventh year May 25 to- 27 at the Longview Fairgrounds.

Blackwell, who is chairman of the event for the League of Business Owners, said between 2,500 and 3,000 motorcyclists attend each year. This is the first time the rally will feature the drill team of the Glory Bound Chapter of the Christian Motorcyclists Association.

It’s hard to describe what the drill team does, Blackwell said, “other than to say they drive very fast, very close together, and they make it look easy.”

“It should be interesting to watch,” he said.

Glory Bound is based in Wichita Falls, and its drill team formed about three years ago.

“There’s actually several motorcycle drill teams in the United States right now,” said Glory Bound president and drill team member Ricky Scales. The team was the brainchild of Scales’ riding partner and Wichita Falls motor officer Mike Phillips. Phillips is the drill team captain and chapter vice president.

“What motorcycle drill teams do is provide an example of what can be accomplished through education and really learning to ride your motorcycle well,” Scales said.

Ten members of the team’s 15 motorcyclists will make the trip to Longview.

“What makes our drill team unique to any other drill team in the United States — as far as I know our drill team is the only one that uses trikes as far as our demonstrations go,” Scales said.

He compared the drill team’s demonstration to something a horse riding club might do, with pre-orchestrated drills that the team regularly rehearses.

Two performances are planned, at noon and 3 p.m. May 26, in an approximately 2,000-square-foot area at the fairgrounds.

“We will start with high-speed crossovers,” Scales said, explaining that means the riders start on diagonal sides of the drill pad, ride to the center and cross over at a high rate of speed — all without crashing.

“That doesn’t happen by accident. It doesn’t happen without practice, and because we practice we can do it safely,” Scales said. “That can be a quite impressive thing to see.”

Figure eights and a maneuver called the “Trinity” — three counter rotating circles of motorcycles — are other features of the performance, with most portions of the drill performed at slow speeds of 3 mph to 5 mph.

Drill team members on motorcycles are riding “touring bikes” that weigh between 800 and 900 pounds.

“They’re big. They’re heavy,” Scales said. “Most people think you can’t do on a motorcycle what we use these things for. We can turn it around in two parking spaces without having to put your foot down. We can do all these things keeping our feet on the pegs at all times.”

And doing all those things provides opportunities for the riders to fulfill their organization’s primary mission, Scales said — “to change the world one heart at a time.” The Christian Motorcyclists Association is an evangelistic group, and its primary ministry is to motorcyclists, Scales said. “(The drill team) is a tool that we use to help draw people toward us so we can talk to them ultimately about a relationship with Jesus Christ,” Scales said.

Still, if there are people who don’t won’t to talk to them, at least they’ll see a group of men who can have a good time and get along without turning situations that inevitably occur — like crashing two bikes while practicing — into a crisis.

Proceeds from Party in the Pines are used to support local veterans’ organizations as needs arise during the year, Blackwell said.

That’s all part of a history the rally has each year of supporting the military and veterans. Hundreds of motorcycles participate in the annual Freedom Parade through Longview each year. This year’s patriotic bike parade begins at 2 p.m. May 27. (Visit www.pinerally.com to view a map of the parade route.)

The rally’s focus on veterans will expand this year, with an oral history project in partnership with the Library of Congress and its American Folklife Center. Congress created the Veterans History Project in 2000 to collect the stories of America’s war veterans from World War I on.

Until this year, rally volunteers hadn’t been in a position to participate in the Veterans History Project, which relies on volunteers to collect veterans’ stories. A new partnership with Texas State Technical College and its veterans organization is making it possible this year, Blackwell said.

Veterans who attend the rally will have the opportunity to make video recordings of their stories, which will become part of the Library Congress.

Blackwell estimated 1,000 rally participants each year are veterans. Because of the time involved in making the recordings, volunteers likely won’t be able to make more than eight to 10 each day. Blackwell hopes the project becomes a permanent part of the rally, perhaps expanding with more cameras and volunteers in the future.

“I think it’s a wonderful legacy that we’re going to contribute over the course of the rally,” he said.

Other events at Party in the Pines include live music, guided rides through East Texas, cycle games, Joker Run and more.

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source: Longview News-Journal (Ferguson, 5/17)

Birthday crash almost snuffs 3 lives

A birthday celebration gone bad nearly cost the lives of three Bandera men during the early morning hours of Friday, April 27.

According to witnesses, Nancy Cruz, 28, of Bandera, was celebrating her birthday at the Longhorn Saloon on Bandera's Main Street. Shortly after midnight, Cruz left the bar and "drove her 1999 Mustang south on Highway 16 at a high rate of speed," preliminary Department of Public Safety reports state.

In the vicinity of the River Oaks Motel and Sonic, she apparently struck a motorcycle from behind and two pedestrians who were walking along the side of the road.

Cruz fled the scene, according to DPS reports.

Both pedestrians were air-lifted to University Hospital in San Antonio with serious injuries. The motorcycle rider was transported to Boerne Methodist by ambulance.

Cruz was arrested later in the day after turning herself in and, according to Bandera County Sheriff's Office arrest reports, was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

According to Capt. Charlie Hicks at BCSO, "there may be possible additional charges, pending a completed investigation."

According to Hicks, a Texas Ranger assisted the DPS with the investigation. He was not able to confirm if the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) was conducting an investigation regarding Cruz's condition at the Longhorn.

The motorcycle rider, 18-year-old Dakota Bates, had left work at the Longhorn where he was reportedly helping with the karaoke and on his way home, traveling south on Main Street.

According to a close family member, Bates "is home and is recovering."
The two injured pedestrians were Claude "Cowboy" Beghly, 43, and Eric Armstrong, 29, both of Bandera.

Beghly had been released from the hospital by Monday, April 30.

According to Armstrong's father, Eloy Armstrong, the young man suffered from bleeding in the brain and a lacerated liver, among other injuries.

[click here if you've been seriously injured in a motorcycle accident in Texas]

"Eric and Cowboy were walking either to or from the Shell Station," said Eloy. "They had nothing to do with it, they were just innocent bystanders."

The father was referring to rumors flying around town that Cruz had left the Longhorn angry at a bartender who had asked her to leave, waited outside until the bartender got off work, and then ran over him. However, Bates was not working as a bartender.

As of late Monday afternoon, the younger Armstrong was still in intensive care, heavily sedated, but improving, his father said.

Cruz bonded out of jail on a $75,000 bond on Saturday, April 28.

BCSO dispatch records show the accident happening at 12:27 am.

The investigation into the accident is continuing under the direction of the DPS with assistance from the BCSO and the Texas Rangers.

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source: Bandera County Courier (Edwards, 5/3)