It should be a familiar road.
At around 10:00 p.m. on September 29th, a large motorcycle and a light passenger car collided on a national highway in Kumano City, Mie Prefecture, resulting in the deaths of the motorcycle's two occupants, an older sister (22) and younger brother (21), and serious injuries to the woman (59) in the light passenger car. The scene of the accident was a gentle curve with a single lane in front of the tunnel. It is believed that the motorcycle ran out into the opposite lane and collided head-on with an oncoming minicar. The news footage showed the motorcycle severely damaged and a mini-car with its front part crushed so badly that the windshield was tucked inside, giving a shiver to the shock of the accident.
Why did this tragic accident happen? The scene of the accident was a loose curve on the left from the motorcycle, and since the rider was local, it was not a difficult road that he was used to riding on a regular basis. What is puzzling is that there are no significant brake marks to be seen. The damage to the motorcycle and the car suggests that they collided at a considerable speed. From this situation, let's consider the cause of the accident.
Scenario 1: Excessive motorcycle speed
The most likely cause of the accident would be "driving too fast", causing the driver to move into the opposite lane and collide head-on with an oncoming vehicle. But why was the speed estimate wrong at that time, when the road was probably familiar to the driver? You must have a large motorcycle license, and I don't think you were a newbie to getting a license, as you need at least a year of experience from getting a motorcycle license to ride two people. I guess I felt uplifted by the tandem with my sister and brother and rode with a lot of authority.
The driving characteristics of a motorcycle can be very different between a one-seater and a two-seater. Simply put, it's harder to turn and harder to stop. It's also possible that my sense of speed was different from usual at night. Still, it's not a sharp curve that you would normally be unable to turn out of. I felt something caught my attention.
Scenario 2: Carelessness, such as looking away
There is a safety motto: "A second of caution is a lifetime of injuries. It is a warning that neglecting to pay attention for even one second can result in injuries that will last a lifetime. But the problem is that we can't do more than one thing at a time. According to one study, we can only perform two tasks at a time. The fact that we can't do even two of those tasks to our satisfaction is testament to the danger of driving while playing a cell phone.
If you're a tandem, you can look forward to talking through your helmet and intercom, but it can also divert your attention. Likewise, as a driver, you've experienced that if you pay attention to the navigation system for even a second, you're likely to run off the line.
Also, since it was a nighttime accident, it is not inconceivable that he could have fallen asleep or suddenly become ill from overwork.
Scenario 3: Control system failure
Very few road accidents are caused by poor vehicle maintenance, often less than 1% according to surveys by various official agencies. However, as mentioned above, it is curious that there were no noticeable brake marks in this accident. There is a possibility that the brakes did not work for some reason, or the motorcycle did not return to its original position. In my own experience, I've had a used motorcycle where the rubber brim part of the accelerator grip interfered with the holder and was difficult to return to.
In fact, I recently heard something at my favorite motorcycle shop that made me curious. The latest luxury motorcycles are equipped with cruise control (electronically controlled to maintain a constant speed), but there is a new retrofit part that mimics this and makes it easier to maintain a constant speed. These parts allow the throttle to be held lightly or semi-fixed, which is useful when riding at a constant speed on the highway. However, the shop told me to be careful because it may be difficult to pull back on the gas pedal in a panic, or the throttle may open up and accelerate in reverse when you try to brake.
Also, the high throttle parts that are sold as racing parts can make you over-sensitive to accelerator operation, so please make sure that you are safe when choosing the control parts.
The above is a hypothesis as a possibility, and I am not trying to identify the cause of this accident, nor am I blaming anyone else. All I'm saying is that I want to eliminate the tragic accidents that take people's lives in an instant. For those of us living in a traffic society today, we cannot remain uninvolved in traffic accidents, nor should we be indifferent to them. In order to prevent the reoccurrence of such accidents, I sincerely hope that all parties concerned will investigate the causes and take measures.
