Visitors get message on safe riding

EDUCATIONAL videos are being streamed on the Spirit of Tasmania to help visiting motorcyclists stay safe on Tasmanian roads.

The Spirit brings more than 20,000 interstate and international riders across Bass Strait each year but they are overrepresented in crash statistics.

Almost 250 visiting riders were involved in accidents over the past five years, including seven deaths.

Featuring in one of the videos is Jeff Harper, a Tasmania Fire Service regional chief and motorcyclist of 34 years.

He said Tasmania was a great place to ride but it was important to ride to the conditions and make regular stops.

“If you come to Tassie on that dream holiday, ride to your capabilities, not necessarily the bike’s capabilities,” he said.

“A lot of people who come down from the mainland that I’ve taken on rides actually don’t realise how tiring riding in Tasmania can be.

“That 200km ride that might be able to be done quite easily on the mainland actually might involve hundreds of corners.”

Motorcycle Riders Association of Tasmania North-West president Greg Butler said the videos were a good idea.

“A bit of education on the boat is a good thing,” he said.

“The turns over on the mainland are not as sharp.

“We haven’t got as much traffic but you’ve got to be more alert.”

Bernard Dwyer, chief executive of TT-Line, the Spir- it of Tasmania operator, said the videos had already started streaming on board and on their social media channels.

He said every motorcyclist who comes into the state on the Spirit would also receive an information brochure.

Deputy Premier Jeremy Rockliff said the Government wanted to make sure visiting riders came prepared.

“Tasmania’s beautiful and scenic roads are a major attraction for motorcyclists from around Australia and the world, but being unfamiliar with our roads can cause injury or even death,” he said.

He said riders running off the road on corners was one of the most common accidents.

Well-known adventurer and motorcycle guru Charley Boorman is also featured in one of the short films.