On Monday the 11^th of June 2018, ending the long weekend period, Western District Road and Public Order Services personnel conducted a 3 hour traffic operation on the Bass Highway near Penguin, targeting speeding offences.

As a result of the operation, police detected 18 motorists exceeding the 110 km/h speed limit.  Two of those motorists were motorcyclists.  One of the motorcyclists, a 51 year old male from Ulverstone, was detected travelling at 165km/h, carrying a pillion passenger.

The motorcyclist has been proceeded against and his motorcycle has been seized for a period of 28 days.  The penalty for travelling at that speed incurs 4 months disqualification, 6 demerit points, and a monetary fine of $914.25.

The road and weather conditions during the time of the operation were poor, with wet roads and intermittent rainfall.

Officer in Charge of Western District Road and Public Order services, Inspector Adrian Shadbolt said, ‘When considering that 6 out of a total of 14 fatalities on Tasmanian roads this year have involved motorbike riders (43%), this type of behaviour is reckless and very concerning.  Generally, the majority of crashes involving motorcycles can be attributed to errors made or offences committed by the rider, not other road users.   Any vehicular crash at this speed would almost certainly result in death or significant serious injury to drivers, passengers, riders or pillion passengers.’ 

Police will continue to monitor the driving behaviours of motorcycle riders moving forward and encourage all riders to keep their safety at the forefront of their mind whenever they get on a bike. 

Motorcycle riders are reminded of the following message:

‘When riding a motorcycle, your actions on the road ultimately play the greatest role in whether or not you get home safely.’