On Sunday, September 14th, officers from the United States Park Police District 2 Station, in conjunction with the Virginia State Police and the Arlington County Police, conducted a motorcycle safety checkpoint on the southbound lanes of the George Washington Memorial Parkway in the area of Reagan National Airport. Over 4,000 vehicles passed through this checkpoint, which was conducted between 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. During the course of this enforcement action, 75 motorcyclists were stopped. Of the motorcyclists stopped, eight operators had no driver’s licenses, eight operators had registration violations, seven motorcycles were found to have safety inspection issues, one operator had a revoked permit, one operator was in violation of a learner’s permit, and three motorcycles were impounded. Twenty-six citations were issued as a result of the above findings.
The goal of the checkpoint was to enforce existing laws and educate riders through motorcycle safety tips brochures. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 4,810 motorcyclists were killed in 2006 – an increase of five percent over the 4,576 motorcyclists killed in 2005. There were 88,000 motorcyclists injured during 2006. Also, per mile traveled in 2006, a motorcyclist is approximately 37 times more likely to die in a crash than someone riding in a passenger car. Due to the overwhelming success of this enforcement action, it will be repeated in the future.
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