How Many Registered Motorcycles In Usa

Motorcycle Trends in the United States

by C. Craig Morris, Ph.D.

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The Insurance Institute for Highway Condom recently reported that motorcyclists who ride racing style motorcycles known as "supersports" have driver expiry rates "nearly four times higher than motorcyclists who ride all other types of bikes." Capable of farthermost dispatch and speed, supersports are peculiarly popular with immature riders.

During the last decade there has been a pregnant increment in the number of motorbike sales and registrations in the Us. At the same fourth dimension there has been a shift in the demographics of motorcycle users and increased focus on motorbike safety issues. This study focuses on the current and emerging trends involving street-legal (on-road and dual-purpose) motorcycles.

Vehicles

In the Us, although no universal or official definition exists, a motorcycle is a two- or three-bicycle powered vehicle designed for on-road, off-road, or dual-purpose (on and off-road) utilize. On-road and dual-purpose motorcycles must come across federal and state certification standards and be licensed (registered) for use on public roadways, although light powered two-bicycle vehicles with engines smaller than 50cc, known as mopeds or light scooters, besides as motorized bicycles, are typically allowed to operate on public roadways without registration. Motorcycle designs, technologies, and gear are expanding and evolving quickly. While in that location is no universal standard, street-legal motorcycles in the U.s. are often grouped as shown in Box A. Laws regulating motorcycle equipment requirements for on-highway (street-legal) or off-highway performance, and insurance, age, licensing, and training requirements, vary across the U.S. ¹

Vehicle Registrations and Sales

Considering the bulk of motorcycles in utilize must be registered for operations on public highways, registrations provide some indication of the number of motorcycles in use on public roadways each yr. Motorcycle registrations in the Us take grown each of the by 10 years, from three,826,373 in 1997 to 6,678,958 in 2006-a 75 per centum increase overall.ⁱⁱ Sales of new street-legal motorcycles grew even more sharply over the same period, from 260,000 in 1997 to 892,000 in 2006 (a 243 percent increase), but declined slightly to 885,000 in 2007 (table i).³ ^, ⁴

Motorcycle engine sizes and motorcycle weights are increasing in the United states. While new sales of motorcycles with engines of 750cc or more increased 54.0 percentage in 2003 compared to 1998, and those with midsized engines of 450-749cc increased sixteen.six per centum, sales of motorcycles with smaller engine sizes decreased during the same period, particularly in the midsized 350-449cc category, which declined 60.1 percent (table two).

Between 2005 and 2007, sales of sport bikes (including supersport bikes) increased from 16 to 19 percent of all motorcycle sales (including off-road bikes, which are non distinguished from on-road motorcycles in the bachelor full sales data); sales of touring bikes increased from 13 to 15 per centum; sales of dual-purpose bikes increased from 3 to 4 percent, while sales of off-highway bikes decreased from 27 to 22 percent of total motorcycle sales (table iii).

During the starting time three quarters of 2008, total new on-highway (i.eastward., street-legal) motorcycle sales (excluding dual purpose motorcycles and scooters) declined 2.1 percentage from the respective catamenia in 2007, with reported sales of 548,747 in 2008 compared to 560,529 in 2007. Dual purpose motorbike sales increased 29.iv percent, with sales of 39,805 units during the first 3 quarters of 2008 compared to 30,759 units during the same menstruation of 2007. Concurrent with record fuel prices in 2008, scooter sales increased fifty.half dozen pct. There were 69,227 units sold in the first three quarters of 2008 compared to 45,975 units sold in the first 3 quarters of 2007. Combining data for on highway motorcycles, dual motorcycles, and scooters gives total sales of 657,779 during the beginning three quarters of 2008 every bit compared to 637,263 during the same menstruum of 2007, a modest 3.22 percent increase in units sold.⁵

Motorcycle Owner Demographics

Survey information from the Motorbike Industry Council on motorcycle owner demographics for the 1985 to 2003 period reveals a shift towards older owners. The median age of owners increased from 27.1 years in 1985 to 41.0 years in 2003. From 1985 to 2003, the percentage of owners 40-49 years sometime increased from 13.2 to 27.9 percent, and the percentage of owners 50+ years quondam increased from 8.1 to 25.one percentage (table iv). Also, survey results for 2003 indicated that 90 percent of owners were male, while survey results for 1998 indicated that 92 pct of owners were male, a slight-simply probably non statistically pregnant-trend consequent with growing female ownership.

Preparation

The Motorcycle Condom Foundation (MSF) offers motorbike rider education and preparation programs and courses, and supports governmental programs by participating in research and public awareness campaigns and providing technical assistance to state training and licensing programs. ⁶ The MSF reports that about four.5 1000000 riders have graduated from their rider training courses since 1974. The Motorcycle Industry Council cites MSF data showing that the number of students trained in MSF courses has increased steadily from about 130,000 in 1996 to most 370,000 in 2006. During the same period, there has been an increase in MSF course training sites from nigh 875 to about 2,125. In 2006, there were just over 9,000 MSF certified RiderCoaches (experienced motorcyclists who consummate an intensive preparation form to get trainers) compared to just 3,500 in 1996.

Most recently, the National Traffic Safety Division (NTSD) of the Transportation Safety Institute (http://www.tsi.dot.gov/), Inquiry and Innovative Technology Assistants, U.South. Section of Transportation developed a course on motorcycle safety plan coordination (MSPC) to train motorcycle safety program managers at the land and federal level on the best practices, program fundamentals, and latest strategies for constructive motorcycle program direction. The MSPC course is sponsored by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and intended to provide training to Expressway Rubber Part program personnel and NHTSA Regional Program Managers to enable them to better facilitate and support a comprehensive motorcycle prophylactic programme in their state or region. The second of two pilot courses was completed in September 2008, with final class revisions based on experience with the pilots to exist completed after that.

Condom

The growth in motorcycle sales and registrations in the U.s. has been accompanied by an increase in accidents, holding losses, injuries, and fatalities involving motorcycles. As shown in table 5, from 1997 to 2007, the almanac number of motorcyclist fatalities increased from 2,116 to v,154 (a 144 pct increase), and the estimated number of motorcyclist injuries increased from 53,000 to 103,000 (a 94 percentage increase).^vii

Although motorcycle registrations and vehicle-miles traveled both increased essentially from 1997 to 2006 (the last year for which registration data are currently bachelor), these exposure measures do non account for all the growth in motorcyclist fatalities, because during that catamenia, motorcyclist fatalities increased proportionately more than registrations and vehicle-miles traveled. From 1997 to 2006, almanac motorcyclist fatalities increased from two,116 to four,837 (a 128.6 percent increase), while fatalities per 100,000 registered motorcycles increased from 55.3 to 72.3 (a 30.7 percent increase), and fatalities per 100 million motorcycle miles of travel increased from 21 to 39 (an 85.7 percent increase).

Also, during that same period, estimated annual motorcyclist injuries increased from 53,000 to 88,000 (a 66 percent increment), while estimated injuries per 100,000 registered motorcycles declined from 1,374 to ane,311 (a 4.8 percentage decrease), and estimated injuries per 100 million motorcycle miles of travel increased from 522 to 707 (a 35.four percent increase).

Analysis of factors accounting for increasing motorcyclist fatality rates is across the scope of this brief overview of motorcycle trends, simply one trend of business concern to public wellness and safe experts is the relaxation of motorcycle helmet laws (Meet Box B).^viii ^, ^nine

Some other emerging trend of concern to public health and safety experts is the growing popularity of racing-style motorcycles known as supersports, which take high power-to-weight ratios and are capable of farthermost acceleration and speed (160+ mph). Although designed for the racetrack, supersport motorcycles are marketed and sold to the general public and accept go especially popular among young riders. On September eleven, 2007, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) released a report showing that "motorcyclists who ride supersports have driver death rates per 10,000 registered motorcycles almost 4 times higher than motorcyclists who ride all other types of bikes."^x The IIHS study also noted that amidst fatally injured motorcycle drivers, those riding supersports are the youngest, with an average age of 27. For both 2000 and 2005, the death rate for riders of supersport bikes is twice that of sport bike riders and four times that for riders of other motorcycle types (See table 6).

¹ Motorcycle Industry Council. 2003-2007 Statistical Annuals. Irvine, CA.

^two Federal Highway Administration. U.S. Section of Transportation. State Motor-Vehicle Registrations. Washington, DC. Downloaded on November. 19, 2008 from http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policy/ohpi/qfvehicles.cfm.

³ Federal Highway Administration. U.Due south. Department of Transportation. Country Motor-Vehicle Registrations. Washington, DC. Downloaded on Nov. 19, 2008 from http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policy/ohpi/qfvehicles.cfm.

⁴ Motorcycle Industry Quango. Information received by personal communication from J. Goodwin on Sept. xxx, 2008. Irvine, CA.

⁵ WebBikeWorld. Downloaded on Nov. 20, 2008 from: http://www.webbikeworld.com/Motorbike-news/blog/.

^six Motorcycle Safety Foundation. Downloaded on Nov. 24, 2008 from: http://www.msf-us.org/.

^seven National Center for Statistics and Analysis, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Traffic Safety Facts: 2007 Data. DOT HS 810 990. Washington, DC.

⁸ Morris, C.C. Generalized linear regression analysis of association of universal helmet laws with motorcyclist fatality rates. Accident Analysis and Prevention. 2006; 38:142-147.

^nine National Middle for Statistics and Analysis, National Highway Traffic Safe Administration. Traffic Safety Facts: Motorcycle Helmet Use Laws. DOT HS 810 887W. Washington, DC. Jan 2008.

¹⁰ Insurance Found for Highway Prophylactic. Status Report. Special Issue: Motorcycles. Sept. 11, 2007; 42(9).

About this Study

This report was prepared by C. Craig Morris, Ph.D., Mathematical Statistician, Bureau of Transportation Statistics. BTS is a component of the Department of Transportation's Research and Innovative Applied science Administration.

For related BTS data and publications: www.bts.gov
For questions about this or other BTS reports, call i-800-853-1351, email answers@bts.gov or visit www.bts.gov.