This year sees the tenth edition of this award, which was instituted as part of the FIM’s contribution to the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety. Naturally the award is focused on improving road safety for riders of powered two-wheelers – motorcycles, scooters and mopeds. Examples of past winners include initiatives that introduced low cost motorcycle safety helmets to middle and low-income countries, helmet medical cards, safety rating systems, risk awareness, rider training manuals and road safety training for riders and other road users.
Candidates
1. MotoCAP (Motorcycle Clothing Assessment Program) - Australia
MotoCAP is an independent rating scheme for motorcycle protective clothing. MotoCAP is the outcome of almost twenty years of research and consultations led by Dr Liz de Rome, with the support of the Australian Motorcycle Council. Evidence from crash studies indicated that the protective performance of motorcycle clothing was variable, and that many motorcyclists choose to ride unprotected in hot conditions. The aim of MotoCAP is to provide an independent process for testing and publicising the protective and thermal management performance of motorcycle clothing, to encourage usage and reduce injury rates.
2. Czech Police Headquarters “Let’s start together all wheels down” - Czech Republic
Launched in 2018 by the Traffic Control Police Directorate of the Czech Police Headquarters, the “Let’s Start Together all Wheels Down” project started as a transfer of good practice from abroad and was developed together with the Autoclub of the Czech Republic and its Association of Centres for Improving Driving Skills as a joint preventive activity focusing on the safety of motorcyclists. The aim of the project was to present new safety elements to motorcyclists and to arrange practical education. All training centres in the Czech Republic that teach safe driving have participated in the implementation of the project, which has reached three thousand motorcyclists each year so far.
3. Safety Riding for Bikers – Slovenia
The aim of Safety Riding for Bikers is to give Slovenian motorcyclists the opportunity to acquire knowledge on how to react in critical situations. Former police officers Brane Legan and Vojko Safran joined the AMZS Safety driving centre at Vransko, which opened in 2009, to help design different programmes in basic and advanced individual and group training on and off the roads. Using their own experience, which included many professional courses in foreign countries, they have trained new instructors for safe riding schemes over the last ten years and their courses are highly regarded by bikers in Slovenia.