A campaign across the whole of Yorkshire and Humber encouraging road users to look out for people on two wheels starts this month.

South Yorkshire Safer Roads Partnership along with West Yorkshire Road Safety Partnership and Safer Roads Humber are working together to focus on work recently carried out by the Department for Transport in personalising motorbike riders to other road users.

Research has shown that drivers who know a motorbike rider are less likely to be in a collision with one. Messages with slogans such as 'someone's son', 'someone's wife' and 'someone's brother' are to be used to allow riders themselves to become part of the campaign out on the roads.

Across Yorkshire and Humber, 75% of rider casualties result from a collision with another vehicle, most commonly a car. Persons on two wheels make up 1% of traffic but account for 21% of casualties. Over 50% of riders who are injured on the roads are at 'Give Way' controlled junctions.

Dave Glanville, West Yorkshire’s motorcycle road safety officer said: "We’re hopeful that riders themselves will join in with the campaign by wearing the tabards to re-enforce the message to other road users that we’re not just anonymous faceless riders on bikes, we’re real people with family and friends and we all need to look out for each other on the roads."

Steve Betts, Communications Manager for South Yorkshire Safer Roads Partnership said: "This campaign is the first time that road safety partnerships from across the Y&H region have worked together on such a large scale to target both riders and other road users. People on two wheels play make up a disproportionate number of casualties on the roads of Yorkshire and the Humber, and it’s this we’re hoping to alter."

The campaign is being run across the region and features radio adverts, a 15 foot long advertising van, posters, leaflets, high visibility tabards and a specially commissioned website someone's son.  

Ruth Gore, spokesperson for Safer Roads Humber said: "This campaign has a message to both the motorcyclists and the driver of other vehicles. Our aim is to raise awareness amongst drivers to look out for bikes at all times but especially at junctions.  We need drivers to check once, check twice, check for bikes."

The three road safety partnerships have joined together for an initial burst of activity during May and early June but activities will continue locally throughout the summer. The partnership are planning for a second big burst of activity for September and October to further remind drivers of the need to look out for bikes as the dark nights being to draw in.   

The overall aim of the campaign is to reduce the number of people injured on the regions roads.