Just before Easter, Tom Sverre Larsen (62) brushed dust off his motorcycle. The season he has waited so long for. On Monday, he set out on his first long trip of the year. He was going from his home town of Kristiansand to Oslo. It is not the first time he gets on two wheels. Larsen has ridden a bicycle since he was 20 years old. He takes his time on the first trip. Buys soda and sausage at a gas station. It is also the first day of really good weather. – I sat on the bike and smiled from ear to ear. Then things go wrong. He is a little over halfway and is on the E18 in Horten. He sees a car coming out onto the highway. The driver pulls into the left lane without blinking. Everything goes very fast. – I thought I had to warn the driver, but before I could do that I was lying on the asphalt. – What do you remember from the moment? – Nothing. The last thing I thought was “Damn it, this is going wrong”. – This could have been much worse, Geir Solberg, head of the police, told news after the accident. Photo: Vestfold Intermunicipal Fire Service Immediately after the accident, he felt that the adrenaline got the better of him. It wasn’t until the next day that he felt the pain in his body and is still quite sore. Larsen is bruised all over after the accident. Photo: Private – I could have died or come out with life-threatening injuries afterwards. Larsen says he is not affected psychologically after the accident and that he would like to be back on the motorcycle by now. – I’m not going to give up anytime soon. Marked increase in fatal accidents In the high season between May and August, motorcycle fatalities account for 25 per cent of all traffic fatalities. 118 people died in traffic in 2022. The rise has been significant, and the number of people killed increased by almost 50 per cent from 80 deaths in 2021. This is shown by the National Road Administration’s accident figures. Most marked is the increase in motorcycle accidents. Road director Ingrid Dahl Hovland says the development is dramatic. Photo: Statens vegvesen/Knut Opeide – The figure is alarmingly high and the development dramatic. One in four people killed in traffic last year drove a motorcycle, said road director Ingrid Dahl Hovland in a press release last year. Fatal accidents on motorcycles increased last year with 21 deaths, compared to 15 the year before. We have to go back to 2016 to find a similarly high figure. Last summer, the Director of Roads called together the biggest players in road safety for a national effort against road accidents. She wants everyone to be even more attentive and concentrated on the traffic. – It will help to save lives and bring us closer to the zero vision, said Dahl Hovland then. The See Us campaign These days, the See Us campaign is underway. It is carried out by the Norwegian Motorcycle Union in all departments in Norway and is to remind motorists that they are back on the roads. The motorcyclists will remind motorists that they are back on the roads. Photo: Anita Moland / news – It’s been over half a year since we’ve been out now. It is important that they take us into account, just as we take them into account, says Tor Flom.
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Motorcycle season underway – accident numbers are increasing – news Vestfold and Telemark – Local news, TV and radio
