No, we are not in Amish Country, but we are the woman in the Gorilla Suit
Daniel Simons, a professor of psychology at Harvard, conducted a dramatic
set of experiments. He and a colleague, Christopher Chabris, made a video of
two
teams of basketball players, one team in white shirts and the other in black,
each player in constant motion as two basketballs are passed back and forth.
Observers were asked to count the number of passes completed by the members
of the white team. After about forty-five seconds of passes, a woman in a
gorilla
suit walks into the middle of the group, stands in front of the camera, beats
her chest vigorously, and then walks away. Fifty per cent of the people missed
the gorilla," Simons says. "We got the most striking reactions. We'd
ask people, 'Did you see anyone walking across the screen?' They'd say no. Anything
at all? No. Eventually, we'd ask them, 'Did you notice the gorilla?' And they'd
say, 'The what?'" Simons's experiment is one of those psychological studies
which are impossible to believe in the abstract: if you look at the video (called "Gorillas
in Our Midst") when you know what's coming, the woman in the gorilla suit
is inescapable... research points to something that is even more troubling:
it isn't just that our memory of what we see is selective; it's that seeing
itself
is selective.
Exerted from Wrong Turn written by Malcolm Gladwell
Published in The New Yorker June 11, 2001
.
We are the woman in the Gorilla Suit...and the people with no emotional connection
to motorcycles really DO NOT see us.
A year ago, Sputnik, Chairman of the Texas Motorcycle Rights Association,
posted this sign on the TMRA2 web site & told us all how a Mr. Cano from
Amarillo had finally gotten TxDOT to admit that Bikers are at least as important
as deer or ducks.
As it turns out, that's not quite true. Mr. Cano did get TxDOT to approve the
use of the sign, and we all applaud him for this hard fought accomplishment.
Unfortunately, TxDOT, not wanting to admit that bikers are human, and therefore,
worth saving, added stricter conditions than a deer crossing or slow tractor
sign.
Here's the TxDOT ground rules:
(Italicized wording comes from correspondences received from TxDOT
officials)
The motorcycle warning sign is associated with the national Manual of
Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), but the sign is not installed on
state-maintained
roadways.
Click here to get the State and Federal Spcifications
for the signs.
This means that the yellow diamond shape with the motorcycle rider profile
in the middle, is a federally accepted and permitted traffic warning sign.
Local jurisdictions may elected to use the motorcycle warning sign and the supplemental
plaque, if it is justified for a high presence of motorcycles.
It's up to local jurisdictions - cities and counties - to utilize the "Share
the Road" sign combination. TxDOT isn't going to put the signs up..and
they are sure as hell are not going to pay for them.
According to the Texas MUTCD, Section 2C.47 "Share The Road Plaque" (W16-1)
is primarily used in "situations where there is a need to warn drivers to
watch for other slower forms of transportation traveling along the highway, such
as bicycles, golf carts, or farm machinery." It could be used when
non-motorized, slower vehicles are present, such as in Amish communities.
Basically, they are saying that we don't qualify, however...
Section 2C.39 states "A supplemental plaque may be displayed with a warning
sign when engineering judgment indicates that road users require additional information
beyond that contained in the main message of the warning sign. Supplemental
plaques shall be used only in combination with warning or regulatory signs. They
shall not be mounted alone or displayed alone."
" When engineering judgment indicates..." is our loophole. We must
convince the traffic engineers in our hometowns that it is the best thing they
could do
for traffic safety in their jurisdiction.
Placement, installation, and maintenance of all signs must conform to the Texas
manual.
Part of that statement (that isn't evident) is that the individual
city is also responsible for the cost of the sign as well as the placement,
installation and maintenance of the sign.
There's one last stipulation from TxDOT that you need to know about. If a city
street is also a state highway, there's a gray area about whether or not a "Share
the Road" sign can go up there. There is a funding/cost sharing formula
that goes into effect on streets that are both a city/county thoroughfare and
a state highway. We may or may not get signs on those streets. Each city will
be different, and each district office of TxDOT will be different. If your
city is willing to put up signs, the simplest thing for you to do, is let the
city
work it out with the district TxDOT office.
So, now that you know what we are allowed to do, let's look at what we need
to do.
Study your hometown - if you are only allowed 1-10 signs, where
would
they be most effective?
Now it's time to make an appointment
with the city's traffic engineer. You're gonna have to make some phone calls,
or some e-mails to find who you are looking for. Print out the "Sign Specs"
page, and the sign image and take them with you to the meeting.
Tell the traffic engineer about the signs and why they are important to
you. During that meeting, ask the engineer what needs to be done to get
some signs up. He may ask for additional stats, he may want to know where
you think signs need to go and why.
It's up to you to develop a partnership with the traffic engineer, don't intimidate
him, don't patronize him, don't be defensive. DO help him understand why this
is so important to the motorcycle community.
If the engineer is willing to pursue getting the signs up in your community,
he will have to go through a few steps (bosses) to make it happen. There may
or may not be more opportunities for you to meet with him, the city manager,
or even go before the Planning & Zoning Commission or the City Council. Let
the Traffic engineer know that you are willing to participate in the process.
You can also go directly to the city council with your request
for signs. Over the last year several individuals and clubs have had great
success by going directly to the City Council - especially in smaller towns.
Get as many motorcycle riders as possible to go with you to the meeting.
Be nice, polite & insistent. When you introduce yourself, also refer to
the riders who came with you.
Example: Good Evening, I am Rebecca Cunningham, and I reside at 1009
Midnight Pass. I am here with several other mtorcycle riders who live
here in Rockwall.
(turn to audience) Would all the motorcycle riders please stand
for a moment? (back to council) As you can see, you have quite
a few citizens who need
your help. (Now tell them about the signs-Texas Motorcycle Roadriders
Association has a pre-written speech if you need some ideas)
Click here for
that speech.
If you get the signs approved, but the city doesn't have the money to
make and install them, find out what their full cost would be - including
the post and installation. Maybe a local motorcycle shop would be willing
to sponsor a sign, or your riding organization or club.
Bikers Against Negligent Driving is researching several federal grants that would
make it possible for us to purchase the signs for communities that don't have
the financial ability to implement the signs. The BAND Board of Directors are
committed to this program. We will help you in any way we can, but it's still
going to be up to you to make "Share the Road" a priority in your town.
If you don't get the the city to put up the signs after meeting with the
City's engineer or the City Council, Here are a few more things you can
do to support your reasons for getting "Share the Road" signs put up in
your city:
1. Gather statistics about your city:
From your County Tax Assessor's office -
You need to know how many registered motorcycles are in your county & if
possible have the tax assessor's office break it down to how many in your
city.
Get the #'s for last year and the previous 2-5 years. (2003, 2002, 2001, 2000,
1999, 1998)
From your local law enforcement agency -
motorcycle accidents that involved another vehicle
ask for statistics from the last 3 years - # of vehicles, location of accident,
cause of accident, injuries/death, ages of drivers
2. Add a national perspective to it.
NHTSA's statistics show that when motorcycles are involved in 2 vehicle accidents,
2/3rds of the time, it is the car driver's fault. http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov
Get familiar with the National Agenda on Motorcycle Safety. http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/pedbimot/motorcycle/00-NHT-212-motorcycle/toc.html
It's a long, involved document. You don't need all of it; just download
the introduction and section 4 "Social Factors."
Get a copy of the HURT study synopsis
Click here for a synopsis of the Hurt
Study
It lists the 55 main points of the study which show that most of the
time, the person in the car really did not see us because they had no emotional
connection
to motorcycle riders - no family, friends, relatives who rode. The HURT
study is very enlightening and effective.
If you don't have internet access, go to your local library. Reference
librarians really do enjoy helping people find stuff. If that isn't an
option, contact
me and I will send you a packet of info that will include the HURT ,
National Agenda
and NHTSA information.
3. Now add the local economic impact
- why it's in the best interest of the city/county to protect motorcycle riders.
Do you have local motorcycle shops that host events (high traffic area!) Do
you have big motorcycle events in or near your town? Do MC events bring added
money
to the city? If you live in a suburb or just outside a big city, mention that
big city's events too. For example, ROT brings in approximately 50,000 bikes
to Austin, but they going riding through the hill country too. Dripping Springs
benefits, several other smaller towns benefit too. Each of you in that area
can use the ROT info to support your reasons for these signs. So can every
town along
every road that leads to Austin.
Do local clubs & organizations help the local non profits? If so, ask
them for some #'s - how many bikes? How much money is raised for the local
charity?
If the charity sends a thank you to the club, see if they will allow you
to include that in your information packet that you are preparing.