Fife, Forth Valley, Lothians and Borders police launch crackdown after deadly month of motorcycle crashes

Road policing officers in Fife, Forth Valley, the Lothians and Scottish Borders have launched a safety campaign to encourage safe motorcycling on popular biking routes.

At least four motorcyclists have died and six seriously injured in Scotland over the past four weeks.

As part of Operation Dogma, officers will be patrolling across the areas from Saturday, June 18, in unmarked motorcycles with cameras to prevent further tragedies.

Although the operation will involve monitoring all road users, there will be a specific focus on bikers.

Signs informing motorists that unmarked vehicles are patrolling as part of Operation Dogma.

The force said that summer months tend to have a higher rate of motorcycle accidents on Scottish roads than during the rest of the year, and launching the operation in June was a way to combat the “devastation” caused by unsafe driving.

In June alone, there have been a high number of serious motorcycle crashes – a pensioner riding his bike was taken to hospital after a crash on June 6, and on the same day another biker was pronounced dead after an collision with a lorry.

The Scottish Highlands especially has seen several incidents – on Wednesday, three people had to be airlifted to hospital after a crash between two bikes near Bridge of Brown.

A biker died on the scene after a crash in Moray earlier this month, and another in the Highlands had to be taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries after a collision with a car.

45-year-old Bobby Landsborough passed away after suffering a collision outside an Ayrshire industrial estate last week.

The unmarked two-wheelers will have cameras to capture any road safety violations.

Transport Scotland reported an increase of 8% in motorcycle deaths last year, with 450 collisions. 275 of these (61%) suffered serious injuries and 28 died, an increase of 12 fatalities from 2020.

Under Operation Dogma, officers will patrol motorways and roads on unmarked motorcycles with cameras using the latest GPS digital recording equipment, adding to the tools available to road policing officers to avoid such tragedies.

It comes shortly after another road policing initiative launched on the North Coast 500 route saw marked and unmarked patrol cars utilised along the popular route, along with marked motorcycle patrols and safety camera units.

Inspector Michelle Burns said: “Sadly we continue to see motorcyclists seriously injured and even killed in crashes on our roads, particularly during the summer months when more are out and about enjoying favourable riding conditions.

“Road policing officers unfortunately see the devastation that crashes can cause, not just to road users, but to the family and friends of those involved and we want to reduce the number of incidents and help make roads safer for everyone.

“Our aim is to engage with and offer advice to all road users. We will also be carrying out enforcement work and officers will not hesitate to deal with any issues that come up.

“Officers will also be stopping at popular motorcycle rendezvous locations to chat with bikers and help with any issues and provide advice if needed.”