Warning over motorcycle distance ‘illusion’
Warning over motorcycle distance ‘illusion’
TfL is to repeat last year’s successful ad campaign aimed at alerting car drivers of the risk they post to motorcyclists and of the ‘optical effect’ which can make motorcyclists appear further away than they actually are.
At the centre of the campaign are findings from a psychological study which showed participants regularly estimated that motorcycles would take longer to reach them than larger vehicles.
Known as the ‘size-arrival effect’, this optical illusion is caused by the way the brain assesses approaching objects and could cause drivers to underestimate how much time and space they have available when pulling out in front of approaching motorcycles.
Chris Lines, Head of the London Road Safety Unit at TfL, said the campaign “highlights just one of the ways in which drivers can come into contact with motorcyclists. However, drivers should look out for motorcyclists in all situations, especially during the commuting hours, when a high proportion of collisions occur.”
