Motorbike manufacturers working for a safer future

The Connected Motorcycle Consortium is the result of the sector’s manufacturers joining forces to bring the safety benefits of co-operative ITS to motorbike riders – but it is an initiative that is facing challenges in implementing the technology. Formed in 2015 with founding members BMW, Honda and Yamaha, CMC was created following an MoU agreed to by ACEM, the peak European motorcycle organisation representing major manufacturers, in 2014. Under this MoU, manufacturers agreed to work together to develop C-
October 12, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
Easy rider: Kazuyuki Maruyama of Honda

The Connected Motorcycle Consortium is the result of the sector’s manufacturers joining forces to bring the safety benefits of co-operative ITS to motorbike riders – but it is an initiative that is facing challenges in implementing the technology. Formed in 2015 with founding members 1731 BMW, 1683 Honda and 6654 Yamaha, 6480 CMC was created following an MoU agreed to by ACEM, the peak European motorcycle organisation representing major manufacturers, in 2014. Under this MoU, manufacturers agreed to work together to develop C-ITS by 2020 for at least one model in each manufacturer’s range, allowing motorcycles to take advantage of the safety benefits of ITS.

Other major manufacturers are set to come on board in the near future, according to CMC co-ordinator Thomas Bischoff. Bischoff said that with 50% of motorcyclist fatalities resulting from other motorists being unaware of a motorcycle’s presence there were compelling safety arguments in developing C-ITS for this sector.

At the same time, he said, there were significant engineering, physical and even cultural challenges, relating to motorcycle dynamics, their size, shape, manoeuvrability – and the opposition by many riders to any form of “surveillance” or control.

“All these challenges mean that we can’t simply adapt current motor vehicle C-ITS technology to motorcycles,” said Bischoff.

CMC is also a forum to align the needs of motorcycle C-ITS with other standards developed for the broader vehicle market.

“Our aim is to fairly closely follow what is happening in vehicle C-ITS, so that the benefits of this technologycan quickly be available to motorcyclist,” Bischoff said. Road safety authorities in Europe, the US and Japan are watching CMC’s initiatives with great interest.

“And we’ve found that our presence at the ITS World Congress here in Melbourne – which is our first outside of those three markets – is gaining plenty of attention from road safety agencies in other regions,” he said.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Putting the brakes on smart motorways
    February 28, 2022
    The UK government has announced that development of its all-lane running highways is going to be put on hold for another few years to assess safety data. Adam Hill finds out why
    Read More
  • Is road user charging the first stop for congestion management?
    July 23, 2012
    David Hytch, Information Systems Director at the Greater Manchester Public Transport Executive, considers just where congestion pricing schemes should sit in transport planners' hierarchy of options for managing demand. On the face of it, Greater Manchester in England's proposed congestion charging scheme hit just about every sweet spot possible when it came to convincing the general public of the need for and benefits of such a venture. There was the promise from national government of almost £3bn-worth of
    Read More
  • Asecap Days delves beneath the surface of tolling
    August 8, 2017
    Colin Sowman picks his highlights from Asecap’s 45th annual Study and Information Days in Paris. European tolling association Asecap holds annual Study & Information Days, provides delegates with updates on the latest moves and thinking in the tolling sector and is a key meeting place for concessionaires from 22 countries. The importance of road transport to the French economy was highlighted by the country’s director general of transport infrastructures, François Poupard, in the opening session. He told th
    Read More
  • Should it be end of the road for right-turns on red?
    April 10, 2024
    Banning right-hand turns after stopping for a red light is gaining momentum in the US. But the debate continues about whether it will result in fewer incidents between vehicles and alternative mobility users. David Arminas reports
    Read More

Highlighted Content