2005 Annual Report

About our program:

To minimize the risk and maximize the fun of motorcycling, the Registry of Motor Vehicles sponsors the Massachusetts Riders Education Program (MREP). MREP provides training motorcycles, and / or promotional and technical assistance to a statewide network of training sites. This support enables these sites to keep their tuitions for rider education courses affordable. The RiderCoaches who teach these courses are MSF certified with additional MREP approval.

Mission:

The mission of this program is to reduce the number of motorcycle related fatalities and injuries in the Commonwealth by increasing the statewide availability of Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) approved training courses for motorcycle riders and to increase awareness and education for both riders and drivers.

Sites, State Contractors and Locations:

As of the 2004 season, seven contractors operated 11 sites:

Pioneer Valley Rider Training - Westfield, MA
SM Motorcycle School - Orange
Central MA. Safety Council - West Boylston, MA
Ironstone Ventures - Acton / Ayer, Seekonk, Charlestown and Hanscom AFB (military only)
Motorcycle Riding School - Beverly, MA
Training Wheels of New England - Brockton and Bourne, MA.
Riders Edge - Auburn, MA
Ride Safe - Plympton

Training:

2005 season:

We had a 94 percent pass rate in the BRC and a 98 percent pass rate for the ERC. The program has trained approximately 61,961 motorcyclists since 1990.

MREP Staffing:

• 1 MREP Program Manager
• 1 MREP Program Coordinator
• 8 Site Coordinators
• 2 RiderCoach Trainers
• 107 RiderCoaches (5 of them newly trained in 2005)

MA. numbers at a glance:

Total number of registered motorcycles for 2005 = 147,506

New registrations = 30,194

Renewed registrations = 117,312

Total number of motorcycle licenses issued for 2005 = 65,798

New licenses = 15,997

Renewed licenses = 49,801

Total number of motorcycle permits issued for 2005 = 28,521

Active Motorcycle Registrations:

June 2001 = 117,681 (Up almost 10 percent from 2000)

June 2002 = 127,739 (Up almost 8 percent from 2001)

June 2003 = 135,058 (Up almost 6 percent from 2002)

2004 = 142,883 (up 5 percent from 2003)

2005 = 147,506 (Up 3 percent from 2004)

Total number of motorcycle fatalities for 2005 = 52 (Down 13 percent from 2003 which was 60)

MREP Budget

The MREP funding comes from Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 90, Section 34: ... "$2.00 from each motorcycle registration fee shall be paid by the Registrar or by the person collecting the registration fee into the general fund and shall be appropriated solely for the purpose of promoting and advancing motorcycle safety." The MREP also applies for and typically receives an annual federal highway safety grant through the Governor's Highway Safety Bureau. The program's state and federal budget for the 2005 training season totaled approximately $245,691.

Licensing:
The first step in the pursuit of a motorcycle license is the securing of a motorcycle permit. This is accomplished by passing a knowledge test administered by the Registry of Motor Vehicles. Riding evaluations and licensure can be obtained in two ways; passing an RMV road test, or successfully passing an MREP rider education course (in which case the RMV road test requirement is waived). To pass an MREP course the student must attend all classroom sessions, all on-cycle sessions, pass a written knowledge test and a skill evaluation. Once this is accomplished the Site Coordinators will submit the student's name to the RMV and a license is mailed to the student, provided no outstanding driving issues exist. Approximately 80 percent of the students who passed a motorcycle course received their license without incident. The 20 percent that had to have a certificate mailed to them could have been because of issues with the RMV or failure to pre-pay the license fee to the RMV.

2005 Highlights

• About one hundred RiderCoaches, administrators and guests attended the MREP Annual Update. The guest speaker was Jeff Thompson, a MSF RiderCoach Trainer and Rider Edge Lead Instructor, his topic was "Rolling on the Throttle, Accelerated Learning Theory in Action" the adult learning model. Our RiderCoach Trainers, Jerry Lotto, discussed the prior year's observations during the Quality Assurance visits and Steve Sheaffer went over the changes that MSF had made to the BRC over the prior 3 years. Program Coordinator also went over the 2001-2003 Motorcycle Fatality Report. Awards were given out to Site RiderCoaches of the Year and Service Awards to RiderCoach that had 5, 10, 15, & 20 years of service. A new award was started this year after the passing of one of our RiderCoach / Site Coordinators. The award is the Joe Belanger Spirit Award and it was given to his wife. The award is for anyone who goes above and beyond in the interest of motorcycle safety, awareness, education or training.
  
  
• 40,000 2005 MREP brochures were printed and distributed to legislative district offices, RMV branches, insurance agencies, motorcycle dealers, motorcycle clubs, police departments and individuals from phone and web inquiries.
  
  
• RiderCoach Preparation Workshops were conducted, training 5 New RiderCoaches
  
  
• Check Twice - Save A Life campaign / awareness included but was not limited to
  
  
  1. MREP Posters Contest aimed at future drivers (High School students)
  2. Gave away 8000 Check Twice, Save A Life Bumper stickers
  3. Advertised "Check Twice, Save A Life" on the MA Turnpike Toll Booths during Laconia Bike Week along with lighted highway signs
  4. Participated in Two Motorcycle Expo's in which Safety Green MREP pens, motorcycle kits, MREP Tire Gages and 4 motorcycle courses were given away.
  5. Participated in the MA Association of Insurance Agent Expo giving away MREP Brochures, Inserts and Safety Green MREP pens
  6. Produced and aired two motorcycle commercials on Comcast and local TV news
  7. Program Coordinator and Trainer attended SMSA conference in ND
  8. Won the 2004 MSF Outstanding State Program Award for Cat II