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 Motorcyclist survives Macquarie Pass plunge 

Motorcyclist survives Macquarie Pass plunge

16 Mar, 2009 12:53 PM
A motorcyclist catapulted over the edge of Macquarie Pass yesterday was saved by a log that broke his fall.

The 44-year-old Berry man suffered back, leg and shoulder injuries during the incident, believed to have occurred after he lost control on an oil slick.

Last August, authorities branded Macquarie Pass a motorcycle black spot after 144 accidents and six deaths in five years.

The injured man was travelling up Macquarie Pass with a companion rider just after 11.30am when the accident occurred.

He rounded a sharp bend before being speared from his red Honda Fireblade over the edge of the pass and several metres down an embankment.

One of the first on the scene, a 59-year-old Sydney man who was also on a motorcycle, rendered first aid and made the man comfortable until emergency services arrived.

"He said it happened so fast it felt like he hit an oil slick which high-sided him into the bush," the rider said.

"A log broke his fall which is lucky because he would have had a very nasty trip further down. There were a lot of tree stumps, roots and branches in the way."

Members of the NSW Fire Brigades Rescue Unit, Police Rescue, ambulance and NSW Rural Fire Service attended.

The rider was taken to Wollongong Hospital in a stable condition. Traffic was disrupted for about two hours.

Shellharbour City Council joined with police, the RTA and Illawarra motorcycle groups last August to try to reduce the accident rate after Macquarie Pass was branded as a motorcycle black spot.

Those most likely to be injured or killed on the road were men returning to motorcycle riding later in life. All the fatalities involved males aged between 30 and 60.

An RTA campaign targeting the state's 130,000 motorcyclists was launched in November 2007 and urged caution on popular routes such as Macquarie Pass.

He said the Illawarra Hwy through Macquarie Pass was a common spot for accidents because of the sharp corners and marginal distance between the edge of the road and trees.

Frequent diesel spills on the roadway have added to the danger.

The Pass has been closed to traffic on weekdays since last Monday while the thoroughfare undergoes maintenance including resurfacing, vegetation management, signposting upgrades and drain cleaning.

The closures will continue until Friday.

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comments


Date: Newest first | Oldest first
The RTA campaign targeting the state's 130,000 motorcyclists must've missed a few as most charge along Lawrence Hargrave Drive on the bends at Stanwell Tops at all hours like their life depended on it, which I'm sure it will.
Posted by Alan Bond, 16/03/2009 6:51:15 AM
Aland Bond seems to have missed the point about the rider hitting an oil spill. The RTA should spend more time checking trucks for leaks.
Posted by Leroy, 16/03/2009 8:53:24 AM
I have driven on Macquarie Pass on numerous times & a lot of motorcyclists seem to take risks, all in the name of negotiating bends at high speed. And yes I have noticed the same silly antics along Lawrence Hargrave Drive as well
Posted by Chunky Jnr, 16/03/2009 10:39:52 AM
For a start ban trucks & buses from using the pass & the country rail bus should only be a little bus. I travel the pass a lot and I've almost had a bonnet ornament when bikes cut the corners as well as being over taken by a bike in one direction and then to be passed again by the same bike as it goes in the opposite direction before I've even completed one direction
Posted by little fry, 16/03/2009 11:13:58 AM
Leroy has missed the point that Alan was commenting on the ineffectiveness of the RTA advertising campaign, as evidenced by the behaviour of motor cyclists on LHD. It's about time the RTA recovered from these people the costs of the emergency response and the disruption to hundreds of other road users. It's bound to be a more effective deterrent to reckless and intimidating behaviour than an advertising campaign.
Posted by Ted, 16/03/2009 12:13:45 PM
Just ban the trucks & tour buses that would save lives and stop the oil and fuel spots on the road. I have had 2 side mirrors brocken off my vehical one by a bus the other by a motorcyclist. I would even prefer to see speed humps in some spots just to slow some people down. Macquarie Pass make's Picton Rd look safe..
Posted by Blomy, 16/03/2009 2:11:04 PM
Good old Maquarie pass all who travel on her should know to take extra care it's an extrodinary bit of road.
Posted by Home- girl, 16/03/2009 3:08:43 PM
Last August, authorities branded Macquarie Pass a motorcycle black spot after 144 accidents and six deaths in five years How many motor vehicle accidents were there in the same period? How many motor cycle accidents were the result of evasive action avoiding poor motor vehicle control?
Posted by Grandad, 16/03/2009 7:24:43 PM
I didn't think trucks were even ment 2 b using macquarie no more. but yeh i do agree that the RTA sound check more reguarly considering i go up and down the mountain quiet often and its not the easiet or best drive in the wet even.
Posted by corza, 16/03/2009 9:34:49 PM
Wonder what workcover had to say about the photos here. When working in a high angle rescue situation the Ambos don't wear Helmets when Fire fighters do... ODD!
Posted by Double standard, 17/03/2009 12:42:31 PM

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The motorcyclist is stretchered up after his bike, below, slid on Macquarie Pass. Picture: KEN ROBERTSON.
The motorcyclist is stretchered up after his bike, below, slid on Macquarie Pass. Picture: KEN ROBERTSON.

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