Where Motorcycle Crashes Happen in Kern County, and What Riders Should Know

Where do 70% of motorcycle accidents occur? The figure is repeated across the web, but it is hard to trace to a named study. This page separates the verified numbers from the repeated ones. This page also covers general questions that people often ask about crash location in accident claims.

Maybe you’re reading this because someone you care about was hurt on a motorcycle. Or maybe you’re a rider trying to make sense of a crash. Either way, the numbers matter less than what they mean for your next steps.

Where the “70% of motorcycle accidents” figure comes from

The 70% number is widely repeated, so check it before you quote it. You’ve probably seen a line like “nearly 70 percent of motorcycle accidents occur at intersections.” It appears on blogs, forums and marketing pages. Many of those posts never name the study behind the number.

A classic in-depth source that many posts draw on is the 1981 Hurt Report. It examined a specific sample of motorcycle crashes. Its findings describe that sample, not every crash in the United States today.

Three different shares often get mixed together. One is a share of all crashes. Another is a share of fatal crashes. A third is a share of crashes that involve a second vehicle. The same percentage can be true for one group and misleading for another.

Before you repeat any percentage, trace it to the original study or to current NHTSA data. Ask which group the number describes, what year it covers, and who collected it.

Intersections and junctions: where many motorcycle crashes happen

Intersections are a common setting for motorcycle crashes. The most familiar pattern is a driver turning across a rider’s path.

Picture a driver at a green light who turns left across oncoming traffic. The rider is going straight, a few car lengths back. The driver sees what looks like a safe gap and goes. The rider is closer and moving faster than the driver judged.

Motorcycles are narrower than cars. They often look smaller in a driver’s mirror and windshield. That makes distance and closing speed hard to judge, and these conflicts can unfold in seconds.

The same pattern happens when a driver pulls out from a side street or parking lot. That driver watches traffic from one side and misses the bike coming from the other.

Who had the right of way, how fast each vehicle was moving, and which signals were used all matter. Those facts shape how a crash is understood.

Turns, lane changes, and the other vehicle’s blind spot

Many motorcycle crashes involve a vehicle that turns, changes lanes or pulls out into a rider’s path. A driver checks the mirror, sees nothing, and moves over. A motorcycle can sit in that blind spot for only a moment.

Lane changes work the same way. A car moves into the lane a rider is using, sometimes at highway speed. The rider has little room to react.

California sets rules for drivers in these situations. A driver may not follow another vehicle more closely than is reasonable and prudent. A driver also may not drive at a speed greater than is reasonable or prudent for the traffic and conditions.

Under Evidence Code § 669, a violation of a traffic statute can create a presumption that the driver failed to use due care, but only if the violation proximately caused death or injury to person or property, the harm was of the kind the statute was designed to prevent, and the injured person was one of the class the statute protects. That presumption can be rebutted. Knowing these patterns helps riders read traffic. It does not replace a close look at the facts of one crash.

Urban streets versus rural roads

Urban areas account for most motorcycle deaths in the NHTSA data. NHTSA motorcycle crash data is one federal source of motorcycle crash statistics.

That split covers fatalities, not every crash. Crash frequency and crash severity can differ by road type. Urban streets usually carry more traffic, more intersections and more turning vehicles. Rural roads may have higher speed limits and fewer intersections. Those features shape where crashes happen and how serious they become.

Kern County mixes both. Bakersfield is a city, and the county includes long rural stretches. Colvin Accident Lawyers is based in Bakersfield. The national split does not show which road type any one crash occurred on. That answer comes from the crash facts of each case.

Which state has the highest rate of motorcycle accidents?

No single ranking answers this question. The answer depends on the measure you choose.

National Safety Council data reports that in 2024 the states with the most motorcycle deaths were Florida (642), Texas (583), California (522), Ohio (222) and Arizona (219). These are total death counts. They are not rates per registered motorcycle or per mile traveled.

Rates can change the order. Measures include deaths per registered motorcycle, per capita, per vehicle mile traveled, and total fatalities. For current state-level rates, use NHTSA data. Check the year and the measure before you compare states.

Time of day and other patterns in crash data

Time of day, day of the week and riding season can all change a crash pattern. For exact breakdowns, NHTSA’s motorcycle crash data is the source to check.

Low light makes it harder for every driver to judge distance. Weekend and seasonal riding can also put more motorcycles on the same roads as more traffic.

Speed and impairment matter too. California Vehicle Code § 23152 makes it unlawful for a person under the influence of alcohol to drive. It is also unlawful to drive with 0.08 percent or more, by weight, of alcohol in the blood. Impairment can be a factor for either driver in a crash, and it can shape the claim.

What crash location means for an injury claim in California

Where a crash happened is one fact among many. It does not decide fault on its own.

Under Civil Code § 1431.2, each defendant owes non-economic damages, such as pain and emotional distress, only in direct proportion to its own share of fault.

The filing deadline matters as well. Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1 sets a two-year period for actions for injury to, or death of, a person caused by another’s wrongful act or neglect. The California Courts self-help guide says these suits generally must be filed within two years, subject to exceptions and tolling.

Helmets are also required. The IIHS motorcycle helmet law table states that California requires all riders, including passengers, to wear helmets. IIHS research also supports the finding that unhelmeted riders face higher injury risk.

Talk with a Colvin Accident Lawyers attorney about your crash

If a motorcycle crash has upended your family’s life, talking it through with a lawyer is a reasonable next step.

You may be a parent whose adult child was hurt on a Fresno or Kern County road at an intersection. You may be a rider trying to understand a crash another driver caused. You may be a family facing a loss after a fatal collision.

Serious injuries bring their own questions. VA traumatic brain injury overview explains that traumatic brain injury can result from motor vehicle accidents, and that symptoms, severity and recovery vary. For a death, Code of Civil Procedure § 377.60 lists the persons who may bring a wrongful death claim, including the decedent’s surviving spouse or domestic partner, children, and certain minors dependent on the decedent, or the decedent’s personal representative on their behalf.

Frequently asked questions