Late in 2023, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced the formation of the Congressionally mandated Motorcyclist Advisory Council (MAC) under the auspices of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). At that time, the mission and structure of the MAC was outlined, though the appointments to the 13 seats on the council were not yet completed. Now, the USDOT has completed that process and announced the names of the appointees.
Members Representing a Motorcyclist Association
- Sunshine Beer, Director, Idaho Star, Boise
- Jay Jackson, Vice President, Motorcycle Riders Foundation
Members Representing a State Government
- Roberta Carlson, State Program Director, Total Control Training; Program Manager, Pennsylvania DOT Motorcycle Safety Program and the California Motorcyclists Safety Program
- Manjunathan Kumar, Safe Systems Advisor, California DOT
- James Andrew Landini, Transportation Engineer, Florida DOT
- Rita Jean Lybek, Motorcyclist Safety Educator. Wisconsin DOT
- Ray Pierce, Program Manager, Missouri Motorcycle Safety Program
- Roy Fair, Program Manager, Montana DOT
Member Representing Road Safety Data and Engineering Professionals
- Chanyoung Lee, Program Director, Motorcycle Injury Prevention, Center for Urban Transportation Research, University of South Florida
Member Representing State Transportation Officials
- Kevin Marshia, Director of Engineering, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials
Member Representing Traffic Safety Systems Professionals
- Eric Perry, Director of Innovation & Technical Services, American Traffic Safety Services Association
Member Representing Motorcycle Manufacturers and Distributors
- Scott Schloegel, Senior Vice President, Government Relations, Motorcycle Industry Council
A seat originally reported by NHTSA as being filled by the appointment of Jason Tolleson is currently vacant and will be filled by recruitment in the Federal Register and future appointment.
The importance of the MAC’s input to the National Roadway Safety Strategy (NRSS) is underscored by the fact that while overall traffic fatalities have declined for eight consecutive quarters, fatalities among motorcyclists on public roads are projected to increase by about two percent in CY 2023 over CY 2022 when 6,218 motorcyclists lost their lives in crashes.
Alarmingly, a word search in the NRSS 2024 Progress Report for “motorcycle” and “motorcyclist” comes up empty. While it is true that numerous initiatives described in the NRSS are likely to have a positive impact on motorcyclist safety as well as other public road users, the absence of mention of any issues of particular or unique importance to motorcyclists is significant, particularly in light of NHTSA’s own data about the apparent increase in motorcyclist fatalities while other roadway user fatality rates are steadily declining.
The meetings of the MAC are open to the public, and its agendas, minutes, reports, and recommendations are public record. Meeting notices will be posted on the NHTSA Events and Public Meetings website.
We’ll keep you posted on the progress of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Motorcyclist Advisory Council as it unfolds.
