Chriswright03

I have ridden on and off for years.  I ride more today than I have for years and I am 61 years old.  I have been Police Advanced trained and also have been an Instructor from CBT through DAS (Direct Access) up to and including Advanced which I could also examine.  So I think I have a reasonable experience level to be able to comment but having said that on here there are lots of experienced bikers who will also be able to advise and I hope they will.
 
First thing to get across is that motor bikes on their own are not dangerous.  There are hundreds of thousands of them in showrooms all over the World that have not hurt a fly.  It is only when they are ridden by something as unpredictable as we are that they 'can' become dangerous.
 
Second thing is if anyone has an accident on a motorbike they are inevitably going to come off second whether they hit another vehicle or an object because there is no metal box an air bags to protect you.
 
Commuting into any City will be far quicker on a motorbike but by the same token it will also be a higher risk if only because of the amount of traffic on the roads.  It is all about training, self control once out on your own and common sense which will be a massive aid to survival.  If you keep your wits about you and concentrate on what others are doing around you then you will stand a far better chance of surviving to enjoy many years of riding.  More often than not you can tell what others are about to do and prepare for it as long as you 'look'.  Too many riders ride along in their own little bubble and take no notice of what is going on around them.
 
If you decide to do it take every opportunity to have further training as soon as you can and continue to for as long as you need to.  People who don't ride spread all sorts of scare stories about and of course many of them are true.  What they don't do though is spread the stories of all the riders who ahve ridden unhindered for years. 
 
There is an expression used very often SMIDSY (been used on here today about a tank!)  Sorry mate I didn't see you.  Which is very often spouted by a car driver after they have knocked someone off their bike.  Very good example of this is car driver pulls up to junction with main road looks to right doesn't see biker and pulls out and hits them.  Thing is the car would have been there to be seen by the biker and they could have slowed down, took evasive action, looked at the car driver for eye contact and many many other things.  All it needs is a different mindset.  If I see a car pull upto a junction like that when I am in my car or bus I think 'I wonder if they are going to stop'. If I am on my bike I think they are not going to stop and already I am prepared for it.
 
Sorry if this is all a bit long winded but I hope it helps.