Motorcycle related deaths on Vancouver Island have spiked in 2018 with at least nine already this year, and more to be confirmed.
The latest came Thursday night when a man in his late 30s died while riding his motorcycle on Lagoon Road in Colwood. Earlier this week another motorcyclist was seriously injured when he crashed along Gorge Rd during the early morning hours.
The most recent death comes just three days after a 29-year-old Vancouver Island man died when he flew off Strathcona Road while riding down from Mount Washington on his motorbike on Monday.
Related: Motorcyclist dead following crash at Mount Washington
Related: Motorcyclist dies in rush hour crash on Cook Street
Related: Motorcyclist dies on Lagoon Road in Colwood
And Victoria had another motorcycle fatality on Aug. 13 when a male in his 20s died in a rush hour collision at Cook and View streets.
In 2016 there were six motorcycle fatalities on Vancouver Island, a total of 34 in B.C. (and 34 again in 2017).
This year’s trend could match the previous high of 12 motorcyclist deaths in 2010, said Andy Watson, B.C. Coroners Service communications officer.
In fact, this year’s spike in motorcycle-related deaths caused enough alarm that the B.C. Coroners Service in July saw fit to pull data together and share with the public.
As of July 31 the B.C. Coroners Service confirmed six, however that number is now at least nine.
“We know the number or deaths have gone up but we are not able to compare that with number of licenses [if they’ve increased], it’s important to compare that data side by side,” Watson said.
Another alarming factor is the age bracket of the motorcyclist deaths in B.C., Watson said.
“In 2018, we’ve seen a spike of in the male aged 19 to 30 demographic in B.C. with nine deaths in that bracket already,” Watson said.
