Motorcyclists Must Become Visible To Be Safe on the Roads
No one can deny that there are more motorcycles on the streets of San José than ever before and more and more places where they can be bought. And with that comes more deaths.

That is the reason yesterday for a group to rally on Paseo Colon with the idea to educate motorcyclists on the roads.

For the first six months of 2006, there were 13.800 new motorcycles sold in the country and the final estimate for the entire year could reach 30.000.

According to figures by the Consejo de Seguridad Vial (Cosevi), this year to date 266 deaths have been recorded from traffic accidents, 31 of which involved a motorcycle and 22 a bicycle.

Yesterday's march on Paseo Colon was to celebrate the Día Mundial de las Víctimas Mortales de Accidentes de Tránsito where more than 300 motorcyclists took part, led by the Ministra de Transportes, Karla González, and Ministra de Salud, María Luisa Ávila.

Minister González believes that there can be "peace" on the road between motorists of all kinds, as motorcycles become more prevalent as a method of transport, especially in the urban area.

Gérman Marín, director of the Policía de Tránsito, said that the motorcyclist is very important on the roads, but "has to take measures to become visible".