Looking Ahead, Scanning and Avoiding Blind Spots on a Motorcycle

Look ahead

Much of road safety is anticipation, and experienced riders are usually safer because they are good at it. You can build the habit by looking ahead:

• Position yourself on a corner so you can see through it.
• Lean with the bike, keep your head up and your line of sight level, turn your head to look where you want to go, and ride smoothly.
• Angle the bike when pulling out from the kerb so you can see traffic both ways.
• Make sure you have a clear view in both directions before a U-turn.
• Look through or over the top of other vehicles.

Scanning

Experienced riders keep their heads and eyes moving: near, then far, then left and right, without losing sight of the stretch right in front. You do not have to stare at everything. Your peripheral vision picks up the footpath, a driver in a parked car, even a car several vehicles ahead. Sort what you see by how much it matters to you. Your height lets you look over cars, and scanning ahead helps you spot potholes and loose gravel.

Mirrors and headchecks

• Combine quick mirror glances with headchecks to know what is behind. Check the mirrors even when stopped, in case you need to get out of someone's way.
• Before merging, changing lanes or leaving the kerb, headcheck the lane beside you and your own lane. A vehicle may be heading for your space and not be visible in the mirrors.
• A headcheck is a look over your shoulder, and your eyes must be back on the road ahead within a second.

Stay out of blind spots

All cars have blind spots behind and beside them. Try to ride where you can see the driver's eyes in the car's mirror, because then the driver can see you. Avoid riding next to other vehicles unless you must, because they limit your room to move and can drift across at any time. Move forward or drop back until you find a free space. On a multi-lane road, the handbook suggests riding in the right-hand wheel track of the left lane and the left-hand wheel track of the right lane. See also intersections and being seen.

Based on The Victorian Rider Handbook (2023, Department of Transport and Planning) and the VicRoads motorcycle pages. This guide covers Victoria: other states and territories have different rules, and rules change from time to time, so check vicroads.vic.gov.au for the latest.