Tauranga Police are calling for motorcyclists and scooter riders to keep their lights on while riding in the city after two accidents in two days this week.

On Monday a scooter rider was knocked over at the Maxwells Road/Chapel Street intersection when the car driver failed to see the school student on his scooter.

Two motorbike and scooter accidents so far this week.

On Tuesday morning a motorist turning right out of Darraghs Road failed to see a motorcyclist on Otumoetai Road and there was a collision.

Neither the motorcyclist, or scooter rider, were seriously injured, but the rider in the Otumoetai Road crash was very lucky, says Western Bay of Plenty Road Policing, acting senior sergeant, Wayne Hunter.

'If the motorcyclist had his headlights on, we are reasonably positive the motorist in the car would have seen him,” says Wayne.

'He was very lucky. He wouldn't have been going very fast, but he's just got to be so careful.”

At the Chapel Street crash the car driver looked both ways at the stop sign, didn't see the scooter and pulled out, says Wayne.

'The message we want to get out there is motorbikes are smaller than cars obviously, so motorcyclists have to take some responsibility, wear suitable clothing – a re-flectorised and flouro jacket and ensure they have their headlight on at all times.”

The message is backed up by Bayride Motorcycles Ltd director Lindsay Beck who says most modern bikes have the headlight on all the time.

'It must have been an older bike because now on all the later bikes the headlights are on all the time, whether you want it or not all the time it's either on high or low. Some of the older ones still have an on/off switch.

'Definitely have the headlight on and make yourself as visible as possible. I know for scooter riders especially, they are totally invisble.to cars and no matter what you do there you just have got to assume that person hasn't seen you and just drive defensively accordingly.”

Fully subsidised ACC bike rider courses are currently available, says Lindsay. The courses which normally cost $200 are fully subsidised by ACC with the cost to the rider being about $20.

The link is on the ACC home page www.rideforever.co.nz or www.scootersurvival.co.nz.

Wayne says if scooter and bike motorbike accidents continue, police will look at re-introducing Operation Ridesafe – a rider education course normally held in summer.

'If it carries on like this I might have to look at doing one for wintertime as well,” says Wayne.