Austin police have put 20 extra officers on roads to prevent fatalities and kicked off a safety campaign Monday aimed at preventing motorcycle fatalities during the Republic of Texas Biker Rally, which runs Thursday through Sunday at the Travis County Exposition Center.
The rally, the fifth-largest event of its type in the nation, expects to attract 200,000 people police Chief Art Acevedo said.
Motorcycle fatalities accounted for 27 percent of all roadway fatalities last year in Austin, which is higher than the national average of 13 percent, according to police.
Austin police recorded 18 motorcycle fatalities in 2008, more than double the eight recorded in 2007. In January, police said that the increase in fatalities was partly because of the nearly $4-per-gallon summer gas prices, which led many inexperienced drivers to switch to motorcycles.
So far this year, there have been nine fatalities and no fatalities occured last year duing the biker rally.
