Police and Oxfordshire County Council’s Fire and Rescue Service are urging motorcyclists to take extra care on the roads as they dust off their bikes at the start of spring.

Fire and Rescue staff, the Thames Valley Police mobile unit and technicians will be at the H Café bike night, Oxford Road, near Berinsfield, tomorrow, between 6pm and 9pm, to offer a free bike check and advice to anyone seeking it.

The Fire and Rescue Service and Thames Valley Police are also asking drivers to 'check and check again' in their mirrors, as motorcyclists can be difficult to spot on the roads and it is not easy to judge their speed. Bikers can also be hidden from view behind a tree, lamp post, telegraph pole or bend.

Stuart Garner, risk reduction manager for Oxfordshire County Council's Fire and Rescue Service, said: “If your safety is the most important thing to you it will influence your attitude on every ride and the way you perceive and deal with any hazards on the road.

"Always expect the unexpected, adjust your speed and give yourself time to react. Ride for the road conditions and take extra care when filtering through traffic as drivers may not always be aware of you.

“We are also urging drivers to keep a sharp look out for motorcyclists. There will be more of them on the roads than during the winter and we hope to have a summer season without the tragedy and heartache that follows road traffic collisions.”

Insp Bob Jarrett, from Thames Valley Roads Policing Department, said: “We offer these assessments to give motorcyclists a real opportunity to make themselves safer on the road and to point them towards more formal advanced training.

“Nationally bikers represent only one per cent of traffic, but make up 17 per cent of those killed or seriously injured on the roads.

“Every year, dozens of motorcyclists are killed or seriously injured on the roads of Thames Valley and I would urge anyone in Oxfordshire who rides to talk to us and book themselves on to an advanced training course.”