MISSISSIPPI — As warmer weather brings more motorcycles onto Mississippi roads, state officials and riders are urging drivers to stay alert during a season when motorcycle crashes tend to increase. 

In 2025, Mississippi had 158 reported motorcycle crashes and 12 reported fatalities, according to the Mississippi Highway Patrol. Of those crashes, 39 involved property damage only, and 40% did not involve another vehicle. 

Hunter Forbes, a public affairs officer with the Mississippi Highway Patrol, said motorcycle crashes often increase during the spring and summer travel season, when clear weather brings out both motorcyclists and other drivers. 

“Motorcycle crashes are fairly common. It certainly seems to peak during the spring and summer travel season, when the weather is good — a good, sunny day, high visibility — which also increases other motoring traffic as well,” Forbes said. 

According to 2025 crash data, Saturdays and Sundays had the highest numbers of motorcycle crashes. Harrison, Jackson and Hinds counties had the most incident reports. 

Forbes said Mississippi is working to reduce traffic deaths across the state. 

“Statistically, Mississippi is one of the most dangerous states in the nation to drive in. We’re certainly working very, very hard to decrease that number,” Forbes said. “Last year alone, it did increase by several percentage points.”

Forbes said the patrol focuses enforcement in areas with high traffic volume and higher crash numbers. 

“We’re concentrating our enforcement areas on high-traffic-volume as well as high-crash areas,” Forbes said. 

May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, a national effort focused on reducing crashes involving motorcycles and other vehicles. Nationally, motorcycle crashes have increased over the past two decades. 

For Kat Hilt, a motorcyclist, that safety message became personal after a March crash. 

Hilt said she was riding to Tennessee for an outing with her motorcycle club when a car hit the left side of her Bonneville and she was thrown from her motorcycle onto the highway. 

“I just remember the feeling of acceptance, just that I understood what had happened. I’d been hit. There was nothing I could do about it. It was beyond my control,” Hilt said. 

The crash changed how Hilt thinks about safety and how drivers see motorcyclists. 

“People see the helmet, and they forget that we’re people too. We’re moms and dads, and daughters and sons, and we have kids who love us, who want us to come home,” Hilt said. “That sometimes gets lost behind the helmet.” 

Hilt said her helmet and protective clothing helped limit her injuries. 

“I’m not going to preach at people to wear gear because that’s a personal choice, but I can tell you without a doubt that mine saved my life and certainly saved me from worse injuries,” Hilt said. “I’m a very big proponent of — we call it ATGATT — which is all the gear, all the time.” 

Hilt said she wears Kevlar-lined clothing to protect against cuts and abrasions. She also recommends boots with ankle protection. 

“I still have bruising on the tops and sides of my feet, but nothing is broken,” Hilt said. 

Alexander Windsor, a parts and sales adviser at Hattiesburg Cycles, said riders should wear clothing that covers their arms and legs. He said padded jackets can offer additional protection. 

“Anything that covers the arms and legs is going to be awesome if you ever have to make contact with the ground, but you prefer something with pads in it,” Windsor said. 

Motorcycle safety advocates also recommend formal rider training, which Hilt said can help riders respond when other drivers fail to see them. 

“Education is really everything,” Hilt said. “There are things that you learn in these classes that will literally save your life and keep you up on twos, because I can’t tell you how many times someone’s pulled out in front of me or comes over into my lane not seeing me.” 

Ame Ogle, co-founder of a nonprofit dedicated to motorcycle safety awareness, said new riders should enroll in Motorcycle Safety Foundation-accredited courses. 

In Mississippi, riders who complete a motorcycle safety course can bypass the skills test when obtaining a motorcycle endorsement on their license. 

Forbes and Hilt said both drivers and motorcyclists share responsibility for safety. 

“We ask people to watch out for motorcyclists, but we share in the responsibility to ride in a responsible, safe way because we’re sharing that road,” Hilt said. 

Forbes said drivers should stay alert and check twice for motorcycles. 

“We have to just be alert, be safety conscious, look twice. You know, certainly we believe if you can look twice, you can save a life, and we preach the same thing to motor vehicles as well,” Forbes said. “And let’s all collectively make the roadways safer for Motorcycle Awareness Month.”