THE number of motorcyclists killed on North Yorkshire's roads is the worst on record.

Yet another motorcyclist lost his life at the weekend, taking the total of deaths this year to 24 - compared with the previous record total of 23 who died during the whole of last year.

The latest death was on Saturday afternoon, on the B6270 Reeth to Richmond Road.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said the man was the lead rider in a group of five. He lost control on a series of bends, leaving the road and suffering fatal injuries.

Another biker suffered serious injuries in a collision yesterday afternoon in York.

He was in collision with a car on the A166 junction with Murton Lane.

An ambulance spokeswoman said he was taken to York Hospital with suspected fractures. The injuries were not thought to be life-threatening.

Now police have issued a warning to bikers to cut their speed, or watch the number continue to rise.

"In many of these cases the cause is speed," said Chief Inspector Ken McIntosh.

"If people were to ride sensibly there would be no need for any of these things.

"The key to safety is riding sensibly at the right speed for the road and the conditions, which too many times just isn't happening."

York MP Hugh Bayley called for more education for other road users about how to keep bikers safe.

"More training is needed for car drivers to look out for motorcyclists," he said.

"As a cyclist myself, I know that cars sometimes just don't see you on a bike, because they are only looking for other cars.

"Bikes need to be more visible to other road users, or this will continue to be a major problem."

The local representative for the Motorcycle Action Group, Debbie Molyneux, said: "I can only put it down to the glorious summer we have had.

"The number of miles ridden will have far outweighed other years, so I doubt there are actually more deaths per mile.

"But the only real thing which can change this is to raise awareness of drivers, and to encourage bikers to protect themselves and ride defensively."

Updated: 10:48 Monday, September 15, 2003