The Colorado MOST Question
By Tim Anderson
The audit of Colorado’s Motorcycle Operator Safety Training (MOST) Program released a couple months ago revealed what can only be termed program abuses, questioned the need for the program, and has ruffled more than a few feathers.
The loudest Howls have come from ABATE Of Colorado, which is presumably the largest recipient of MOST funds and is crying to keep the program going. At the other end of the spectrum, there is a move to introduce legislation to kill the MOST Program and allow motorcyclists to keep the money they contribute every year. At it’s November meeting, the Colorado Confederation Of Clubs voted to support legislation to do away with MOST.
We believe neither of these positions is the right choice, but that the solution, as with most problems, lies in the middle ground.
MOST administrator, Glenn Davis admits the program has problems, but he says steps are already underway to correct them. That’s fine, but we’re not sure leaving it under the supervision of a CDOT manager without the time to properly administer the program is the way to go. Additionally, there appears to be precious little input on revamping MOST from the true stakeholders—Colorado motorcyclists.
This is a sticky problem due to the legislative nature of the program’s existence. We’d like to see simple effective changes--like strict, clear guidelines for reimbursement items, and the even enforcement of those guidelines, perhaps even some kind of oversight by a neutral party until it is clear the program is fixed and sustainable. Currently, none of those things happen.
We also believe forming an ad hock committee to serve as the voice of motorcyclists would be an effective way of accurately reflecting the feelings of the people funding the program, thus, hopefully insuring a clear voice to CDOT on the matter.
The riding schools should be treated as just that, businesses with an interest in getting the MOST dollars. None of them, including ABATE, which behaves as a riding school more than an MRO, can only advocate for their position, not that of the average rider. Nor should they be influential in determining the operation of MOST. It creates an uneven playing field, and keeps the door to abuses open.
Ending the program would end the problems, but may create another. It has been shown that rider training is an effective tool in reducing motorcyclist deaths and accidents. So, keeping that training available and affordable seems essential.
MOST is a well-intentioned program that has been poorly administered and abused by some of the schools that see financial benefit from it. A few tweaks in its mission are needed, as is strict oversight. That, along with correcting the problems pointed out by the audit, seems the right path at this point.
Leaving the program as-is is irresponsible and unacceptable. Killing MOST outright is throwing the baby out with the bath. Let’s clean MOST up, and make it a strong program that benefits motorcyclists while giving bikers a program to be proud of.
After all, it is our money and our program.
