Isle of Man TT: Returning road users may face danger after Covid - police

The Mountain Road section of the TT course becomes one-way throughout the event

The Isle of Man's TT festival's return may bring greater dangers than usual for non-racers, police have warned.

About 40,000 visitors are expected at the races, which return from 27 May after a two-year Covid-induced hiatus.

Chief Constable Gary Roberts said since 2019, people's "memory of junctions might have changed and some of the junctions themselves have changed".

He said it was important to remember that "if people make mistakes, there can be tragic consequences".

There have been 20 deaths and 180 serious crashes by non-racers on public roads during the last nine TT races and Insp Neil Craig said the return of visiting bikers to the island's roads was "a massive concern".

"People will be coming over that have never experienced the TT, never experienced our roads," he said.

The officer said there had been "far, far too many" crashes and he had "dealt with many fatalities" in his 21-year career, adding that "even one is too many".

The event attracts both elite and amateur bikers to the island and all use the same roads as the residents

Launching the Miss Me? campaign, which aims to remind road users to consider the realities of dangerous driving or riding, the chief constable said the message for everyone was to "remember things are not quite what they always seem".

"There are people who will have come for years and years, whose memory of junctions might have changed and some of the junctions themselves have changed," he said.

The two-week event will once again see the Mountain Road become one-way.

Mr Roberts said it was important to remember that "doesn't mean it turns into a race track".

"It's a complex piece of road... where if people make mistakes, there can be tragic consequences," he added.

Minister for Justice and Home Affairs Jane Poole-Wilson said while it was "great to have the return of the TT and the atmosphere that comes with it", the safety of residents and visitors was "our top priority".

"We hope the new campaign will urge people to think twice about how they use our roads, reminding them that life continues on our island around the races," she said.