Louis R. Peck, P.E.
Lou is a licensed mechanical engineer and an ACTAR-accredited accident reconstructionist, who served on the GBOD for over seven years. He developed Northwestern University’s Motorcycle Collision Reconstruction course and is the lead author of the motorcycle chapter in their upcoming textbook.
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He has testified in multiple federal and state courts and has presented at conferences both nationally and internationally. As a forensic engineer and former Expert level road-racer, he has a unique understanding of motorcycle dynamics and capabilities. In addition, Lou has a strong understanding of rider behavior, having conducted research analyzing the performance of motorcycle riders including hazard response time, glance behaviors, and deceleration capability. A portion of these results are documented in the paper, “Glancing and Stopping Behavior of Motorcyclists and Car Drivers at Intersections,” which became a TRB Transportation Record in 2011.
He’s authored many other publications in the field of motorcycle accident reconstruction including:
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Eleven Instrumented Motorcycle Crash Tests and Development of Updated Motorcycle Impact-speed Equations
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Motorcycle Sliding Friction for Accident Investigation
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The Effect of Tire Pressure on the Deceleration of a Motorcycle Under Application of the Rear Brake Only
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Exploration and Validation of the Ducati Data Analyzer
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Analysis of Roadway and Tire Evidence Resulting from Aggressive Braking Maneuvers with ABS-Equipped Motorcycles
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In 2016, Lou was invited to direct motorcycle crash testing at the largest accident reconstruction conference held at the time, The World Reconstruction Exposition (WREX), where his team conducted the first public crash-testing of Harley-Davidson motorcycles. These efforts resulted in the development of updated motorcycle impact-speed equations, which were published by SAE in 2018. In 2023, Lou was invited to present a keynote at WREX, which was the largest accident reconstruction conference held to date, where he examined the future of the industry.
Lou is also a leader in the field of forensic photogrammetry and video analysis, having published several related papers and instructing Lightpoint’s Advanced Photogrammetry for Collision Reconstruction course.
Lou holds a Master of Science in mechanical engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from California State University, Fresno.
