Motorcycle Mania

Summer’s here and plenty of motorcyclists are gettin’ their motors runnin.’

Hopefully. they’ll be wearing helmets. But if they’re riding in 31 states they may not be. Only 19 states currently require all riders to wear helmets, down from 26 in 1997, according to federal safety officials.

Although helmet laws have been found to be effective motorcycle safety strategies, Michigan repealed its universal helmet law earlier this year and similar legislation has been introduced in five other states. No state has enacted a universal helmet law since Louisiana reinstated its requirement in 2004, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA).

Helmets are 37 percent effective at preventing fatal injuries to motorcycle operators and 41 percent effective for passengers, federal officials say. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that helmets saved 1,829 motorcyclists’ lives in 2008. Another 822 of the unhelmeted motorcyclists who died that year would have survived had they worn helmets.

Motor vehicle fatalities overall have been in a steady decline in the United States. Motorcycle fatalities have not been curtailed, however. While some states have seen progress, nationally, motorcycle deaths have pretty much held steady. In 2011, there were around 4,500 motorcycle fatalities for all of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, the same level as 2010.

In addition to relaxed helmet law in many states, other factors impacting motorcycle safety include alcohol, speed, the skill level of the motorcycle’s operator and overall driver awareness, according to the GHSA.

The GHSA found that in 2010, 29 percent of fatally injured riders had a blood alcohol concentration at or above the legal limit of .08, the highest of all motorists. Additionally, 35 percent of motorcycle riders involved in fatal crashes were speeding, and more than half did not involve another vehicle.

Because the operating skill level of the motorcyclist is an important safety factor, the GHSA recommends that states increase the availability of motorcycle operator training to all who need or seek it.

Finally, when motorcycles crash with other vehicles, the latter usually violates the motorcyclist’s right of way, according to the NHTSA. “Share the road” campaigns that many states conduct to increase awareness of motorcycles are encouraged, the GHSA reported.

So, the checklist for happy motoring? Helmet, yes. Alcohol, no. Speeding, no. Training, yes.

And, for all drivers: heads up for every kind of cycle, motorized or not. Yes!