HAS MOTORCYCLE HELMET USE BEEN INCREASING? GOOD OR BAD?
Motorcycle helmet laws change yearly, and it’s a good practice to review the laws that pertain to your state. The Law Tigers reviewed the helmet laws in every state and Washington D.C. to provide you with the latest updates.
In 2021, 6,084 motorcyclists were killed, representing 14 percent of all traffic fatalities. This is the highest number killed since the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) began collecting this data in 1975. In states with universal helmet laws, 55 percent of motorcyclists killed in 2021 were not wearing helmets, compared to 9 percent in states with universal helmet laws; emphasizing the importance of wearing your motorcycle helmet.
Background on Helmet Use
According to the National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS), the only survey providing nationwide, probability-based, observed data on motorcycle helmet use in the United States, motorcycle helmet use hovered between 66.5 percent and 64.9 percent in 2022. In 2022 alone, the percentage of motorcycle riders using a DOT-compliant helmet is 66.5 percent: 24.5 percent of riders wore no helmet, with 7.4 percent of riders wearing non-DOT compliant helmets.
An interesting statistic of note focuses on helmet use among motorcycle passengers – the percentage of those using a helmet increased significantly from 2021 to 2022. Helmet use for this group increased from 76.9 percent in 2021 to 92.1 percent in 2022. Reasons for this may include:
- Safety Awareness Campaigns – increased awareness and educational campaigns about the importance of wearing helmets for motorcycle passengers may prompt more helmet wearing;
- Media Coverage of Accidents – Every day, motorcyclists are hurt or killed while riding. High-profile fatal accidents, like the one actor Treat Williams was involved in with an oncoming SUV in June of 2023, are reminders accidents can happen to anyone.
- Peer Influences/Social Norms – wearing protective gear such as a helmet becomes socially acceptable the more rider user groups, celebrities and athletes endorse their use.
Continue reading
Power & Betrayal-Outlaw Motorcycle Club Life By James Hollywood Macecari
#BikerNews #bikerNews1_ #FatalityAnalysisReportingSystem #HASMOTORCYCLEHELMETUSEBEENINCREASING_ #HelmetUse #insaneThrottle #LawTigers #motorcycleHelmet #motorcycleHelmetLaws #outlawBikerNews1_ #SafetyAwarenessCampaigns