New York Freedom Riders New York Legislation and news

New York Freedom Riders New York Legislation and news -9/17/10

NEW YORK LEGISLATION UPDATES:
Helmet, Motorcycle, Gang, Rights: no updates

NEW YORK NEWS

Greece PD- motorcycle noise:

http://www.whec.com/article/stories/S1739475.shtml?cat=566&v=1

Greece Police, motorcyclists argue over 'noise control' patrols Posted
at: 09/10/2010 10:28 PM | Updated at: 09/10/2010 11:12 PM

Greece Police say that this year they've received more complaints from
residents about motorcycle noise than ever before, so they've decided to
step up patrols.

"We're finding the violators, we're stopping them and we're educating
them on what is proper and what's not," said Greece Police Lieutenant
Jason Helfer

But local motorcyclists say police aren't just targeting violators;
they're coming after everyone.

"Just picking on the whole community as a whole for just one or two
people that may be a problem, I don't think that's the way to resolve
it," says Beth Gorman, who is the president of New York State American
Bikers Aimed Toward Education, or ABATE.

Gorman says motorcyclists are being profiled.

"It's a way of harassing us and just trying to get money out of us, and
I am not for it at all," says Gorman

Greece Police, however, say they've got it all wrong.

"We're not looking to go out here and target people and our primary
focus is not to write tickets, it's to address a community issue and to
make sure people are safe," says Lt. Helfer.

Gorman also argues that officers' methods of determining what is or is
not "too loud" are against the law.

"The fact that they're pulling us over for sound ordinances or loud
mufflers, that's fine and good, but if they're not doing sound decibel
checks, according to State law, then they're not doing it correctly,"
argues Gorman.

Greece Police say.not so fast.

"You don't need to use decibel meters to enforce excessive noise or loud
noise from any motor vehicle," say Lt. Helfer.

According to the State Vehicle and Traffic law, an officer's judgment
about noise is just as good as a decibel meter.

"[If] I can't hear you over the sound of your motorcycle at idle, it's
too loud," Helfer says.
-------------------------------

www.13wham.com/news/local/story/Motorcycle-Noise-Complaints-Rile-Riders/
VKItIDvtFE25HSgzMu1nDw.cspx

Motorcycle Noise Complaints Rile Riders
September 13, 2010
Last Update: 9:30 am

Greece, NY - Motorcycle groups may sue the Town of Greece unless police
stop targeting riders there.

Greece police say they've received a lot of complaints about motorcycle
noise in residential areas and have set up checkpoints.

The president of a local motorcycle group says checkpoints which are set
up to find illegal mufflers actually single out motorcyclists and
violate search and seizure laws.

A representative for the Town of Greece says police are simply enforcing
safety requirements and that the town has reached out to the motorcycle
group in hopes of resolving the issue.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UPDATES

California

Research:
Motorcycle Safety Enforcement Operations- How they work the numbers.

http://www.ots.ca.gov/Grants/files/doc/templates/Motorcycle_Safety_Relea
se_2.doc

In California's generic "Motorcycle Safety Enforcement Operations" press
release for law enforcement, there are examples of motorcycle data that
can be used to show an "increase".

Page 3:
Examples of "local" motorcycle data taken from SWITRS Table 7J
NOTE: this page not for distribution to media

Some Options:

A) Increase from 2004 to 2008:
Fatal motorcycle crashes in Los Angeles County have increased 63% from
70 in 2004 to 114 in 2008, and motorcycle injury crashes have increased
47% from 1,996 to 2,927 in the same period.

B) Total fatal crashes and total injury crashes over five years:
In Orange County, there were 141 fatal motorcycle collisions and 3,445
injury motorcycle collisions over the past 5 years.

C) Combined fatal and injury crashes for one year
In Fresno County, there were 220 collisions where motorcyclists were
killed or injured 2008.

D) Combined fatal and injury crashes for 5 years
In Fresno County, there were 924 collisions where motorcyclists were
killed or injured from 2004 through 2008.
-----
REMINDER

SB 435: This bill prohibits a person from parking, using, or operating a
motorcycle with a 2013 or newer model year that does not bear an exhaust
system label certifying that the motorcycle meets the noise limits
established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

VETO SB435

EMAIL THE GOVERNOR -
http://gov.ca.gov/interact

WRITE/PHONE:
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-445-2841
Fax: 916-558-3160 ( new number )
EMAIL THE GOVERNOR:
http://gov.ca.gov/interact

WRITE/PHONE:
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-445-2841
Fax: 916-558-3160 ( new number )
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------
Iowa

www.iowapolitics.com/index.iml?Article=210715

U.S. Sen. Grassley: More than $100,000 to Iowa for motorcycle safety
9/16/2010
For Immediate Release
Thursday, September 16, 2010

WASHINGTON - Senator Chuck Grassley said today that the U.S. Department
of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has
awarded a $103,866 grant to the Iowa Governor's Traffic Safety Bureau.

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the bureau will use
the funds to adopt a motorcycle safety program.

According to the Department of Transportation, the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration was established by the Highway Safety Act
of 1970 to carry out safety programs previously administered by the
National Highway Safety Bureau. The agency is charged with improving
motor vehicle and highway safety.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------
Massachusetts

www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20100914-NEWS-9140319

EPA letter on noise ordinance part of Boston lawsuit
By Shir Haberman
hamptonunion@seacoastonline.com
September 14, 2010 2:00 AM

NORTH HAMPTON - The information contained in an Aug. 31 letter from EPA
Senior Assistant Regional Counsel Timothy Williamson to North Hampton
Town Administrator Steve Fournier is now part of a lawsuit against the
city of Boston over its motorcycle noise ordinance.

The EPA letter states that just because the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency requires a label on all motorcycle mufflers indicating
the noise the vehicle produces does not exceed 80 decibels doesn't mean
a municipality has the right to enforce that noise level. The Boston
ordinance passed last June seeks to deny the right of motorcyclists to
operate their vehicles within the confines of the city if they do not
have the EPA label on it.

The motorcycle noise ordinance passed by North Hampton voters at the May
town elections has the same requirement.

Peabody, Mass., resident and attorney Paul Cote, along with four other
Massachusetts motorcyclists filed suit against the Boston ordinance last
year.

"Motorcycles have to be inspected once a year. I have an inspection from
Seacoast Cycles up in Newburyport (Mass.)," Cote was quoted by the
Newburyport Daily News as saying when the lawsuit was filed in July
2009. "They put a sticker on my license plate, and that gives me the
right to operate my motorcycle in all 352 cities and towns in
Massachusetts, as well as other states because there's reciprocity.

"The city of Boston does not have the authority to do what it did (in
passing its noise ordinance)," he said.

However, a Suffolk County Superior Court judge ruled this past March
that neither Cote nor the other plaintiffs in the case had standing to
bring a suit against the city because none of them had been ticketed
under the Boston ordinance and were, therefore, unharmed by it. The five
men have appealed that ruling and have referred to the EPA attorney's
letter to North Hampton in their appeal brief filed on Friday, Sept. 10.

No date for a hearing on the appeal has been set yet, Cote said, and as
far as he is aware, the Boston Police Department has not issued any
tickets under the new city ordinance.

Even if the Boston ordinance eventually passes court muster in
Massachusetts, Fournier has said he thinks the town's new motorcycle
noise ordinance will still be unenforceable in New Hampshire because of
differences in the way the governments of the two states operate.

"We're a 'Dillon Rule' state, (Massachusetts) is a 'Home Rule' state,"
Fournier said.

In a Dillon Rule state cities and towns can only regulate things the
state specifically gives them the right to regulate. Cities and towns in
Home Rule states have a greater ability to self-regulate, the town
administrator said.

His contention that the differences between the two states would impact
whether the North Hampton ordinance can be enforced was supported by the
Local Government Center in a letter dated May 28, 2010. The center
prepared the letter in response to Fournier's request for a legal
opinion on the new motorcycle noise ordinance.

North Hampton Police Chief Brian Page has declined to enforce the town's
new ordinance. The Select Board has supported the chief's position, but
has not officially ruled on the issue.

NOTE:
From Paul Cote:

Note, we filed our Appeal Brief with the Appeals Court on Thursday,
September 9th.
The City has 30-days to file their Reply Brief.
Then we have 14-days to file a 'response' Brief.
Then the Court has 'forever' to schedule a Hearing OR decide on the
Briefs without a Hearing.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------
Pennsylvania

www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100912/NEWS02/309109889
Published: September 12. 2010 12:01AM

Times In-Depth: What's behind fatal motorcycle crashes in Erie?
By DAVID BRUCEdavid.bruce@timesnews.com and ED PALATTELLA
ed.palattella@timesnews.com

Cathy Evjen keeps a battered motorcycle helmet by the door of her
Millcreek Township sewing shop.

The pink helmet, covered in blood and scratches, is a constant reminder
of a June 12 accident that injured Evjen, 53, and her boyfriend, John
Funk.

They were riding Funk's Yamaha Seca 750 along Plank Road near Corry when
a deer ran in front of the motorcycle. Both Evjen and Funk were
catapulted from the bike when it struck the deer.

"That helmet saved my life," said Evjen, who owns "Sewing by Cathy" on
West 38th Street. "A trauma nurse told me that if I wasn't wearing it, I
would have broken every bone in my face."

Evjen and her boyfriend were fortunate.

They survived an already bad year for motorcyclists in Erie County.

The number of motorcycle fatalities from accidents in the county so far
this year is nine, with all but one of the victims not wearing a helmet.

The nine fatal accidents so far this year is one short of tying 2008 for
the highest motorcycle fatalities on record in Erie County, according to
the Erie County Coroner's Office, whose statistics on motorcycle
fatalities date to 1991.

The number in 2009 -- a year marked by an unusually wet and cold summer
-- was four, the same figure as 2007.

This year is setting a record for serious injuries because of motorcycle
accidents, according to Hamot Medical Center, which treats a majority of
accident victims as the region's trauma center.

Hamot has admitted 95 motorcycle accident victims so far in 2010. In
addition, Saint Vincent Health Center has treated about five
motorcycle-accident victims a month this summer, Saint Vincent
spokeswoman Cyndy Patton said.

Hamot's number of admissions is the highest since the hospital became a
full-time trauma center in 2001, said Pat Gifford, Hamot's trauma
outreach and injury prevention coordinator.

Thirty-two of the admitted patients spent time in the intensive care
unit.

"Many of the accident victims we see have serious injuries: broken
bones, head injuries, lacerated livers and spleens," Gifford said. "One
patient had 10 different fractures. These aren't injuries where you go
back to work the next day."


Numbers on the rise

The raw statistics of the Coroner's Office show a total of 13 motorcycle
fatalities so far in 2010. The number is based on the people who have
died in Erie County, even if the accidents occurred elsewhere.

Three of the 13 victims were involved in accidents outside Erie County
but died at Erie County medical facilities, and one died in 2010 of
injuries suffered in a motorcycle accident in Erie County in 1998,
according to the Coroner's Office.

Taking into account those variables, the number of people who have died
in motorcycle accidents that occurred in Erie County so far this year is
nine.

Of those nine, one was wearing a helmet, Coroner Lyell Cook said. He
said five of the deceased motorcyclists, including the person who was
wearing a helmet, were operators; three were passengers; and the status
of one of the victims could not be determined at the time of the crash.

The lack of helmets is a commonality among the nine victims, and so is
the time of year they were killed -- the late spring and summer, when
motorcycle use typically peaks. The first fatal motorcycle accident of
2010 occurred May 29 on Route 5 in North East Township, and the most
recent on Aug. 30 on East 38th Street near Nancy Avenue in the city of
Erie.

The rise in motorcycle fatalities most likely reflects the sunny and dry
weather throughout the summer of 2010 and the increasing popularity of
motorcycles in Erie County, Cook and others said. More people like to
ride motorcycles -- the summer's Roar on the Shore motorcycle rally is
but one example of how ingrained motorcycles have become in the local
culture -- and this summer's weather was ideal for taking to the road.

"If it is windy and raining, you are going to leave the bike at home,"
Cook said. "I think weather plays a big, big factor."

There is also "what appears to be more motorcycles than I can remember
on the road," said Cook, who was elected coroner in 1999 and has worked
in the office for 27 years. "It is phenomenal how many bikes are out
there."


More owners, riders

The number of licensed motorcyclists in Erie County has gone up
throughout the decade, hitting a high of 19,684 in 2009, the most recent
year for which statistics were available, according to the Pennsylvania
Department of Transportation. The number of licensed motorcyclists in
Erie County was 18,411 in 2003, the earliest year for which PennDOT had
statistics; 19,023 in 2007; and 19,325 in 2008.

The number of motorcycle registrations has also increased in Erie County
through the decade, but not as steadily. That number stood at 5,812 in
2003, 7,960 in 2007, 8,908 in 2008 and 7,960 in 2009, according to
PennDOT.

The local figures reflect the statewide trend of increased motorcycle
ownership and ridership. A total of 828,245 people were licensed to
drive motorcycles in Pennsylvania in 2009, up from 816,535 in 2008. And
the number of registered motorcycles in Pennsylvania jumped to 393,042
in 2009, up from 390,283 in 2008, according to PennDOT.

"There are more motorcycles than there have been in the past years, and
we've had an incredibly beautiful summer. There are more people on the
roads," said Sgt. Mark Zaleski, spokesman for the state police's Troop
E, in Lawrence Park.

He said more motorcycles means more reasons for drivers of motorcycles,
cars and other vehicles to be aware of each other. The state police are
working on new public-awareness programs for motorcycle safety, Zaleski
said.

The increase in motorcycle fatalities in Erie County, he said, "hasn't
gone unnoticed here."


The helmet debate

Also clear from the local and state statistics is that motorcycle
fatalities have steadily increased since the Pennsylvania Legislature
repealed the state's universal helmet law in 2003. Twenty states still
have a universal helmet law.

Helmets in Pennsylvania are now required only of motorcycle operators
with learner's permits, operators younger than 21 and operators older
than 21 who have been licensed for less than two years and have not
completed an approved motorcycle safety course.


Statewide, the number of motorcycle deaths was 156 in 2003, 158 in 2004,
205 in 2005, 187 in 2006, 225 in 2007, 237 in 2008 and 207 in 2009,
according to PennDOT.

In Erie County, the increase in motorcycle deaths has followed much less
of a pattern. The number was five in 2003, two each in 2004 and 2005,
seven in 2006, four in 2007, 10 in 2008, four in 2009 and nine so far in
2010.

Health professionals and others have linked the repeal of the universal
helmet law to an increase in motorcycle fatalities. They have gone up
against proponents of the repeal of the helmet law, who emphasized
personal freedom in successfully getting the Legislature to roll back a
law that had been in place for 35 years.

Based on data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
motorcycle helmets reduce the chance of a fatal accident by an estimated
37 percent, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an
independent nonprofit in Alexandria, Va.

The reason behind the correlation between motorcycle helmets and safety
is straightforward: "Head injuries are deadly, and helmets protect the
head," said Anne Fleming, spokeswoman for the Insurance Institute for
Highway Safety.

In the case of motorcyclists, who use vehicles that are fast and open
and leave operators and passengers unprotected, "the least they can do
is wear a helmet, because they do reduce head injuries, and head
injuries are deadly," Fleming said. "The numbers are just very clear."

Fleming is familiar with the arguments of motorcycle advocacy groups
such as A.B.A.T.E., or Alliance of Bikers Aimed Toward Education.

A.B.A.T.E. argues, in part, that motorcycle fatalities can involve
injuries not related to the head, and that fatal crashes are often
caused by cars pulling in front of motorcycles -- circumstances
unrelated to whether the motorcyclists were wearing helmets.

Who caused the crash is irrelevant, Fleming said.

"If the other person caused the crash," she said, "I would still like to
live through it."

Wearing a helmet, she said, also reduces the severity of the injuries of
those who survive a motorcycle crash.

"Debilitating head injuries for the rest of your life -- that is about
the worst thing that can happen to you," Fleming said.

A.B.A.T.E. is unswayed.

The assertion that a helmet can prevent a fatality in a motorcycle
accident is "not necessarily true," said Charlie Umbenhauer, lobbyist
for A.B.A.T.E. of Pennsylvania. He said A.B.A.T.E. sees no correlation
between the repeal of the universal helmet law and an increase in
fatalities in motorcycle accidents in Pennsylvania.

Umbenhauer said fatal injuries in motorcycle crashes can be due to
injuries that a helmet could not have prevented. Umbenhauer criticized
the media for what he said is a habit of reporting whether a
motorcyclist was wearing a helmet in a fatal crash without detailing the
nature of the injuries.

"On the surface," he said, "it gives the wrong impression to people who
do not ride motorcycles."

Umbenhauer said weather is a factor. Though motorcycle fatalities
dropped statewide in 2009, he acknowledged the summer of that year was
"pretty rainy throughout Pennsylvania."

Ultimately, Umbenhauer said, the number of motorcycle fatalities
corresponds with an increased number of motorcycles and more and newer
operators.

"For the most part," he said of fatal accidents, "they are going to go
up."

Education and awareness are more critical in preventing fatalities than
the use of helmets, said Waterford resident Ed Maloney, spokesman for
the Erie County chapter of A.B.A.T.E., of which he is also a past
president.

"It goes beyond the helmet being a catchall -- if you put on your helmet
you will never be hurt," Maloney said. "It comes down to more of paying
attention and education, on behalf of both drivers and motorcycle
operators."

He said awareness is increasingly important with more motorcycles on the
road, with many operators, he said, using motorcycles as a more
inexpensive way to get around.

"Personally, I do not see the whole thing of a helmet as being a
deterrent for motorcycle accidents and deaths," Maloney said. "Whether
or not a helmet was on, or saved their life, it is a tough call.

"I'm not anti-helmet by any means. I wear a helmet at times, and
sometimes I don't. It has always been an issue of choice," he said.

'I'll ride again'

Cathy Evjen is glad she chose to wear a helmet.

She fractured her right thumb and suffered a deep bruise to her right
shoulder in the crash in Corry in June.

She wore a cast on her right hand for a month and continues to undergo
physical therapy on her thumb.

"It was a good five weeks before I could even think about sewing again,"
Evjen said as she sat in her sewing shop.

Evjen knows that her injuries could have been far worse. She gave credit
to her helmet and the outfit she wore that day: boots, bluejeans and a
long-sleeved shirt.

"I see all these girls riding on the back of their boyfriend's bike, and
all they are wearing are tank tops and some little shorts," Evjen said.
"Even if you crash going 15, 20 miles an hour, you're going to get some
serious road rash."

Evjen hasn't been back on a motorcycle since the accident, but it's not
because she fears getting into another accident.

"Once my therapy is finished, I'll ride again," she said. "And I'll be
wearing a leather jacket for more protection."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NEW REPORTS

http://www.ghsa.org/html/meetings/annual/2010/agenda.html

Governors Highway Safety Association 2010 Annual Meeting
Technology and Highway Safety:
What's Driving Our Future?

Kansas City, Mo., September 26 - 29

General Information

Technology plays a key role in achieving GHSA's ambitious goal of Toward
Zero Deaths. GHSA's 2010 Annual Meeting, Technology and Highway Safety:
What's Driving Our Future?, will examine technology's benefits and
challenges.

Automated enforcement, alcohol interlock devices and data integration
all help advance traffic safety. At the same time, cell phones and other
technologies are distracting drivers and pedestrians in ways never
thought imaginable.

This meeting brings together safety officials, researchers and industry
professionals to share best practices, strategies and plans as we work
together Toward Zero Deaths.
------

NOTE: Motorcycle related ONLY

Workshop 12
Reducing Motorcycle Deaths and Injuries
Chouteau Rooms

This session will focus on new developments in motorcycle safety and
motorcycle safety research. Presenters will discuss recent motorcycle
fatality data, how motorcycle type and rider demographics affect
insurance claim rates, the role of anti-lock brake systems, the impact
of roadway hazards on motorcycle operations, and observations from a
recent international scan on motorcycle safety.

Moderator:
* Terry Pence, Traffic Safety Director, Traffic Operations Division,
Texas Department of Transportation, Austin, TX

Speakers:
* James Hedlund, Principal, Highway Safety North, Ithaca, NY
* Matthew Moore, Vice President, Highway Loss Data Institute,
Arlington, VA
* Mark Bloschock, Vice President, Special Projects, VRX, Inc.,
Plano, TX