TEXAS: Helmet views vary Feds want protection for all motorcycle riders

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http://amarillo.com/news/local-news/2010-12-15/helmet-views-vary


Helmet views vary Feds want protection for all motorcycle riders...

Posted: December 15, 2010 - 12:22amPhotos Back
Next Stephen Spillman / Amarillo Globe-News Dean Downey rides his motorcycle in traffic on South Bell Street . Downey believes it should be up to the rider ? not the government ? to decide if he or she should wear a helmet while riding a motorcycle.
By Joe Gamm Cody Moulton has ridden helmetless since before the state repealed its helmet law in 1997. That won't change, he said, even if Texas heeds a heightened federal push to require riders to wear helmets.

"Motorcyclists are rugged individualists," said Moulton, 58, who added he has a permanent medical waiver that exempts him from helmet laws.

The National Transportation Safety Board recently included mandatory helmet use for all motorcycle riders nationwide on its "Most Wanted List," started in 1990 to improve safety in aviation, boating and highway travel.

The NTSB said it targeted helmet laws because of "a surge" in motorcycle deaths since the late 1990s. Motorcycle crashes killed more than 4,400 in the United States - including five in Amarillo - in 2009. Two motorcyclists have died in the city this year.

Twenty-seven states have limited helmet laws, and three states - Iowa, Illinois and New Hampshire - have no requirements. Texas law allows motorcyclists to stop wearing helmets once they turn 21, but all riders must have health insurance.

Over the years, lobbyists for motorcycle riders and lawmakers have clashed over helmet laws. The federal government said it's worried about safety. The motorcycle lobby said the federal government is limiting riders' freedom.

"Motorcycles make up 3 percent of vehicles, but 13 percent of highway fatalities," said NTSB Vice Chairman Christopher Hart.

He said a 2006 nationwide motorcycle forum of government agencies, researchers, riders and motorcycle manufacturers resulted in the NTSB recommending mandatory helmet laws to the states.

Only North Carolina has responded, and amended its helmet law in 2007 to require riders' helmets to meet federal standards.

Opposition in Texas is already mobilized.

Steve Cochran, district adviser for the Texas Motorcycle Rights Association, said riders from across the nation have besieged U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood with handwritten letters since June, amassing more than 35,000 so far.

Organizers expect more than 10,000 riders to descend upon Austin Jan. 24 for "Legislative Day."

"We want to make sure helmet use is going to reduce fatalities," Cochran said.

He said there is no empirical data that proves motorcycle helmets save lives. Cochran said research done by organizations such as the state Department of Transportation is unscientific.

He argued educating riders and other drivers would save more lives than mandatory helmet laws. Cochran said 30 percent of riders involved in motorcycle accidents lack motorcycle operator licenses.

"That's a problem we need to correct," Cochran said. "(The NTSB announcement) is a knee-jerk reaction to some perceived problem."

Cochran said Oklahoma State University is conducting "long-term" research into motorcycle crashes. The study is intended to look at factors leading to accidents, including road configurations, environmental conditions and rider experience, and what countermeasures could be taken to avoid accidents, according to the OSU website.

University officials said the study also will consider whether helmets save lives.

Cochran said if the research concludes that mandatory helmet laws significantly affect fatalities, the Motorcycle Rights Association would support them.

But the NTSB said data already indicate head injury is a leading cause of death in motorcycle crashes.

The University of Arkansas found the number of fatalities increased following the change of the helmet law in Texas, even accounting for an increase in the number of motorcyclists in Texas.

"The data doesn't lie," said Al Bavon, a researcher at Arkansas who was teaching in Texas when the state repealed the law. "There have been increases in deaths in other states too. It happened in Florida and Arkansas."

Cochran argued that the data for the Arkansas research was outdated and included fatalities from off-road vehicles. He said recent education programs have improved safety for riders.

The debate also crosses lines between blue and red states.

Texas has voted for the Republican and Pennsylvania has voted for the Democratic candidate for president in each of the past four presidential elections. After Pennsylvania repealed mandatory helmet restrictions in 2003, there was an immediate 60 percent increase in motorcycle fatalities, Hart said. Louisiana repealed its restrictions in 1999, but reinstated mandatory laws in 2004, after fatalities rose.

"As far as I can tell, the issue is not over the safety of the helmets," Hart, of NTSB, said. "The issue is whether the government should be mandating whether I should wear a helmet."

Texas Rep. John Smithee, R-Amarillo, said there are data to support arguments from both sides of the helmet debate. Particularly in low-speed collisions, helmets prevent head injuries, Smithee said.

Another consideration is the cost to taxpayers from head injuries, he said.

"There is a significant cost to that," Smithee said. He could not provide specific numbers.

Cochran said the motorcycle lobby is focused on safety. It pushed for a Texas Senate Bill 1967, which passed in 2009 and funds awareness programs to increase motorcycle safety on Texas highways. He said 153 share-the-road signs have been installed as a result.

Moulton, the Amarillo rider, said his concern is that the federal government's next step will be to threaten to withhold federal funding if Texas doesn't comply with the NTSB recommendations.

For example, the federal government threatened to withhold federal transportation money in 1990 if states didn't meet Environmental Protection Agency guidelines.

"I don't like the government saying you have to wear them," Moulton said. "All the 30 or so states who don't have helmet laws are being pressured now."