Motorcycle helmet bill resurrected
Bob Smith of Omaha owns a Harley-Davidson Ultra Classic motorcycle, a powerful 850-pound machine easily capable of exceeding 100 mph. "It depends on how much courage you have," Smith said. | More Legislature stories |
But despite his love of the open road, Smith said Tuesday that he opposes an effort in the Legislature to repeal Nebraska's law requiring motorcycle riders to wear helmets.
"There's enough evidence there to show that riding without a helmet causes a lot of head injuries," said Smith, a 67-year-old retired corporate pilot.
After a measure to repeal Nebraska's helmet law died because of time constraints in 2003, Sen. Adrian Smith of Gering has renewed his effort to rescind the law.
He says the government should butt out and let riders decide whether to wear a helmet.
"It's a matter of personal freedom," he said Thursday before the Transportation and Telecommunications Committee discussed his proposal.
"Law enforcement has better things to do."
One Smith bill (LB69) would rescind the helmet law.
A second (LB70) would require people under 21 to wear a helmet while riding a motorcycle or motorized scooter. Riders 21 and older would only be required to wear eye protection and carry proof that they have completed an approved motorcycle safety course.
Marvin Grove, state coordinator of the Nebraska chapter of ABATE — American Bikers Aiming Toward Education — said motorcycle safety classes do more than helmets in reducing deaths and injuries to motorcyclists.
"A trained rider can ride his whole life without an accident," he said.
Nebraska's helmet law went into effect in 1989. There were 290 motorcycle deaths in Nebraska in the 10 years before the helmet law took effect. There were just 87 — a 70 percent drop — in the 10 years after that.
The number of deaths remained in the single digits from 1992 through 2000, but then began an upward trend, reaching 21 last year.
Sen. Smith, who wants to exempt riders born before Jan. 1, 1986 from having to complete a safety course, said he was surprised to learn that the number of motorcycle fatalities among 40-plus riders nationally tripled over the past decade to 1,674 in 2003. During that same period, deaths among riders under 30 dropped slightly to 1,161, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
According to NHTSA, the average age of motorcyclists killed in accidents rose from 32 in 1994 to 38 in 2003.
The surge in deaths nationally among older riders helped to push motorcycle fatalities higher overall.
They jumped by nearly half during the past five years, from 2,483 in 1999 to 3,661 in 2003.
Safety experts say many older riders are either returning to motorcycling after many years or are trying it for the first time. They also point out that older riders' eyesight and reflexes are not what they once were.
Colorado, Illinois and Iowa are the only states without som helmet law.
Nineteen states and the District of Columbia have mandatory helmet laws for adults and minors.
In 1995, the first Republican-controlled Congress in 40 years repealed legislation that offered incentives to states that required helmet use.
Since then, five states — Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Texas and Pennsylvania — relaxed their motorcycle helmet requirements, according to the NCSL.
Nebraska Legislature
National Highway Transportation Safety Administration
National Conference of State Legislatures
Motorcycle Safety Foundation
American Motorcyclists Association
But despite his love of the open road, Smith said Tuesday that he opposes an effort in the Legislature to repeal Nebraska's law requiring motorcycle riders to wear helmets.
"There's enough evidence there to show that riding without a helmet causes a lot of head injuries," said Smith, a 67-year-old retired corporate pilot.
After a measure to repeal Nebraska's helmet law died because of time constraints in 2003, Sen. Adrian Smith of Gering has renewed his effort to rescind the law.
He says the government should butt out and let riders decide whether to wear a helmet.
"It's a matter of personal freedom," he said Thursday before the Transportation and Telecommunications Committee discussed his proposal.
"Law enforcement has better things to do."
One Smith bill (LB69) would rescind the helmet law.
A second (LB70) would require people under 21 to wear a helmet while riding a motorcycle or motorized scooter. Riders 21 and older would only be required to wear eye protection and carry proof that they have completed an approved motorcycle safety course.
Marvin Grove, state coordinator of the Nebraska chapter of ABATE — American Bikers Aiming Toward Education — said motorcycle safety classes do more than helmets in reducing deaths and injuries to motorcyclists.
"A trained rider can ride his whole life without an accident," he said.
Nebraska's helmet law went into effect in 1989. There were 290 motorcycle deaths in Nebraska in the 10 years before the helmet law took effect. There were just 87 — a 70 percent drop — in the 10 years after that.
The number of deaths remained in the single digits from 1992 through 2000, but then began an upward trend, reaching 21 last year.
Sen. Smith, who wants to exempt riders born before Jan. 1, 1986 from having to complete a safety course, said he was surprised to learn that the number of motorcycle fatalities among 40-plus riders nationally tripled over the past decade to 1,674 in 2003. During that same period, deaths among riders under 30 dropped slightly to 1,161, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
According to NHTSA, the average age of motorcyclists killed in accidents rose from 32 in 1994 to 38 in 2003.
The surge in deaths nationally among older riders helped to push motorcycle fatalities higher overall.
They jumped by nearly half during the past five years, from 2,483 in 1999 to 3,661 in 2003.
Safety experts say many older riders are either returning to motorcycling after many years or are trying it for the first time. They also point out that older riders' eyesight and reflexes are not what they once were.
Colorado, Illinois and Iowa are the only states without som helmet law.
Nineteen states and the District of Columbia have mandatory helmet laws for adults and minors.
In 1995, the first Republican-controlled Congress in 40 years repealed legislation that offered incentives to states that required helmet use.
Since then, five states — Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Texas and Pennsylvania — relaxed their motorcycle helmet requirements, according to the NCSL.
Nebraska Legislature
National Highway Transportation Safety Administration
National Conference of State Legislatures
Motorcycle Safety Foundation
American Motorcyclists Association
Copyright © 2002-2008 Lincoln Journal Star. All rights reserved.