Safety advocates warn of risks facing motorcyclists during national campaign
Last week, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker formally proclaimed May 2019 as Motorcycle Awareness Month in the State of Illinois. Indiana is also joining in this annual public safety campaign, with the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles and Ride Safe Indiana promoting motorcycle safety awareness all this month in the Hoosier State.
From Illinois State Police Acting Director Brendan Kelly:
“With May the beginning of the traditional riding season, there will be many riders out enjoying the beauty Illinois has to offer. To riders, we ask that you make yourself as safe as possible by gearing up with protective riding apparel, and we encourage you to seek out quality training. To all other roadway users, focus on your drive by clearing all distractions. Vulnerable populations such as motorcyclists all too often pay a heavy price for inattention.”
Dying in a motorcycle accident is a serious threat to anyone choosing to ride today, and it’s apparently more dangerous now that it was in the past. Motorcycle deaths made up 14% of all motor vehicle fatalities in this country during 2017, which is over twice the number of fatal motorcycle crash deaths that occurred twenty years prior (in 1997).
Motorcycle Crashes in Indiana and Illinois: How Dangerous is it to Ride Here?
The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) data warns that motorcycle riders perish in motorcycle accidents 28 times more often than any other kind of motor vehicle. See, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. 2018. Traffic safety facts, 2016: motorcycles. Report no. DOT HS-812-492. Washington, DC: US Department of Transportation.
For most safety advocates, wearing a helmet can make the difference in whether or not the rider survives the crash.
Looking at these 2016 fatality statistics, NHTSA researchers argue that wearing a motorcycle helmet saved 1,859 motorcyclists’ lives in that year alone, and “… that 802 more lives could have been saved if all motorcyclists had worn helmets.”
It is also important to recognize that wearing a helmet does not guarantee that the rider will survive the crash.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that during the reporting year 2017:
At 83 percent, helmet use was highest among fatally injured drivers of sport-touring motorcycles in 2017, followed closely by sport/unclad sport at 82 percent and supersport at 81 percent. About half of fatally injured drivers of touring motorcycles and of cruisers or standard motorcycles were helmeted.
2019 Motorcycle Helmet Laws in Indiana and Illinois
No one in Illinois is required by law to wear a helmet while riding a motorcycle. Indiana only requires a motorcycle helmet for those under 18 years of age. IC 9-21-10-9.
Last August, NHTSA released its National Occupant Protection Use Survey (“NOPUS”), heralded as the “only survey that provides nationwide probability-based observed data on motorcycle helmet use in the United States.” It found that when laws are passed requiring motorcycle helmets, then the percentage of people riding with helmets corresponding increases. (See NOPUS Figure 1.)
People will wear the helmets if the law forces them to do so. What does this mean for Indiana and Illinois?
11 Fatal Motorcycle Accidents in Illinois So Far in 2019
According to the Illinois Department of Transportation, eleven (11) people have lost their lives in fatal motorcycle accidents on Illinois roads in the first four months of 2019.
This tallies to approximately three people each month, or almost one motorcycle fatality per week.
Indiana Suffered 144 Fatal Motorcycle Crashes in 2017
According to the Governors’ Highway Safety Association, in its latest study (covering 2017 data), 144 people died in motorcycle accidents on Indiana roadways.
This was the highest number of fatal motorcycle accidents since 2012, and averages out as 12 deaths each month or three motorcycle fatalities per week in the State of Indiana.
Illinois and Indiana Rider Safety Courses
Both Indiana and Illinois offer motorcycle rider safety courses. These courses are for both beginners and experienced riders to encourage safety and protection for those riding motorcycles in our part of the country.
Illinois’ motorcycle safety courses are offered through the Illinois Department of Transportation. They are free. For details, visit the IDOT Cycle Rider Safety Training Program for Illinois’ free programs or read more about the free safety classes offered in Indiana by its Ride Safe Indiana.
According to Indiana’s official reports, fatal motorcycle accidents have fallen “more than 29 percent in 2018 compared to 2017,” which the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles attributes to the rising number of participants in the state’s rider safety programs.
Does wearing a helmet make motorcycles safer to ride? Many argue that they do. Illinois even offers the “Saved by the Helmet Award,” in hopes that it will educate people on the benefits of wearing a motorcycle helmet while shining a spotlight on riders who voluntarily chose to wear a helmet and by doing so, survived an Illinois motorcycle crash.
Fatal Motorcycle Accident in Indiana or Illinois
During this May, as Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, it is important for all of us to recognize the dangers that face riders on the roads today, and how taking advantage of free rider safety programs do appear to save lives.
While helmets remain controversial among riders, and are not legally required in either Indiana (for adult riders) or Illinois, many suggest that wearing a helmet can save the rider’s life or protect him or her from a serious and permanent traumatic brain injury (TBI).
From the standpoint of the motorcycle crash victim and their loved ones, the reality all too often is that nothing the rider could have done will have prevented the accident and its consequences.
Riders must deal with motor vehicles on the roadways that disrespect and disregard the motorcycle. In many fatal motorcycle crashes, the rider’s death is caused by the negligence of the driver of a car, SUV, truck, or minivan that hit the bike and caused the collision.
Motorcycle accidents can be serious or fatal for the motorcyclist and his or her passenger. The state laws of Indiana and Illinois work to help these victims and their families by recognizing that driver negligence, not helmet use or safety courses, have caused their deaths. Please be careful out there!
