What’s the law:
”
Everyday I watch the students as they leave Brownell Middle
School. I am concerned about the number of kids riding bikes
without helmets. I would say that more than 75 percent have no
helmet on and about 25 percent of those have one hanging from their
bikes or backpacks. Isn’t there a law about having to wear a
helmet?
”
What’s the law: “Everyday I watch the students as they leave Brownell Middle School. I am concerned about the number of kids riding bikes without helmets. I would say that more than 75 percent have no helmet on and about 25 percent of those have one hanging from their bikes or backpacks. Isn’t there a law about having to wear a helmet?”
The Red Phone did some research on helmet laws just for you. There is actually no federal law requiring helmets, however states began adopting laws in 1987. California state laws are as follows: Bicycle passengers under 5 (law passed in 1987), bicycle riders under 18 (1994) and riders of scooters, skateboards and in-line skates (2003) are all required by law to wear helmets. For further information, visit the Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute at www.bhsi.org.
After your call, the Red Phone also thought it might be of interest to pull some statistics on injuries and helmets from the National Safe Kids Campaign (www.safekids.org). Parents, take note.
• Riders without helmets are 14 times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash than riders with helmets.
• Children ages 10 to 14 are at greater risk for traumatic brain injury from a bicycle-related crash compared with younger children, most likely because helmet use declines as children age.
• Correct fit and proper positioning are essential to the effectiveness of bike helmets at reducing injury. One study found that children whose helmets fit poorly are at twice the risk of head injury compared with children whose helmet fit is excellent.
• Bicycle helmets have been shown to reduce the risk of head injury by as much as 85 percent and the risk of brain injury by as much as 88 percent.
• It is estimated that 75 percent of bicycle-related fatalities among children could be prevented with a bicycle helmet.
• Universal use of helmets by children could prevent between 135 and 155 deaths and between 39,000 and 45,000 head injuries.
Injuries:
• In 2001, nearly 314,600 children ages 14 and under were treated in hospital emergency rooms for bicycle-related injuries. Nearly half (47 percent) of children ages 14 and under hospitalized for bicycle-related injuries are diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury.
• In 2001, children ages 14 and under accounted for 36 percent of bicyclists injured in vehicle crashes. It is estimated that collisions with vehicles account for nearly 90 percent of all bicycle-related deaths and 10 percent of all nonfatal bicycle-related injuries
When and where bicycle deaths and injuries occur:
• Children are more likely to die from motor vehicle-related bicycle crashes at non-intersection locations (74 percent), during the months of April through October (81 percent) and between 3 and 7pm (55 percent).
• Nearly 60 percent of all childhood bicycle-related deaths occur on minor roads. The typical bicycle crash occurs within 1 mile of the bicyclist’s home.
• Among children ages 14 and under, more than 80 percent of bicycle-related fatalities are associated with the bicyclist’s behavior, including riding into a street without stopping, turning left or swerving into traffic that is coming from behind, running a stop sign, and riding against the flow of traffic.
Think about it: “I see you want us to rate movies, but you don’t even list movies in your paper anymore, which is kind of odd to have a newspaper that doesn’t list movies. Anyway, food for thought.
Thanks for the comment, caller. We’ll chew on it. In the meantime, readers, go to www.gilroydispatch.com/ratings and give your opinion on all the latest flicks.
