Group Looks to Protect Helmet Laws in Virginia

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Traffic safety activists hope Virginia legislators will be influenced by Louisiana's experience when they consider a bill to allow adults to ride a motorcycle without wearing a helmet.

The bill, sponsored by Republican Del. Bill Janis of Henrico County, will be considered by a subcommittee of the House Militia, Police and Public Safety Committee on Wednesday. It is expected to go to the full committee on Friday.

The committee already has heard from James E. Champagne, chairman of the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission.

"We had a helmet law from 1982 until 1999 when, through a lack of wisdom, we decided to believe in the tooth fairy instead of reality," Champagne said in an interview prior to his appearance before the committee last week.

Louisiana repealed its mandatory helmet law in 1999 but reinstated it last year after motorcycle fatalities increased dramatically. According to Champagne, who also is Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco's highway safety representative, 35 motorcyclists were killed in the state in 1998. Seventy-nine died in 2003, a 125 percent increase over 1998, he said.

However, Janis said the increased fatalities corresponded with an increase in motorcycles and crashes. The number of deaths per 100 crashes was already increasing before the law was repealed, and the rate actually declined in some of the subsequent years, he said.

Janis said adult riders should be allowed to decide for themselves whether to wear a helmet.

"It's bad policy for the state to step in and say we're going to substitute our judgment for the informed judgment and experience of motorcycle riders when they get on the back of a motorcycle," Janis said.

He said motorcyclists will testify before the committee that if they are allowed to ride without a helmet, they will be less likely to have an accident because their peripheral vision will be enhanced.

Champagne said that is a myth. He said normal peripheral vision in adults is between 200 and 220 degrees, and federal standards require helmets to allow for 210 degrees of peripheral vision. He said National Highway Traffic Safety Administration studies show that 90 percent of all motorcycle collisions occur within 160 degrees of peripheral vision.

He also disputed a claim by Janis that the increased weight of a helmet increases the chances of cervical spine injuries. A University of Southern California study of 3,600 motorcycle crashes showed that wearing a helmet was the single most important factor in preventing or reducing head and neck injuries, he said.

Champagne also makes economic arguments for keeping the helmet law, noting that taxpayers must foot the bill for uninsured motorcyclists who are seriously injured.

"When you suffer a head trauma injury, if you're fortunate enough not to be killed you generally end up with such a disability that you may require long-term care for the rest of your life," he said.

Bills to lift the helmet mandate have won committee approval three years in a row but have failed in close votes on the House floor.

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The bill is H.B. 1828.

On the Net: Track legislation at http://legis.state.va.us

(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)