An edited version of this article was published in the March 27, 2018 Ludington Daily News. The article summarizes the Michigan Traffic Crash Reporting System data which shows an increase in the Michigan motorcyclist fatality rate post helmet law repeal and the increased risk non-helmeted riders take when they choose to ride without a helmet.
Month: March 2018
Motorcyclist Safety is Top Concern for Locally-based Organization
Interview with SMARTER’s CEO Dan Petterson
2018 – “Motorcycle Helmets and Cervical Spine Injuries: a 5-year Experience at a Level 1 Trauma Center.
In this study, the authors investigate the association of helmet use with the incidence and severity of cervical spine injury. The results of this study demonstrate that motorcycle helmet use does not increase the risk of CSI. In addition, the results provide further evidence that helmet use should be implemented to reduce traumatic brain injury, crash-related mortality, cost of hospitalization, and CSI in motorcyclists.
Why drivers may fail to see motorcycles in plain sight
January 5, 2018 – Link to an article in ScienceDaily describing a research report which examines how the phenomenon of inattentional blindness, or a person’s failure to notice an unexpected object located in plain sight, might explain the prevalence of looked-but-failed-to-see (LBFTS) crashes, the most common type of collision involving motorcycles.
Helmet use associated with reduced risk of cervical spine injury during motorcycle crashes
March 6, 2018 – Link to an article describing research from the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics in Madison which found that, during an accident, helmet use lowers the likelihood of cervical spine injury (CSI), particularly fractures of the cervical vertebrae.
Estimate of Reduction in Deaths, Injuries, and Societal Costs in 2015 Michigan Motorcycle Crashes with Helmet Use
March 9, 2018 – A report completed by Lidia P. Kostyniuk, Ph.D, P.E., Research Scientist, Emerita with the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute calculating the reduction in monetary costs and deaths that would have been prevented in Michigan in 2015 if all riders involved in crashes would have worn a helmet.
Motorcycle Helmet Law Repeal Costs Lives and Millions of Dollars
March 9, 2018 – News article as published in the Ludington Daily News highlighting a recent report titled Estimate of Reduction in Deaths, Injuries, and Societal Costs in 2015 Michigan Motorcycle Crashes with Helmet Use which concludes “If helmets had been worn by all the crash-involved motorcyclists in 2015, monetary costs of motorcycle crashes would have been reduced by $28 million – $32 million, quality of life costs would have been reduced by $157 million – $169 million, and total societal costs would have been reduced by $185 – $201 million. Twenty-one deaths would have been prevented, and total societal costs of motorcycle crashes would have been lower by 10.5%-11.4%.”