WSJ.com – Touting Freedom, Bikers Take Aim At Helmet Laws argues that “the statistical case for helmet laws seems solid, according to analysis of government figures”:
In each state that recently repealed its mandatory helmet law, motorcycle deaths have more than doubled, sometimes in as short a span as three years. Motorcycle use has also increased, although not as much. To account for increased use, The Wall Street Journal looked at the change in motorcycle fatalities per 10,000 registered motorcycles.In the six years since Texas repealed its law in 1997, the annual rate has jumped nearly 30%, to an average 10.95 deaths per 10,000 registered motorcycles, compared with an average of 8.46 deaths for the two years prior to the repeal. In Kentucky, the average rate has jumped to 9.9 in the five years since its 1998 repeal, up 55% compared with the average for the two years before.
In Florida, in the three years since repeal, the rate is up 21%, to 8.94, compared with the two-year average prior to the repeal.
I’d argue that the statistical case for helmet use seems solid, according to analysis of government figures — assuming you value safety over the wind in your hair. Still, those stats don’t totally account for increased motorcycle use, just ownership. If wearing a helmet is unpleasant (particularly in the hot summer months), then we’d expect to see bike owners riding more when helmets aren’t mandatory — more riding per registered motorcycle.