WASHINGTON, April 28 (UPI) -- The head of a highway safety association representing all 50 states is urging states to pass or retain laws requiring motorcycle riders to wear helmets.
Lt. Col. Jim Champagne, chair of the Governors Highway Safety Association, said he was "deeply disturbed" by an 85 percent increase in motorcycle-related fatalities since 1997.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in preliminary figures last week estimated 3,927 motorcyclists were killed last year, a 7.3 percent increase from 2003.
Just 20 states and the District of Columbia require all motorcycle riders to wear helmets.
"Given the serious trends in motorcycle fatalities, one would think additional states would be mulling enactment of new laws. The reality is that some of the 20 states are actually considering repealing their laws," Champagne said.
He said motorcycle fatalities jumped 137 percent four years after Louisiana repealed its mandatory helmet law in 1999. The law was reinstated in 2004.
May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month.
