Motorcycle riders have a choice in Florida on whether they wear helmets.The Safety Council of Palm Beach County wants bikers to make the "smart choice" and is giving away free helmets throughout the month of May to make sure they do. May is Motorcycle Safety Month.
"Motorcycle injuries and fatalities are a problem in Palm Beach County," said Donna Bryan, the safety council's spokeswoman. "It seems like every week you hear about a motorcycle fatality."
Motorcycle crashes increased 9 percent between 2010 and 2012 in the county, according data from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
The safety group received a grant from the Florida Department of Transportation to provide the free helmets as part of the department's motorcycle safety initiative. It's the first motorcycle helmet giveaway in the state, but they're expected to spread as the state awards more grants.
Standard DOT-approved helmets can cost from $50 to $100.
"A helmet is the main thing you want to give away" to improve motorcycle safety, said Chanyoung Lee, a senior researcher with the University of South Florida's Center for Urban Transportation Research. "If you want to protect yourself, wearing a helmet is the number one thing you can do."
Before Florida repealed its mandatory helmet law in 2000, some 98 percent of motorcyclists wore helmets, Lee said.
Now, according to a 2013 FDOT study of helmet use, only 51 percent of motorcycle riders in Florida wear helmets. In Palm Beach County, 54 percent of riders wear helmets.
And yet a state survey last year of motorcycle riders found that 74 percent of riders thought it was important for bikers to ride helmets.
"No matter how good a rider you are, you don't know what the other driver is going to do," Bryan said. "There are distracted drivers out there, construction, more people on the road. And drivers don't always see motorcycles."
Studies have shown that bikers have better odds of surviving a crash if they're wearing a helmet, Lee said.
In Florida, a third of motorcycle deaths are related to traumatic brain injuries, according to the Florida Department of Health.
To get the free helmets from the safety council, motorcyclists must have a motorcycle endorsement on their driver's license.
The safety group is also giving away the helmets to people who successfully complete its motorcycle safety course. Florida law requires bikers to take a safety course before getting a motorcycle endorsement on their license.
Also as part of its $48,870 grant, the safety council is offering an additional motorcycle safety course at a discounted rate this month, charging $125 rather than $250. The class runs May 29 to June 1.
For more information, contact the safety council at 561-845-8233.
astreeter@tribune.com, 561-243-6537 or Twitter @adstreeter
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