Motorcycle deaths increase

By: Drivers.com staff
Date: 2001-07-04

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More motorcycle riders in the USA are dying in crashes, and federal officials want to know why. A National Highway Transportation Safety Administration study released Tuesday shows that 2,472 people were killed in motorcycle accidents in 1999, the largest number since 1991. According to MSNBC , it was also the second straight year that the number of fatalities rose over the year before.

NHTSA's analysis, entitled "Recent Trends in Fatal Motorcycle Crashes," reveals that fatality rates are increasing after declining to an all time low in 1997. For motorcycle fatalities the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled dropped from 33.9 motorcycle rider fatalities in 1990 to 21.0 in 1997. The rate increased to 22.3 in 1998 and 23.4 in 1999. Most of the increases in fatalities between 1997 and 1999 were among older riders (40 and over) and larger displacement (over 1000 cubic centimeters) motorcycles. Rural roads, alcohol use, and not wearing helmets contributed greatly to the deaths.

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