Preventing serious injuries and deaths from motorcycle crashes is a major and growing public health concern.
Consider that:
- Motorcycle crashes killed 5,290 people in 2008.
- The number of motorcycle-related deaths increased every year between 1997 and 2008.
- Motorcycle crash-related injuries and deaths totaled $12 billion in one year, in medical care costs and productivity losses.
- Helmets are estimated to prevent 37 percent of fatal motorcycle injuries for motorcycle riders (operators) and 41 percent of fatal injuries for motorcycle passengers.