Last Wednesday, a Virginia legislator submitted a bill to ban text-messaging while driving a car

House Bill 39 would add the following text to its laws...

§ 46.2-1078.1. Use of certain wireless telecommunications devices for text messaging prohibited.

It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a motor vehicle, bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped on the highways in the Commonwealth while using any wireless telecommunications device for the purpose of sending, receiving, or reading any text message.

Labels: Cell Phones, Virginia Motorcycle Legislation

Today, Virginia's House Militia, Police and Public Safety Committee approved the bill that would repeal the State's mandatory helmet law. The law would still require riders under the age of 21 to wear a helmet. The next step is for the House, in full, to take a vote.

The News & Advance, a newspaper in Virginia, wasn't very happy about this. An opinion published in their paper today was critical of this vote, accusing the committee of "igoring reality":

Champagne also cited a University of Southern California study of 3,600 motorcycle crashes that showed that wearing a helmet was the single most important factor in preventing or reducing head and neck injuries. "When you suffer a head trauma injury, if you're fortunate enough not to be killed, you generally end up with such a disability that you may require long-term care for the rest of your life."

And who is going to pay for that? Delegate William J. Barlow, D-Isle of Wight, said that taxpayers are often saddled with the health care costs of crash victims who suffer brain injuries from motorcycle accidents.

If it considers Champagne's testimony carefully, there's no way the full House could repeal the mandatory helmet law. It saves lives. But don't hold your breath. The individual's freedom to pursue his or her own course - no matter how dangerous or destructive - is running rampant in the House of Delegates.

Labels: Helmet Laws, Virginia Motorcycle Legislation

Virginia Republican Delegate Bill Janis of Henrico County has sponsored a bill to make wearing a helmet optional for adults. The bill is now being considered by the House Militia, Police and Public Safety Committee. This Wednesday, motorcyclists are expected to testify before the committee in favor of the bill.

The committee has already heard from James E. Champagne, chairman of the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission.

"We had a helmet law from 1982 until 1999 when, through a lack of wisdom, we decided to believe in the tooth fairy instead of reality," Champagne said in an interview prior to his appearance before the committee last week.

Louisiana repealed its mandatory helmet law in 1999 but reinstated it last year after motorcycle fatalities increased dramatically. According to Champagne, who also is Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco's highway safety representative, 35 motorcyclists were killed in the state in 1998. Seventy-nine died in 2003, a 125 percent increase over 1998, he said.

However, Janis said the increased fatalities corresponded with an increase in motorcycles and crashes. The number of deaths per 100 crashes was already increasing before the law was repealed, and the rate actually declined in some of the subsequent years, he said.

Labels: Helmet Laws, Virginia Motorcycle Legislation