Published: July 18, 2007 10:12 am      

ATV law needs to go further

A new law that will require children to wear helmets while riding four-wheelers and other all-terrain vehicles is sure to be controversial, is long overdue and does not go far enough.

The law – which takes effect Nov. 1 – is designed to save lives and prevent serious injury by requiring people under 18 to wear crash helmets while riding or operating ATVs. Gov. Brad Henry, who signed the bill Tuesday, applauded lawmakers’ efforts to protect children during the signing ceremony.

We, too, applaud that effort.

But the measure, as positive a step as it might be, should go further and should have been enacted long ago.

Hundreds of Oklahoma children are hurt, many seriously, every year in accidents involving four-wheelers and other types of ATVs. Sadly, those popular recreational vehicles have also been responsible for the deaths of numerous Oklahoma children in recent years. Three people under 18 have died in such accidents in Oklahoma this year alone.

The vehicles are frighteningly powerful, unpredictable and can be unstable at high speeds. The popularity of these vehicles has exploded the past 10 years, especially in rural Oklahoma, making some type of legislation an absolute necessity for safety’s sake.

Forcing people under 18 to wear helmets is critical. It won’t stop accidents from happening, but will certainly cut down on the seriousness of some injuries and help prevent the accidental deaths of several Oklahoma children.

It’s a shame it took Oklahoma lawmakers this long to see and address the problem.

In adddition to being too long in coming, the measure is not far reaching enough in its scope.

As written, the law carries a fine of $25 for those children caught riding ATVs without helmets only on public lands and roadways. The law specifically avoids addressing riders who stick to private property. It is on private property where most ATV use occurs, and where many of the injuries and deaths have taken place among Oklahoma’s children.

The law should be amended to govern riding on public AND private lands, in order to be the most effective.