Motorcycle deaths rise

Motorcycle deaths rise

Highway fatalities nationwide decreased in 2007 compared with 2006, but motorcycle fatalities increased, and in no state were there more than in Florida, according to federal figures.

Florida had 530 motorcycle fatalities in 2007, according to data compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The state with the next highest number is California with 495 deaths. Texas placed third with 375 deaths, and Pennsylvania was fourth with 210, according to the NHTSA.

The figures were used by the National Transportation Safety Board for a study on all types of transportation fatalities.

In most categories there were decreases – in aviation and in marine deaths, for instance. Though fewer people died during recreational boating, there was a slight increase in the number of people who died while passengers on commercial vessels, the NTSB said.

Aside from the increase in motorcycle fatalities, there was an increase in the number of people killed in rail fatalities – from 774 to 808. The vast majority of these fatalities were people struck by rail vehicles.

Highway fatalities, which account for nearly 95 percent of all transportation deaths, decreased from 42,708 in 2006 to 41,059 in 2007. That represents a 4 percent decrease.

However, the number of motorcycle deaths increased from 4,837 to 5,154, a 7 percent jump. And the 317 additional deaths in 2007 was the largest spike in any category.

In Florida, of the 530 killed, 52 percent were wearing helmets and 48 percent were not, according to NHTSA data. The state does not require all motorcycle riders to wear helmets.

California does. In that state, 86 percent of those killed were wearing a helmet and 14 percent were not.

In Florida, 25 percent had a blood-alcohol level greater than 0.08. A driver in the state is presumed intoxicated if his or her percentage is 0.08 or greater. Thirty-two percent of the people killed had a blood-alcohol level greater than 0.01, the NHTSA data show.