ATV Safety Issues

Since their introduction to the public four decades ago, All Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) have become increasingly fashionable. They're terribly appealing to riders as a result of the quantity of danger one feels whereas riding. This danger, however, ought to not be taken lightly. ATVs carry with them a variety of questions of safety which each rider ought to be involved about. Despite the continuing effort of ATV firms to create these vehicles safer, accidents are still happening on an all-too-regular basis.

ATVs originally came as both 3-wheelers and four-wheelers. It didn't take long, though, for the industry and the general public to appreciate the risk of the 3-wheeler. With no true center of gravity, the three-wheeler was an accident waiting to happen. It was widely assumed that when ATV companies permanently removed the 3-wheeler from the market, accidents would sharply decrease. While there has been a decrease in the quantity of deaths and injuries because of 4-wheel ATVs, enough have happened that the vehicle's safety is still a legitimate concern within the industry. For example, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) revealed that in 2004 alone, there have been an estimated 136,000 serious injuries in the United States that were directly connected to ATVs. The preceding year, 2003, saw 740 folks lose their lives because of ATV accidents.

The troubling side of this rather high range of deaths and injuries attributed to ATVs is that the industry and the CPSC recently agreed on a series of action plans designed to enhance ATV safety. These action plans represent an agreement between the ATV business and the CPSC to crack down on several issues that affect the protection level of ATVs. Some of the things that are currently needed of companies that sell ATVs are the labeling and safe promoting of ATVs. In addition, the CPSC has been given a lot of say as to what ages could ride certain varieties of ATVs. The drawback, however, is that a giant variety of companies that manufacture and distribute ATVs are based in Asia and Italy. As a result of their international standing, they're not needed to abide by the laws of the CPSC. In other words, several of the businesses that are creating ATVs are exempt of any oversight by the U.S. government.

Due to the CPSC's inability to regulate the safety guidelines regarding the ATV trade, focus has currently shifted to state control over the age of riders. Many states have recently enacted legislation that specifically governs the usage of ATVs on state-run land. Some of the factors that states deal with are the ages of riders and the type of engines they use. Many states mandate that the employment of machines bigger than 90cc by riders below the age of sixteen is strictly prohibited.

Those who criticize these blanket policies concerning riders' ages claim that these rules don't adequately address the issue. For example, critics claim that many early teen males are bigger and generally stronger than totally-grown adult females. To defend themselves from this line of thinking, some states are simply prohibiting any minors (those under the age of sixteen) from driving ATVs. Advocates of ATVs, however, argue that coaching riders at an earlier age only stands to improve safety. They argue that children exposed to ATVs at an early age will gradually gain the expertise necessary to be safe drivers of ATVs when they reach adulthood.

In 1988, the All-terrain Vehicle Safety Institute (ASI) was formed. This organization seeks to address ATV safety issues by providing training and education for ATV riders. Most states now require that new users of ATVs bear this sort of coaching. This is one more during a series of makes an attempt by the industry and the CPSC to enhance the safety of ATVs. The need to do provide instruction in ATV riding and driving increases as the sport's popularity continues to grow.