Crime & Traffic

The following question was originally submitted to John Roska, a lawyer and writer for the weekly column "The Law Q&A" in the Champaign News Gazette. The article has been updated to include changes in the law and additional information.

Question

What are the laws on operating a motorcycle? Are helmets ever required?

Answer

Motorcyclists must follow all traffic laws, signs, and signals just like other drivers. When it comes to helmet use for motorcyclists, Illinois lets those who ride decide. Helmets are never required. Local laws can’t even try to require them. However, using a helmet when riding a motorcycle is always encouraged. It is proven to reduce head injuries if you have an accident.

Illinois, Iowa, and New Hampshire are the last holdouts against some kind of helmet law. Alabama and California require helmets for all riders. Missouri requires helmets for riders under 26. Indiana for those under 18.   

We once had a helmet law, but ditched it in 1969. Now, state law only requires the “operator of a motorcycle, motor driven cycle or moped and every passenger thereon shall be protected by glasses, goggles or a transparent shield.”

Motorcycle riders and passengers must wear shatter-resistant eyewear, or be behind a windshield. The law requires that riders sit on passenger seats and are capable of resting a foot on footrests. Riders and passengers must straddle the bike. This does not apply if the rider sits in a sidecar.

State law prohibits handgrips above head height of the operator. It also prohibits riding with no hands, and riding on one-wheel. Until 2013, wheelies and no-handed riding weren’t specially banned. Plus, the handgrip limit was shoulder height. Today, any person breaking the law will receive a minimum of $100 fine. A second conviction will result in a Class B misdemeanor. A third conviction will result in a Class A misdemeanor.

There is one traffic law that is unique for motorcycles. This is a rare straight-on-red law. Since 2012, motorcycles and bicycles can ride safely through a stop light that hasn’t changed for at least 2 minutes. But, there are some conditions to this law. It only applies if that delay is because the light-changing device can’t detect bikes. Also, it only applies if you're outside of Chicago. That is, in a county or municipality with less than 2,000,000 inhabitants.  

Federal law sets standards for making motorcycles. It leaves the regulation of their use up to the states. Those laws seem to require headlights to be on whenever a motorcycle’s engine is on. It's not totally clear.

Illinois briefly tried a helmet law. This was after a 1966 Federal highway law threatened states without helmet laws with a 10% cut in highway funds. But in 1969, the state Supreme Court declared our helmet law unconstitutional.  

The Court said that helmets were more about personal than public safety. Personal safety could not be regulated, but public safety could. As they put it: “The manifest function of the headgear requirement in issue is to safeguard the person wearing it—whether it is the operator or a passenger—from head injuries. Such a laudable purpose, however, cannot justify the regulation of what is essentially a matter of personal safety.”

A later Supreme Court case upheld an eye protection law for riders. Since “a flying object or insect might strike the passenger in the eye, the passenger might thereby disturb the driver and cause a loss of control of the motorcycle, endangering the operator, the passenger, and more importantly the public.”

Some think the Supreme Court changed its mind about the difference between personal and public safety. This was when it upheld seat belt laws in 1986. The state legislature has resisted steady efforts to pass any new helmet laws. So, a new court challenge hasn’t been needed. Since the federal law tying highway funds to helmets was repealed in 1976, states without helmet laws can no longer lose money.