March 2005 DOT HS 809 867

Motorcycle Helmet Use in 2004 – Overall Results

Donna Glassbrenner, Ph.D.1

Traffic Safety Facts

Research Note

NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., SW, Washington, DC 20590

1

Dr. Glassbrenner, a researcher with the Mathematical Analysis Division, can be reached at donna.glassbrenner@nhtsa.dot.gov.

In June 2004, 58 percent of motorcyclists in the U.S. used helmets, unchanged from the usage rate two years ago. This result 

is from the National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS), which provides the only probability-based observed data on 

helmet use in the United States. The NOPUS is conducted by the National Center for Statistics and Analysis in the National 

Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). 

The 2004 survey also found the following:

■ The use of helmets that are not compliant with Federal safety regulations declined from 14 percent in 2002 to 11 percent 

in 2004. Such helmets include novelty helmets and helmets with an insufficient coverage area. 

■ Use rates for helmets that do and do not comply with Federal safety regulations are both statistically lower in States that 

do not require helmet use, compared to States that require use. In 2004, 71 percent of motorcyclists in States requiring 

helmet use wore compliant helmets and 16 percent wore noncompliant helmets. In States with no helmet law, 48 percent 

used compliant and 6 percent used noncompliant helmets.

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004

63% 64% 67% 71%

58% 58%

Motorcycle Helmet Use, 1994 - 2004

Estimates from 1996-2004 reflect helmets compliant with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 218. The 1994 estimate reflects the use of all 

helmets, both compliant and non-compliant.

Source: National Occupant Protection Use Survey, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis Helmet Use, In Percent

58%

11%

31%

Helmets Compliant

with FMVSS 218

Noncompliant

Helmets

No Helmet

Motorcycle Helmet Use in 2004, by Helmet Type

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Use In Percent

Source: National Occupant Protection Use Survey, National Highway Traffic 

Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis

71%

16%

States Requiring All 

to Use Helmets

Motorcycle Helmet Use in 2004, by Law and Helmet Type

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Use In Percent

Source: National Occupant Protection Use Survey, National Highway Traffic

Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis

States Not Requiring 

All to Use Helmets

48%

6%

Helmets Compliant with FMVSS 218

Noncompliant Helmets
NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 2 400 Seventh St., SW., Washington, DC 20590

Motorcyclist Group

2002 2004 2002-2004 Change

Helmet 

Use1

Significantly 

High and 

Low Rates2

Helmet 

Use1

Significantly 

High and 

Low Rates2

Change 

in Use, in 

Percentage 

Points

Confidence 

in a Change 

in Use3

Percentage 

Reduction 

in Nonuse

All Motorcyclists 58% 58% 0 0% 0%

Operators 59% 63% H 4 57% 10%

Passengers 48% 41% L -7 49% -13%

Motorcyclists in Jurisdictions in Which4

Use Is Required for All Motorcyclists 73% H 71% H -2 18% -7%

Other Jurisdictions 46% L 48% L 2 25% 4%

Motorcyclists on 

Expressways 66% 65% -1 4% -3%

Surface Streets 54% 58% 4 38% 9%

Motorcyclists Traveling in

Fast Traffic 59% 59% 0 0% 0%

Medium Speed Traffic 53% 58% 5 40% 11%

Slow Traffic 60% 58% -2 16% -5%

Motorcyclists Traveling in

Heavy Traffic NA NA NA

Moderately Dense Traffic NA 52% NA

Light Traffic 56% 58% 2 16% 5%

Motorcyclists in 

Light Precipitation NA 74% NA

Light Fog NA NA NA

Clear Weather Conditions 57% 57% 0 0% 0%

Motorcycle Operators When

They are the Sole Rider NA 62% NA

They Have a Passenger NA 66% NA

Motorcyclists in the 

Northeast 65% 57% -8 69% -23%

Midwest 54% 70% 16 77% 35%

South 62% 52% -10 74% -26%

West 52% 57% 5 49% 10%

Motorcyclists in 

Urban Areas 52% 70% 18 82% 38%

Suburban Areas 54% 55% 1 6% 2%

Rural Areas 59% 59% 0 0% 0%

Motorcyclists Traveling During

Weekdays 58% 59% 1 8% 2%

 Weekday Rush Hours 58% 57% -1 9% -2%

 Weekday Nonrush Hours 58% 60% 2 15% 5%

Weekends 57% 58% 1 29% 2%

1 Use of helmets meeting the safety requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 218, observed during daytime (8 a.m. - 6 p.m.) among riders and passengers of 

 motorcycles.

2

 Rates flagged with an “H” or “L” are statistically high or low in their category at a 90% confidence level. 

3

 The degree of statistical confidence that the 2004 use rate is different from the 2002 rate.

4 The use rates here refer to the type of law in effect at the time the observations were made.

NA: Data not collected or not sufficient to produce a reliable estimate.

Source: National Occupant Protection Use Survey, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis

Use of Helmets Compliant with Federal Safety Regulations, by Major Characteristics
NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 3 400 Seventh St., SW., Washington, DC 20590

Motorcyclist Group

2002 2004 2002-2004 Change

Use of 

Noncompliant 

Helmets1

Significantly 

High and 

Low Rates2

Use of 

Noncompliant 

Helmets1

Significantly 

High and 

Low Rates2

Change in Use 

of Noncompliant 

Helmets, in 

Percentage 

Points

Confidence 

in a Change 

in Use3

All Motorcyclists 14% 11% -3 76%

Operators 15% 12% -3 63%

Passengers 14% 8% -6 77%

Motorcyclists in Jurisdictions in Which4

Use Is Required for All Motorcyclists 27% H 16% H -11 90%

Other Jurisdictions 7% L 6% L -1 20%

Motorcyclists on 

Expressways 15% 14% -1 15%

Surface Streets 15% 11% -4 76%

Motorcyclists Traveling in

Fast Traffic 14% 9% -5 76%

Medium Speed Traffic 14% 12% -2 30%

Slow Traffic 16% 11% -5 62%

Motorcyclists Traveling in

Heavy Traffic NA NA NA

Moderately Dense Traffic NA 13% NA

Light Traffic 15% 10% -5 82%

Motorcyclists in 

Light Precipitation NA NA NA

Light Fog NA NA NA

Clear Weather Conditions 14% 11% -3 66%

Motorcycle Operators When

They are the Sole Rider NA 12% NA

They Have a Passenger NA 12% NA

Motorcyclists in the 

Northeast 26% 10% -16 97%

Midwest NA 9% NA

South 14% 10% -4 60%

West NA 14% NA

Motorcyclists in 

Urban Areas 10% 4% L -6 75%

Suburban Areas 16% 14% -2 18%

Rural Areas 14% 9% -5 83%

Motorcyclists Traveling During

Weekdays 10% L 11% 1 3%

 Weekday Rush Hours 13% 10% -3 59%

 Weekday Nonrush Hours 9% 11% 2 36%

Weekends 21% H 11% -10 94%

1Use of helmets that do not meet the safety standards of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 218, observed during daytime (8 a.m. - 6 p.m.) among riders and passengers 

 of motorcycles.

2

 Rates flagged with an “H” or “L” are statistically high or low in their category at a 90% confidence level. 

3 The degree of statistical confidence that the 2004 use rate is different from the 2002 rate.

4 The use rates here refer to the type of law in effect at the time the observations were made.

NA: Data not collected or not sufficient to produce a reliable estimate.

Source: National Occupant Protection Use Survey, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis

Use of Noncompliant Helmets by Major Characteristics
NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 4 400 Seventh St., SW., Washington, DC 20590

Survey Methodology

The National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS) 

is the only probability-based observational survey of 

motorcycle helmet use in the United States. The survey 

observes usage as it actually occurs at a random selection 

of roadway sites, and so provides the best tracking of helmet 

use in this country. 

The survey data is collected by sending observers to a 

set of probabilistically sampled roadways, who observe 

motorcyclists between the hours of 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. 

Observations are made either while standing at the roadside 

or, in the case of expressways, while riding in a vehicle in 

traffic. Observers do not stop motorcycles or interview 

motorcyclists, so that the NOPUS captures the untainted 

behavior of riders. The 2004 NOPUS data were collected 

between June 7 and July 11, 2004, excluding the period July 

2-5 inclusive, while the 2002 data were collected between 

June 3 and June 22, 2002.

Because the NOPUS sites were chosen through probabilistic 

means, we can analyze the statistical significance of its 

results. Statistically significant increases in helmet use 

between 2002 and 2004 would be identified in the table “Use 

of Helmets Compliant with Federal Safety Regulation, by 

Major Characteristics” by having a result that is 90 percent or 

greater in the table’s column 7 (although there were no such 

cases in 2002-2004), and similarly for the subsequent table 

on the use of noncompliant helmets. Significantly high and 

low levels of helmet use, such as the lower use in States that 

do not require all motorcyclists to use helmets, are identified 

by H’s and L’s in columns 3 and 5. Such comparisons are 

made within categories, such as road type, delineated by 

solid horizontal lines in the tables. The exception to this is 

the grouping “Motorcyclists Traveling During ...,” in which 

weekdays are compared to weekends, and weekday rush 

hour to weekday nonrush hour.

Sites, Motorcycles, and Motorcyclists 

Observed

The NOPUS uses a complex multi-stage probability sample, 

statistical data editing, imputation of unknown values, and 

complex estimation and variance estimation procedures. 

See the NHTSA Technical Report referenced below for more 

information on these procedures. 

Data collection, estimation, and variance estimation for the 

NOPUS are conducted by Westat, Inc., under the direction 

of the National Center for Statistics and Analysis in NHTSA 

under Federal contract number DTNH22-00-D-07001.

Definitions

NHTSA established standards for motorcycle helmets to 

ensure a certain degree of protection in a crash in Federal 

Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 218. (Code of Federal 

Register, Title 49, Volume 5, Part 571, Section 218, October 

2003) DOT-compliant helmets are helmets that meet this 

safety standard, while noncompliant helmets are helmets 

that do not. 

DOT-compliant helmets are identified by a sticker inside 

the helmet. For the purposes of NOPUS’s nonintrusive 

observation, NOPUS data collectors categorize noncompliant 

helmets as helmets that have a small coverage area (such 

as “beanie helmet”) or some protrusion (such as a spike). 

Experts at NHTSA guesstimate that these criteria correctly 

characterize the compliance over 90 percent of motorcycle 

helmets. 

NHTSA estimates helmet use as the use of DOT-compliant 

helmets. 

“Expressways” are defined to be roadways with limited access, 

while “surface streets” comprise all other roadways.

A roadway is defined to have “fast traffic” if during the 

observation period the average speed of passenger vehicles 

that passed the observer(s) exceeded 50 mph, with “medium 

speed traffic” defined as 31-50 mph and “slow traffic” defined 

as 30 mph or slower.

A roadway is defined to have “heavy traffic” if the average 

number of vehicles per lane mile on the roadway during the 

observation period exceeded 45 vehicles per lane mile, with 

“moderately dense traffic” defined as 26-45 vehicles per 

lane per mile and “light traffic” having at most 25 vehicles 

per lane per mile.

Numbers of 2002 2004 Percentage 

Increase

Sites Observed 2,000 2,000 0%

Motorcycles Observed 900 1,300 44%

Motorcyclists Observed 1,100 1,600 45%
NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 5 400 Seventh St., SW., Washington, DC 20590

States with Laws1 Requiring Helmet Use 

for All Motorcycle Riders

Also, we note that at the time the 2002 and 2004 surveys 

were conducted, 19 States, DC, and Puerto Rico required all 

motorcyclists to be helmeted. Other States either required 

only a subset of riders to use helmets (such as those under 

18 years of age), or have no helmet requirement. 

Alabama Mississippi Oregon

California Missouri Puerto Rico

District of 

Columbia

Nebraska Tennessee

Georgia Nevada Vermont

Maryland New Jersey Virginia

Massachusetts New York Washington

Michigan North Carolina West Virginia

1 States with laws in effect as of May 21, 2004. No additional States had such 

 laws during the period June 30, 2002 – July 30, 2004.

For More Information

For detailed analyses of the data in this publication, as well 

as additional data and information on the survey design 

and analysis procedures, see the upcoming publication, 

“Motorcycle Helmet Use in 2004 – Analysis,” expected 

to be available on the Web site www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/

departments/nrd-30/ncsa/AvailInf.html in the spring of 

2005.

The NOPUS also observes other types of restraints, such 

as child restraints and safety belts, and observes driver cell 

phone use. This publication is part of a series that presents 

overall results from the survey on these topics. Please see 

other members of the series, such as “Child Restraint Use 

in 2004 – Overall Results,” and the corresponding NHTSA 

Technical Report, “Child Restraint Use in 2004 –Analysis,” 

for the latest data on these topics. 

For additional copies of this Research Note, please call 1-202-366-9591 or fax your request to 202-366-7096. This 

Research Note and other information on traffic safety may be accessed by internet users at: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov
NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 6 400 Seventh St., SW., Washington, DC 20590