For motorcycle riders, America’s roads have never been more deadly. That’s not an exaggeration. There were 5,579 motorcycle fatalities in 2020 - the highest number ever recorded. The rise in fatalities also seems to be getting worse. Preliminary estimates indicate motorcycle deaths will pass 6,000 a year once 2021 totals are tabulated.
Key findings:
- Mississippi, Texas and Arkansas have the highest rate of motorcycle fatalities
- Motorcycle fatalities are up 11% since 2019 and 23% since 2010
- Helmet usage declined from 71% to 68% nationwide
- Alcohol was involved in 32% of fatalities
To find the most dangerous states for motorcycle riders, our analysts looked at motorcycle fatalities going back to 2001. We found that motorcycle fatalities are heavily influenced by three factors: alcohol, climate and helmet use.
The most dangerous states for motorcycle riders
Climate plays an important role when looking at the most dangerous states for motorcycle riders. We found that warmer, southern states with weather conducive to riding have the highest rates of motorcycle fatalities. Mississippi is the most dangerous state for motorcycle riders. But Texas, Arkansas, Florida and Louisiana all have nearly four times the fatality rates of northern states like New Hampshire, Minnesota and Massachusetts.
| State | Motorcycle fatalities in 2020 | % change in fatalities from 2019 | Deaths per 10k motorcycles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi | 62 | 55% | 12 |
| Texas | 483 | 16% | 12 |
| Arkansas | 80 | 21% | 11 |
| Florida | 600 | 1% | 10 |
| Louisiana | 78 | -10% | 9 |
| South Carolina | 137 | -11% | 9 |
| Missouri | 123 | 0% | 9 |
| Tennessee | 151 | -3% | 9 |
| Georgia | 192 | 13% | 9 |
| North Carolina | 192 | -9% | 8 |
| Kentucky | 92 | 0% | 8 |
| Wyoming | 19 | 27% | 8 |
| Maryland | 85 | 10% | 8 |
| Arizona | 161 | -8% | 7 |
| West Virginia | 38 | 36% | 7 |
| New Mexico | 46 | -16% | 7 |
| Nevada | 58 | 4% | 7 |
| Michigan | 170 | 27% | 7 |
| Colorado | 140 | 36% | 7 |
| Indiana | 151 | 19% | 7 |
| Connecticut | 58 | 26% | 6 |
| Kansas | 65 | 59% | 6 |
| Nebraska | 34 | 36% | 6 |
| Delaware | 15 | -17% | 6 |
| California | 539 | 10% | 6 |
| Pennsylvania | 219 | 24% | 5 |
| New York | 200 | 47% | 5 |
| Ohio | 211 | 30% | 5 |
| Oklahoma | 63 | -7% | 5 |
| South Dakota | 27 | 93% | 5 |
| Oregon | 68 | 19% | 5 |
| Virginia | 101 | -1% | 5 |
| Illinois | 153 | 11% | 5 |
| Hawaii | 18 | -10% | 5 |
| New Jersey | 78 | -8% | 5 |
| Rhode Island | 13 | 0% | 5 |
| Maine | 29 | 7% | 5 |
| Utah | 44 | 29% | 5 |
| North Dakota | 17 | 55% | 5 |
| Alabama | 78 | -16% | 5 |
| Montana | 29 | 26% | 4 |
| Vermont | 10 | 25% | 4 |
| Idaho | 27 | 8% | 4 |
| Iowa | 64 | 45% | 4 |
| Washington | 91 | -4% | 4 |
| Wisconsin | 116 | 36% | 4 |
| Massachusetts | 52 | 13% | 4 |
| Minnesota | 66 | 43% | 3 |
| New Hampshire | 25 | -17% | 3 |
| Alaska | 4 | -33% | 2 |
Alcohol use and motorcycle fatalities
Alcohol was involved in 32% of motorcycle fatalities in 2020. In some cases, the person killed was below the legal limit, however, 26% of fatalities involved someone who was legally intoxicated, and in 15% of cases, the person killed had a blood alcohol content (BAC) level nearly twice the legal limit.
Our analysts found that alcohol use while riding was especially prevalent in certain states. Alcohol was involved in 50% of fatal crashes in four northern states. Wyoming, Rhode Island, Montana and Alaska had the highest numbers of fatal crashes where someone was legally or severely intoxicated.
| State | % of fatalities with BAC over 0.01 | % of fatalities with BAC over 0.08 (legally impaired) | % of fatalities with BAC over 0.15 (severely impaired) |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Total | 32% | 26% | 15% |
| Wyoming | 58% | 53% | 37% |
| Rhode Island | 54% | 31% | 23% |
| Montana | 52% | 38% | 14% |
| Alaska | 50% | 50% | 0% |
| North Dakota | 41% | 29% | 24% |
| New Hampshire | 40% | 36% | 20% |
| Ohio | 40% | 32% | 21% |
| Connecticut | 40% | 34% | 19% |
| New Jersey | 38% | 29% | 18% |
| Iowa | 38% | 27% | 16% |
| Washington | 37% | 27% | 16% |
| Louisiana | 37% | 29% | 15% |
| Idaho | 37% | 30% | 15% |
| North Carolina | 37% | 29% | 16% |
| New Mexico | 37% | 35% | 22% |
| Oregon | 37% | 26% | 16% |
| Illinois | 36% | 31% | 19% |
| Texas | 36% | 29% | 17% |
| Virginia | 36% | 24% | 19% |
| South Carolina | 35% | 27% | 17% |
| Missouri | 34% | 28% | 18% |
| Maryland | 34% | 28% | 19% |
| Minnesota | 33% | 26% | 23% |
| South Dakota | 33% | 22% | 15% |
| Indiana | 33% | 25% | 16% |
| Pennsylvania | 33% | 27% | 15% |
| Nevada | 33% | 29% | 21% |
| Nebraska | 32% | 24% | 15% |
| New York | 32% | 24% | 14% |
| Wisconsin | 32% | 28% | 14% |
| Colorado | 31% | 27% | 18% |
| Maine | 31% | 28% | 10% |
| Florida | 31% | 24% | 14% |
| Alabama | 31% | 26% | 17% |
| Kentucky | 30% | 24% | 14% |
| Oklahoma | 30% | 27% | 17% |
| Vermont | 30% | 30% | 10% |
| Georgia | 30% | 22% | 15% |
| California | 29% | 23% | 14% |
| West Virginia | 29% | 18% | 8% |
| Michigan | 28% | 24% | 13% |
| Hawaii | 28% | 17% | 11% |
| Arkansas | 28% | 21% | 8% |
| Tennessee | 27% | 21% | 12% |
| Massachusetts | 25% | 21% | 8% |
| Arizona | 25% | 19% | 12% |
| Utah | 23% | 20% | 11% |
| Kansas | 20% | 17% | 9% |
| Mississippi | 19% | 16% | 10% |
| Delaware | 7% | 7% | 7% |
Motorcycle helmet laws
Wearing helmets saves lives. Recent studies show that wearing a DOT-approved helmet reduces the risk of head injury by 69% and the risk of death by 42%. Despite these facts, many states don’t require helmets, and helmet use has declined by four percentage points nationwide.
What’s especially concerning is that helmet use is steadily declining in areas with the highest number of fatalities. We also found that riders are significantly less likely to wear a helmet when they have a passenger.
| Category | Helmet use in 2020 | Helmet use in 2021 | percentage point change 2020-2021 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riders | 69% | 67% | -2 |
| Passengers | 72% | 52% | -20 |
| Solo | 69% | 70% | 1 |
| Rider + Passenger | 65% | 52% | -13 |
| Category | Helmet use in 2020 | Helmet use in 2021 | percentage point change 2020-2021 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northeast | 77% | 70% | -7 |
| Midwest | 53% | 45% | -9 |
| South | 70% | 71% | 1 |
| West | 85% | 88% | 3 |
| Urban | 67% | 65% | –2 |
| Rural | 71% | 65% | -6 |
Motorcycle helmet laws vary from state to state. We found 18 states where all riders are required to wear a helmet, 29 that require them depending on age and three with no helmet laws at all.
| State | # of deaths were rider was wearing a helmet | # of deaths were rider wasn’t wearing a helmet | Helmet law |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Total | 3,260 | 2,143 | N/A |
| Alabama | 68 | 10 | all riders |
| Alaska | 2 | 2 | 17 and younger |
| Arizona | 75 | 77 | 17 and younger |
| Arkansas | 38 | 39 | 20 and younger |
| California | 491 | 35 | all riders |
| Colorado | 63 | 74 | 17 and younger |
| Connecticut | 27 | 25 | 17 and younger |
| Delaware | 12 | 3 | 18 and younger |
| Florida | 288 | 300 | 20 and younger |
| Georgia | 167 | 18 | all riders |
| Hawaii | 5 | 13 | 17 and younger |
| Idaho | 10 | 16 | 17 and younger |
| Illinois | 49 | 102 | no law |
| Indiana | 28 | 115 | 17 and younger |
| Iowa | 20 | 43 | no law |
| Kansas | 27 | 37 | 17 and younger |
| Kentucky | 38 | 54 | 20 and younger |
| Louisiana | 51 | 15 | all riders |
| Maine | 8 | 21 | 17 and younger |
| Maryland | 71 | 14 | all riders |
| Massachusetts | 47 | 2 | all riders |
| Michigan | 77 | 77 | 20 and younger |
| Minnesota | 23 | 42 | 17 and younger |
| Mississippi | 41 | 15 | all riders |
| Missouri* | 99 | 24 | 25 and younger |
| Montana | 11 | 18 | 17 and younger |
| Nebraska | 28 | 6 | all riders |
| Nevada | 48 | 2 | all riders |
| New Hampshire | 7 | 16 | no law |
| New Jersey | 66 | 8 | all riders |
| New Mexico | 20 | 24 | 17 and younger |
| New York | 167 | 27 | all riders |
| North Carolina | 172 | 18 | all riders |
| North Dakota | 3 | 14 | 17 and younger |
| Ohio | 52 | 156 | 17 and younger |
| Oklahoma | 19 | 39 | 17 and younger |
| Oregon | 55 | 4 | all riders |
| Pennsylvania | 91 | 121 | 20 and younger |
| Rhode Island | 6 | 6 | 20 and younger |
| South Carolina | 45 | 92 | 20 and younger |
| South Dakota | 5 | 20 | 17 and younger |
| Tennessee | 135 | 15 | all riders |
| Texas | 234 | 233 | 20 and younger |
| Utah | 19 | 25 | 20 and younger |
| Vermont | 9 | 1 | all riders |
| Virginia | 94 | 7 | all riders |
| Washington | 87 | 3 | all riders |
| West Virginia | 17 | 20 | all riders |
| Wisconsin | 33 | 83 | 17 and younger |
| Wyoming | 7 | 10 | 17 and younger |
| *Riders with an instruction permit must wear a helmet regardless of age. | |||
Riding a motorcycle is inherently more dangerous than other popular forms of transportation. But that doesn’t mean we have to make it more dangerous. Alcohol is involved in an alarming number of fatal crashes, and helmet use is declining in places where it should be increasing. There’s an old story about why you’ll never see a motorcycle parked outside of a psychiatrist's office that only motorcycle riders will understand. Riding is fun, freeing and relaxing. Let’s put on the helmet, put down the beer and ride safely.
Methodology
Motorcycle fatalities were calculated using NHTSA traffic safety statistics from 2010 to 2020. The fatality rate was calculated using 2020 fatality numbers per 10,000 registered motorcycles. The number of alcohol-related motorcycle fatalities was calculated using 2020 NHTSA data. Legally intoxicated is defined as having a BAC level of 0.08%. Severely impaired is defined as having a BAC level of .015% or more.
Additionally, the number of fatalities where the rider was not wearing a helmet was compared to the number of deaths without a helmet. This was paired with helmet laws per state from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).
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