SHANE Rattenbury has called on other jurisdictions to support nationally consistent standards for the sale and use of motorcycle helmets at the 4th Transport and Infrastructure Council meeting in Adelaide.
“The current standards for motorcycle helmets are inconsistent across jurisdictions, meaning a rider could leave one jurisdiction with a perfectly legal helmet and enter another, breaking the law,” Shane said.
“This inconsistency has caused much confusion and frustration within the motorcycle community and it simply makes sense that we should have consistent standards across jurisdictions that are in line with current advice in terms of safety.
“The Commonwealth Government is responsible for the standards that relate to the sale of helmets, whereas each jurisdiction is responsible for the standards that relate to use/wear.
“The Commonwealth has been undertaking a review of the sale standards since 2012 and, as such, some jurisdictions have put off updating their use standards in order to align with the outcome of the review.
“Conversely, some jurisdictions have updated their standards to meet the latest European guidelines but riders are unable to purchase helmets that meet these standards due to the outdated federal sale standards.
“The delays stemming from the Federal Government review are frustrating and I believe transport agencies across jurisdictions can work together to resolve this issue quickly. As such, I have requested this issue be brought to the Transport meeting in Adelaide this week.
“I have also written to the Federal Government to seek advice on the expected timeframe of their review and to seek their support to resolve this issue promptly.
“Motorcyclists represent a growing proportion of road users and I believe we can and should work quickly to address this important safety issue,” said Mr Rattenbury.
Jen Woods from the Motorcycle Riders Association of the ACT was also supportive of moves for a national standard.
“The Motorcycle Riders Association of the ACT, as a delegate to the Australian Motorcycle Council, calls for harmonisation of laws across Australia to clarify the situation around helmets and also supports the legalisation of motorcycle helmets to UN standard ECE 22-05 and other international standards,” said Ms Woods.
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