Bicycle Safety and the Law: Quiz #5
Do YOU know the answers?
Questions:
- Is a “kid’s bike” actually a bicycle?
- Here’s an interesting one. Do parents have to ensure that their kids use helmets? ✎
Answers:
- This question is a little tricky. It seems that the answer depends on your definition of a “kid’s bike.” The smallest bicycle for children, with 12.5-inch wheels, would not be considered a bicycle under Oregon Revised Statute 801.150. “Bicycle” means a vehicle that: (1) Is designed to be operated on the ground on wheels; (2) Has a seat or saddle for use of the rider; (3) Is designed to travel with not more than three wheels in contact with the ground; (4) Is propelled exclusively by human power; and (5) Has every wheel more than 14 inches in diameter or two tandem wheels either of which is more than 14 inches in diameter.
The answer is a qualified “Yes.” We all know, or should know, that in Oregon at least kids under 16 gotta wear a helmet! If someone does one of the following, that person is committing the offense of “endangering a bicycle operator or passenger” if (a) The person is operating a bicycle on a highway or on premises open to the public and the person carries another person on the bicycle who is under 16 years of age and is not wearing protective headgear of a type approved under ORS 815.052; or…Section of ORS 814.486 adds that the offense is committed if (b) The person is the parent, legal guardian, or person with legal responsibility for the safety and welfare of a child under 16 years of age, and the child operates or rides on a bicycle on a highway or on premises open to the public without wearing protective headgear of a type approved under ORS 815.052.This section does not apply if wearing a helmet would violate a religious belief or practice of that person (ORS 814.487).
Dave McQuery, Membership Secretary