St Louis County Bicycle Helmet Law
Summary: This email has info on the St Louis County Bicycle Helmet Law, including the street sign they
developed.
From: Shirley Scatcherd SScatcherd@stlouisco.com
Subject: St. Louis County law listing revision
I was reviewing the listings for St. Louis County (STLCO) under your LAWS tab. There are two things that should be
revised to more accurately reflect the actual language of the STLCO ordinance. First, we need an asterisk to indicate
that the law applies to all wheeled sports and not just bicycling. Second, in drafting the ordinance I fought to use
"ages 1 through 16 years" rather than "under 17 years of age" as the target population. The American Academy of
Pediatrics recommends that children under one year of age not wear helmets, due to the potential for injury related to a
lack of neck strength. I did not want our ordinance to conflict with their recommendation. Admittedly, this makes
publicity related to the ordinance more cumbersome. However, as a representative of the St. Louis County Department of
Health (DOH) under whose (public health) authority the "Notice of Violation" are written, I felt it was critical to make
this distinction in the ordinance.
The DOH citations are 3 part NCR forms with one copy going to the child or parent, one retained by the issuing officer or
park ranger, and one is forwarded to me. I maintain the database and send follow-up packets to the parent/guardian of any
child cited. The packet includes information on seven partnering locations in St. Louis County where children can be
fitted with a free helmet, a helmet fitting guide, bicycle safety tips brochure, and a return parent survey.
FYI - I have attached a copy of
an informational street sign I developed. (Most of the
graphics came from Clip Art. I used "shapes" to make the scooter and tricycle.) I collaborated with SAFE KIDS - St. Louis
to finance the production of 300 such signs, which are the same size and quality as "No Parking Here to Corner" etc.
signage. We plan to conduct an observational helmet use survey next spring prior to posting the signs in collaboration
with several municipalities throughout St. Louis County; and again 6 months later. I'll send you a FYI report of our
findings after the 2nd observational survey.
I really like the example of the Vancouver ordinance you have posted. I wish I had had it in hand when I organized the
task force. Maybe in a few years we can go for a similar revision to the wording of the St. Louis County ordinance.
Sincerely,
Shirley
Shirley Scatcherd
(MCH) Public Health Coordinator
Saint Louis County Department of Health
4000 Jennings Station Road
St. Louis MO 63121
email - sscatcherd@stlouisco.com
phone - 314-679-7874
fax - 314-679-7876