Van said he could not meet with the mayor or tour election sites, but said Johnson was
welcome to visit him in D.C.
Turning to the outdoors with summer at its peak, ATV and side-by-side vehicles are out
in force across thousands of miles of trails in Wisconsin, and we have the most registered
off-road vehicles of any state at more than half a million.
The explosion in riders comes with a steady increase, though, in fatality and injury accidents
involving the vehicles.
A new law went into effect in June that requires seatbelt use, part of work to enhance the safety
of ATVs and UTVs.
The DNR Conservation Warden, Jake Holzclaw, oversees the off-highway vehicle program and
joins us now from Eau Claire, and thanks very much for being here.
Absolutely, look forward to it.
So how busy is it out there on the ATV routes?
Yeah, great question.
It seems like it's getting busier every day, but Wisconsin, like you said, we have over
half a million registered machines, it seems like that number is going up every year, and
we have about 2,500 miles of off-road trail routes, and then we have over 65,000 miles
of on-road routes.
So basically, roadways, you know, roadway routes shared with other motor vehicles, so
it really does keep us busy.
As we've said, the uptick in the number of riders, though, also results in an increase
in accidents and injuries and even fatalities.
Yeah, unfortunately, I think that that's just kind of a byproduct of the increased numbers.
We really started to see an increase around 2020, 2021.
I think people were just with everything else going on.
They were trying to get outdoors, find something to do, and it really has stayed steadily increasing
ever since then.
And when you have more people on the landscape, you have more folks that potentially are,
you know, not being safe and not following the rules, and then we have seen an uptick
in crashes because of that.
So how and why do these crashes mostly happen?
Well, it's any number of reasons.
A number of our crashes are going to be alcohol or drug related.
The majority of them would be alcohol related when we're looking at, you know, some kind
of substance, so to speak, that's causing folks to crash.
And so I think folks need to remember that, you know, just like the motor vehicle world,
you really need to make a smart decision and realize that even with these recreational
vehicles like ATVs and UTVs, maybe even more so, they're a very dynamic machine and folks
have to be, you want to be on your best, right?
You want your mind to be working the best.
You want your body, your reaction time to be working the best when you're out operating
these.
One of the other things is that people need to remember.
I think they sometimes forget that these machines handle differently unpaved surfaces
and roadways.
The original design of these machines, in fact, that's what the man, you know, you'll
see manufacturers' recommendations is that they are only operated off the road.
So I think folks need to remember that the Navier, softer tires on a lot of these machines,
they tend to grip pavement really well.
And if people drive them like they would drive their car going to work, it can cause
some problems.
And to tip easier, if people aren't slowing down into their curves and really anticipating
their stops.
So a number of the crashes we're seeing a little over half are occurring on roadway
routes.
So as to the operation of these vehicles, while under the influence of whatever it is,
what are the penalties for that?
I mean, you can write citations for that, but what are the penalties that someone would
face for that?
Yeah.
Ultimately, it would be a citation or a couple citations.
Typically, you know, a citation is issued for the operating while intoxicated.
If they're operating over that .08 level, they would be issued an additional citation
for that.
And then sometimes they're issued to other citations for other violations that may have
occurred because they were intoxicated and not really thinking clearly and violating
some other safety issues.
So yeah, so a number of citations can be issued, but typically, you know, most of what
we're running into is a first offense.
And in Wisconsin, like any OWI, a first offense is just a civil forfeiture.
It's really just a fine.
There's typically no jail time or extra fines associated with that unless there is something
more major, like somebody dies in the crash or something like that happens.
And so people could be right back out there on those vehicles after that kind of a citation.
Now, I took a look at your annual report, and it says that 95% of fatal accidents are
among operators who have not taken a safety course.
But those are that course is only required for people born after 1988.
Why is that?
Yeah, you're spot on.
Well, back when the law was created, they decided to, my understanding is that they
decided to set a date.
They had to set a timeframe where they wanted everybody born on or after that date to complete
the course.
Like you said, it's one, one of 88.
And so the idea behind that then was that folks born before that are essentially grandfathered
in their older age.
But what we are seeing, like you said, 95% having completed a safety course, but also
the majority of our crashes are happening with folks that are older and grandfathered in.
So folks that were born before that one one of 88 date.
And so I think it really points to the fact that you're never really too old to learn
safety and you're never too old to know the rules and regulations.
And we just want folks to remember that the majority, the vast majority of our regulations
are there for your safety and for you to continue to enjoyment of that sport.
All right.
Well, we appreciate it.
Thanks very much for joining us from Eau Claire J. Coleskaw.
Thank you.
I didn't, I didn't get in, I wanted to ask you about helmet use.
Now those are not even mandated, right?
The only time they're mandated would be for people under 18.
So, and even then there are some exemptions, but for 99% of the time, folks that are under
18 are going to have to wear a helmet when they're on a public or over trail or somebody
else's private property.
Now, if they're on like their own immediate family's property or they're actively engaged
in hunting or fishing, then there's an exemption for helmets.
But again, the majority of crashes that we're seeing are with adults and the majority of
those adults are not wearing helmets, whether it's on an eight year UTV.
And then in the case of UTVs, they're not wearing seatbelts.
So those are additionally big reasons why people are getting hurt and killed.
Yeah.
Okay.
Well, thank you.
It is also dangerous.
Yeah.
It is.
You got it.
It's fun, but it's more fun when you do it safely.
Indeed.
All right.
Thank you so much.
Have a good weekend.
Yep.
You as well.
Thank you.