A scooter safety awareness effort begun on the University of Arkansas campus needs to be extended to all of Fayetteville and beyond.
The recent on-campus death of a 20-year-old classmate prompted senators in the Associated Student Government to pass legislation to honor him and encourage riders to wear helmets.
Cole Pangburn, a business management student from Little Rock, died from a head injury sustained in a September accident. He was not wearing a helmet when he lost control of the scooter he was riding on Razorback Road. He died Sept. 6, a few days after the accident.
The action by the student government at least brought additional attention to the risk students -- anyone, really -- take when they ride scooters or motorcycles without a helmet.
State law actually requires anyone younger than 21 to wear a helmet, but it is one of those laws many people ignore.
Few students wear helmets, according to university police, who say they cannot stop students solely because they might be under 21 years old.
But police are reportedly watching for potential scooter traffic violations, given the increase in scooter usage in Fayetteville.
Scooters are less expensive to operate than cars and easier to park on the congested campus, so their popularity is understandable.
The campus issued 1,331 scooter parking permits in the 12-month period that ended June 30, so they're a constant presence on campus and out in the community.
Pangburn's wasn't the only recent death in a scooter-related accident in Fayetteville. In November alone, two other young people -- 18-year-old Hailey King and 19-year-old Grant McCoy White, both of Fayetteville -- lost their lives in local accidents.
King died after she and another youth were riding on a scooter on Crossover Road when a pickup hit them from behind on Nov. 6. White, a passenger on a scooter, died after a Nov. 14 collision with a car on Wedington Drive.
Their untimely deaths were no less tragic than Pangburn's, but his drew more attention because it happened on the UA campus and triggered such a strong student response.
The students haven't really detailed what they will do to increase awareness, but they intend to do something.
There's talk of a week or a day to promote scooter awareness across campus, providing assistance to pay for student helmets or partnering with the university's parking and transit department to require some online training before a scooter permit is issued.
Whatever they do, they've already had some impact, bringing public attention to the problem -- on the campus and off.
Perhaps some of them will carry the message beyond the campus, maybe even to a state Legislature that has refused to require helmets for riders of scooters or motorcycles who are older than 21.
Previous efforts have failed there, despite strong evidence that the use of helmets can prevent or lessen serious head injury.
Every year, local residents are reminded just how dangerous motorcycles can be. The long-running annual Bikes, Blues and BBQ festival in Fayetteville brings thousands and thousands of cyclists to the region. With them come multiple wrecks, including some fatalities.
It's just an unhappy reality with so many bikes on the road.
While some riders wear helmets, not all do, asserting their freedom not to do so.
Local drivers are frequently cautioned during the festival to watch out for the bikes in traffic.
Clearly, that caution should extend to scooters, too, but it must be remembered year round. Someone's life might depend on it.
Commentary on 12/04/2016