Here & Now

Jake Holsclaw on ATV/UTV Crashes and Efforts to Boost Safety

Frederica Freyberg:
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. DNR Conservation Warden Jake Holsclaw oversees the Off Highway Vehicle Program and joins us now from Eau Claire. And thanks very much for being here.

Jake Holsclaw:
Absolutely, look forward to it.

Frederica Freyberg:
So how busy is it out there on the ATV routes?

Jake Holsclaw:
Yeah. Great question. It seems like it’s getting busier every day. 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.

Frederica Freyberg:
As we’ve said, the uptick in the number of riders, though, also results in an increase in accidents and injuries and even fatalities.

Jake Holsclaw:
Yeah, unfortunately, I think that that’s just a 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 potentially are, you know, not being safe and not following the rules. And then we have seen an uptick in crashes because of that.

Frederica Freyberg:
So how and why do these crashes mostly happen?

Jake Holsclaw:
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 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 on paved surfaces and roadways. The original design of these machines, in fact, that’s what the — 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 knobbier, 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. They tend 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.

Frederica Freyberg:
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?

Jake Holsclaw:
Yeah, ultimately it would be a citation or a couple citations. Typically, you know, the citation is issued for the operating while intoxicated. If they’re operating over that 0.08 level, they would be issued an additional citation for that. And then sometimes they’re issued 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.

Frederica Freyberg:
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 that course is only required for people born after 1988. Why is that?

Jake Holsclaw:
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 time frame where they wanted everybody born on or after that date to complete the course. Like you said, it’s 1-1 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% haven’t 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 1-1 of ’88 date. And so I think it really points to the fact that you’re never really too old to learn safety. 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 enjoyment of that sport.

Frederica Freyberg:
All right. Well, we appreciate it. Thanks very much for joining us from Eau Claire, Jake Holsclaw.

Jake Holsclaw
Thank you.