Bill Raises Age To Operate ATVs In NY

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — Children under the age of 14 will now have to wait before they will be allowed to operate an all-terrain vehicle in New York.

State Senator Pete Harckham, D-South Salem, and Assemblywoman Amy Paulin, D-Scarsdale, announced Tuesday that their bill raising the legal age for driving an ATV in the state from 10 to 14 was signed by Governor Kathy Hochul.

The bill — S.2702 and A.150 — also changes existing law so that children under 16 operating an ATV will now need to be supervised by someone at least 18 years old.

Paulin said that ATVs are dangerous and it is unbelievable that until now children as young as 10 were allowed to legally operate them in New York.

“ATVs weigh hundreds of pounds and reach speeds of 70 miles per hour or more,” she said. “Machines of this weight and speed are just not suitable for young children to operate, and we’ve seen many preventable tragedies as a result, including here in Westchester County.”

Harckham said outdoor recreation should not come with a high risk of catastrophic injury.

“Our common-sense legislation to raise the age of ATV use from 10 to 14 years old while requiring safety courses will help eliminate potential accidents caused by use of vehicles that can travel as fast as an automobile,” he said.

According to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission, operating off-highway vehicles, including ATVs, involve real risks of overturning, collisions and occupant ejection. The commission’s latest report, which tracks OHV accidents between 2016 and 2018, listed 2,211 fatalities — an annual average of more than 700 deaths and 100,000 injuries that required emergency department treatment. ATVs accounted for three-quarters of these fatalities and injuries.

New York is among the top 10 states with reported ATV accidents. According to the commission, there were 433 ATV-related deaths in New York between 1982 and 2012.

The commission advises that all ATV users get hands-on training from a qualified instructor and that operators under 16 drive only youth-sized ATV models.

Claudia Braymer, deputy director of Protect the Adirondacks, said the bill will also help safeguard public lands and that Offroad riding of ATVs is not permitted on the State Forest Preserve lands in the Adirondacks or Catskills.

“Raising the age of ATV riders from 10 to 14 years old will help to ensure that both riders and natural resources are better protected from damage due to inexperienced and immature riders using ATVs in the Adirondacks,” she said.