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DNR reports rising ATV/UTV registrations and fatality patterns; urges seat belts and helmets
Summary
The department briefed the Natural Resources Board on off-highway vehicle (ATV/UTV) trends, enforcement priorities and public outreach, showing increased registrations and highlighting that most recent fatalities involved no helmet or no seat belt and often alcohol.
A DNR recreational-safety presentation to the Natural Resources Board on Aug. 13 highlighted rising ATV and UTV registrations, crash trends and the agency’s education and enforcement strategy, and urged consistent helmet and seat-belt use.
"85 percent of these fatal crash victims were not wearing a helmet," Jake Holsclaw, off-highway vehicle administrator, told the board, summarizing 2024 data collected by the department’s recreational safety unit. The briefing showed Wisconsin has surpassed 500,000 registered ATVs and UTVs, with UTV registrations increasing most rapidly. The department also reported about 65,000 miles of legally designated road routes and roughly 2,000 miles of off-road trails.
Crash patterns: Holsclaw said about 69% of crashes occur on public roadways or road routes rather than on off-road trails, and most fatal incidents happen on weekends. Alcohol was cited as a contributing factor in over half of the fatal crashes in 2024; the average age of fatality victims was in the mid-40s. Holsclaw noted UTV fatalities frequently involved the lack of seat-belt use, and ATV fatalities often involved lack of helmet use.
Enforcement and outreach: the department emphasized a mix of targeted enforcement, grants for sheriff’s departments to support patrols, and broad public messaging. The DNR said it provided roughly $1.3 million in a recent year to support local patrols and that 38 sheriff’s departments applied for patrol grants in the last cycle. The department’s communications team described a toolkit of materials — press releases, social posts, a PSA and a paid campaign at convenience-store pumps — to expand safety messages about helmets, seat belts, sober operation and speed.
Board members asked whether local ordinances and state law differ on age and road-use rules, and staff clarified 12- to 15-year-olds may operate certain ATVs accompanied by an adult under state law and that UTV roadway operation is generally limited to operators 16 and older. Holsclaw and communications staff told the board the department is reviewing administrative code and outreach tools and is partnering with organizations such as WATVA and Mothers Against Drunk Driving on education and patrol efforts.
What’s next: the department is updating code language related to off-highway vehicles and continuing outreach through safety education courses, partnerships, and targeted patrol grants. The agency urged operators to wear helmets and seat belts and to avoid alcohol when operating ATVs and UTVs.
