New Standards for Amusement Park Kiddie Rides

The manufacturers of kiddie rides are putting our children in danger.  The manufacturer sets a minimum height limit, which means kids as young as 9-months can ride alone on certain rides, assuming they can sit up.  The carnival and park owners want to sell as many tickets as possible so they pressure the manufacturers to sell rides with lower and lower height limits.  They are putting our children at risk to benefit their wallets.

Young children are at highest risk for accidents because they don't know better; they should have a parent ride with them.   But the height limits that the manufacturer sets suggest that the rides are safe for use by toddlers.  25% of the accident reports for kids who fell out of kiddie rides state that the child was struck by, run over by, or dragged by the machine after falling out.  The rides and restraints aren't required to be child-safe.
There are no mandatory federal standards for the design of amusement rides.

In 1981, Congress slipped a loophole into the Consumer Product Safety Act, exempting amusement park rides from all federal safety oversight.  The Consumer Product Safety Commission still has oversight authority for traveling carnival rides, but the split jurisdiction makes it difficult for the CPSC to address industry-wide safety issues, such as safe child containment.  Congressman Ed Markey (D-Mass.) has introduced legislation every session since 1999 to repeal the loophole, but the bill has remained stalled in the House Consumer Protection Subcommittee.

I believe this is ridiculous and irresponsible and we has parents need to protect our children.  Don't follow the manufacturers "recommendations"; follow your instincts as a parent and don't let your children ride alone.  The federal government needs to apply a new standard to these potentially dangerous rides.  Either raise the weight and height limits or a parent must ride with a child under a certain age.  No Exceptions!!

I would like to know how many parents out there never knew about any of this.  I am a 32 year old parent of 2 and recently came across all of this information due to an incident at a carnival.

Please check out this website http://www.saferparks.org/ where I found most of this information.

Thank you