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About General Safety
How safe are rides at U.S. amusement parks and carnivals?
How much control do you have over your own safety when you're on a ride?
How many accidents are caused by equipment failure?
What are some red flags that should make you re-think riding a certain ride?
Why is it important to find the ride that fits?
Are today's high acceleration rides more dangerous than slower rides?
The industry blames most accidents on rider misconduct. Is this an accurate assessment?
About Child Safety
Are children at higher risk for injury on amusement rides?
What should parents know about choosing rides for children?
What safety lessons should parents teach children before visiting parks and carnivals?
Prepare kids for the unusual experiences they'll encounter when they visit a carnival or amusement park. Kids' amusement rides might seem simple and oh-so-familiar to us older folks, but remember that most everything is new to a child.
Explain how the rides work, what the rules are and why they're important, and set up consequences that encourage your kids to be safe riders. For more information, visit the Teaching Kids page.
Teaching kids about safety is very important, but parents and chaperones should never rely on rules and instructions alone to protect young children around heavy machinery. Hands-on adult supervision is the safest course when children are small, so make sure a responsible adult rides along. If your child is too young to cross a busy street by herself, she's probably too young to protect herself from amusement ride dangers.
When is it safe to let my child ride alone?
If my child is too short to ride alone, is it safe for him to ride with his older brother?
Who develops child safety standards for amusement rides?
About Data and Statistics
How many people are injured on U.S. amusement rides each year?
What is the most common cause of amusement ride accidents and injuries?
What are the most common types of injuries on go-karts, waterslides, and inflatables?
Where does Saferparks get its data and statistics?
Who generates the safety statistics quoted by the amusement park industry?
About Safety Oversight
What safety regulations apply to U.S. amusement rides?
What about the big parks like Disney World and Six Flags?
Who checks up on the carnivals that move around from place to place?
Why are amusement park rides exempt from federal safety oversight?
If signed into law, what would Congressman Markey's bill do?
If a park is already subject to state regulation, why is a federal layer of oversight important?
Why is it important that serious accidents be investigated by the government?
