In a recent WSJ article, an argument is made the mandatory bike laws have resulted unintended consequences. When mandatory helmet laws are established, some places see a decline in head injuries in bike crashes. However, the helmet laws result in two different actions. Many bikers stop biking because they don't want to wear a helmet, resulting in a net negative health consequence for them. Additionally, some researchers have found that when a biker wears a helmet the surrounding cars in fact drive closer to the biker (which can lead to more dangerous crashes).
As related back to Friedman and Gruber, the government is faced with an interesting public good problem. The governments, in an act to keep their citizens safe, have enacted a policy that itself causes its own externality. This policy also touches upon a Coasian solution. By mandating bikers to wear helmets, bikers endure the cost of purchasing the helmet to keep themselves safe rather than forcing drivers to drive further from the bikers. The government defaults to putting the cost on the biker, when other alternatives could be considered.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/do-bike-helmet-laws-do-more-harm-than-good-1444662837
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