Episode 22 – Bicycle Safety

This episode addresses seven questions about bicycles and safety: How dangerous is cycling compared to walking or riding in a car? Does cycling actually get safer as more people cycle? Should cyclists wear helmets? Are most bicycle accidents caused by cyclists riding dangerously? Why is it so hard to create decent bike lanes? How dangerous are bicycles for pedestrians? What's the deal with those cycle airbags? Episode transcript is available here. References A Case-Control Study of the Effectiveness of Bicycle Safety Helmets - This is a good example of a case control study on the effectiveness of helmets. Link is to the abstract - subscription needed to access the full article. Nonuse of Bicycle Helmets and Risk of Fatal Head Injury - Another good example of a case control study. Full text of this one is freely available. Bicycle helmet Efficacy: a meta-analysis - This freely available article gives a fair summary of the overall evidence for bicycle helmets, including the neck-injury issue. No clear evidence from countries that have enforced the wearing of helmets - A fair summary of the impact of helmet laws on safety (freely available) Bike Lanes versus Wide Curb Lanes: Operational and Safety Findings and Countermeasure Recommendations [pdf] - A good example of video camera studies of cyclist behaviour and the way cycling infrastructure changes this behaviour Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute review of the Hovding - this is the fairest review I found of the bicycle airbag system.