Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: bicycle helmet laws, bicycle helmets, bicycling, Chris Boardman, cycling, helmet, London, mandatory helmet laws, UK, urban cycling
British Cycling policy advisor Chris Boardman says it’s time for the cycling community to put the debate about mandatory cycle helmets to bed and get across the message that helmet use is one of the least important cycling safety measures.
Even talking about making helmets mandatory “massively puts people off” cycling, Boardman said, and likened the culture of helmet use among keen cyclists to people wearing body armour because they have got used to being shot at.
Talking to road.cc at the London Bike Show, Boardman said, “I think the helmet issue is a massive red herring. It’s not even in the top 10 of things you need to do to keep cycling safe or more widely, save the most lives.”
via Chris Boardman: "Helmets not even in top 10 of things that keep cycling safe" | road.cc.
More Boardman goodness:
We could use some straight talk like this in the US.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: bicycle helmet laws, bike share, Bike sharing, helmet, helmet compulsion, mandatory helmet laws, Melbourne
They want to privatize and expand.
Patronage has grown every year since the scheme was launched in 2010. It had its best-ever month in January, when 18,809 rentals were recorded. Last month there were 12,781 rentals, an average of 421 rides a day. More than 1000 courtesy helmets were added last month to boost patronage.
via Buyer sought for Melbourne's bike scheme.
(Helmets are required for adults in Melbourne.)
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: bicycle helmet laws, bicycle injuries, bicycle safety, bicycling injuries, Bike accidents, bike helmets, child cyclists, children and cycling, cycling, cycling injuries, helmet laws, helmets, mandatory helmet laws, transportation, urban cycling
Pinka Chatterji and Sara Markowitz, “Effects of Bicycle Helmet Laws on Children’s Injuries.” NBER Working Paper No. 18773. February 2013. JEL No. I0,K0
ABSTRACT
Cycling is popular among children, but results in thousands of injuries annually. In recent years, many states and localities have enacted bicycle helmet laws. We examine direct and indirect effects of these laws on injuries. Using hospital-level panel data and triple difference models, we find helmet laws are associated with reductions in bicycle-related head injuries among children. However, laws also are associated with decreases in non-head cycling injuries, as well as increases in head injuries from other wheeled sports. Thus, the observed reduction in bicycle-related head injuries may be due to reductions in bicycle riding induced by the laws.Pinka Chatterji
State University of New York at Albany Economics DepartmentSara Markowitz
Department of Economics Emory University
The auto industry loves mandatory helmet laws.
Industrialized Cyclist Notepad 