Workshop TR 4.2, Wednesday 21 June, 14.00 - 15.30

Factors influencing cyclists' safety

David Tomlinson, Graduate Student in Environmental Studies, York University, Toronto, Canada  Conflicts Between Cyclists and Motorists in Toronto, Canada An analysis of over 2500 collisions between drivers and cyclists was conducted for the City of Toronto's Transportation Services department. The results provide a detailed understanding of the characteristics and severity of the most frequent crash types in this large North American city. Motorists' driving behaviour was found to be an important factor in the majority of cases. Some types of collision were strongly correlated with certain cyclist age groups, indicating that cycling habits and experience play a key role. Rather than implying that inexperienced riders cause accidents, these findings suggest that cyclists learn how to avoid the dangers posed by automobile traffic as they gain experience. They also suggest that educating cyclists will have a limited impact on the prevalence of certain types of crashes, particularly those that involve mainly experienced utilitarian cyclists. Increased awareness is required of motorists, as well as improved protective infrastructure. Some suggestions for future research are also offered.

Bob Roszbach, Institute for Road Safety Research SWOV, The Netherlands Cycling Safety in the Netherlands: Developments and Prospects An overview is presented of past developments in bicycle accidents in the Netherlands and their determining factors (e.g. exposure, age, environment), compared with the risks of other modes of traffic participation. A brief comparison is made with international data. Attention is paid to problems of (under) registration of accidents, especially in relation to single vehicle accidents. This category is further examined in terms of injury patterns and possibilities to improve the safety of bicycle and/or to prevent injuries. Also there is some discussion to the extent that some of such accidents are play- or sports-accidents, rather than traffic/transportation accidents. Some specific properties of the Dutch situation are discussed, particularly its divergent priority rule for cyclists as compared to other European nations, the plan for harmonization and the way this changeover is embedded in the present Dutch policy on sustainable safety; this in order to improve bicycle safety rather than suffer from possibly negative side-effects. On the basis of the presented material substitution effects are analyzed and discussed: the safety effects of using the bicycle instead of other means of transport, especially the passenger car. The aim of this exercise is to identify conditions under which the bicycle may be promoted safely, or even would improve safety. To the extent that such conditions are identified, the applicability for other situations than the Dutch is explored.

Dinesh Mohan, Professor and Co-ordinator, Transportation Research and Injury Prevention Programme, Indian Institute of Technology, India Work trips and safety of bicyclists: the international experience Recently the ministers and representatives of the European Member States of WHO and members of the European Commission released a Draft Charter On Transport, Environment and Health. The ministers  recognize “that forms of transport that entail physical activity, like cycling and walking, separately or in conjunction with public transport, offer significant positive health gains; however, these transport modes have often been overlooked in planning and decision-making.” They also commit future policies toward “shifting transport to environmentally sound and health-promoting modes.” It would be difficult to move toward such goals unless we have a much better understanding of the factors that are critical in selection of travel mode choice, especially for work trips. Data from low income countries like China and India indicates that use of bicycles for work trips is reducing with an increase in per capita incomes. In both these countries cyclists are involved in a disproportionate proportion of fatal crashes. For example, in Delhi (India) cyclists constitute 5% of the trips but 14% of the fatalities. Daily cycling trips among adults in six European countries with more detailed information, range from about 1 in Holland to as low as 0.1 in the UK. Short trips (trips under 5km) in these countries are still done by car 30 to 65% of the time, and these are the countries with most cycling and walking in Europe. In spite of low bicycle usage in Europe, bicyclists account for 5-6% of deaths and 7-8% of injuries. Cyclists account for more fatal accidents than pedestrians in some countries, such as the Netherlands, where cycling is common. In Copenhagen (Denmark) bicyclists had a fatality rate of 21 per million trips compared to 6 for car and 0.5 for bus occupants. This may account for the declining rate of school trips by bicycle in many countries of Europe. This paper will present a detailed analysis of the role of accident risk in deterring bicycle use in different nations around the world and the possibilities of correcting the situation in the future. The paper will focus on learning from the experience of bicycle use in different socioeconomic settings.