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accidents will happen

there have possibly been more column inches expended on the subject of cycle helmet wear than any other velocipedinally related subject matter. or at least that was probably the case before everyone started announcing attempts on the hour record as new year dawned. often the pragmatic reasons for wearing a helmet are subsumed in emotional responses from both sides of the argument. those clamouring for mandatory helmet wear will usually have a queue of medical practitioners offering incontrovertible evidence in favour, while dyed in the wool cyclists maintain that it ought to be open to individual choice.

fortunately for both you and me, i've no intention of resuscitating the debate here. it strikes me that there is no right answer to the question, and aside from my own opinion, i have insufficient journalistic ability to make any valid contribution to the affair.

whether or not helmets make any difference to the safety of their wearers in the face of increasing motor vehicle use does not nullify the rather cogent and undeniable point that accidents do happen. and in the world of the bicycle/motor car interface, the former almost always comes off worst. according to statistics prepared in 2013, 109 cyclists were killed while out and about, six of whom were children. the figures for those seriously injured and slightly injured are considerably larger. overall, almost 20,000 people were killed or injured while on their bicycles during 2013.

those are, to be honest, rather scary numbers. but it's probably of little consolation to those involved in any of the above accident statistics to learn that, as a percentage of those cycling in the uk, they're not entirely overwhelming. i've always figured that framing cycle accident statistics in such a manner is more to salve the conscience of the motoring lobby than to offer any real sense of perspective. however...

those statistics do make for interesting if less than enjoyable reading. surprisingly, just under 50% of fatalities happen on country roads, but less surprisingly, 80% of all cycling incidents take place during daylight, and completely unsuprisingly virtually all child accidents happen in daytime.

probably the single most important aspect of this endless list of cycle related accident statistics is to ask the question, why? why has anyone spent so much time drilling this far down; does this degree of analysis actually help anyone? and if so, who? as we reach the midpoint of the 21st century's second decade, the fact that so many accidents still take place would rather suggest that, irrespective of where the fault lies, we're basically not paying attention. neither to such horrific numbers nor to our fellow road users. failure to look properly can be attributed 57% towards motorists, but concomitantly towards 43% of cyclists.

no amount of prior knowledge or safety measures will ever completely remove accidents from britain's roads. because accidents do happen. however, by making ourselves much more aware of our surroundings and traffic movements, they can hopefully be minimised to the point where there will be little reward to be gained from presenting them in graphic format as seen here. treat every other road user as a complete idiot and hope that they're returning the compliment, and always make sure that your bicycle, of whatever flavour, is mechanically sound before letting it take you out in traffic.

saturday 14 february 2015