Is it necessary to wear a bike helmet when commuting to work?
Friday, August 20th, 2010 at
5:00 am
In addition, I only ever ride my bicycle on the pavement/side walk shared by pedestrians; the only time I go on the road is when cross the lights for pedestrians.
Is it really necessary for commuters to wear a bike helmet. I just find it unnecessary to wear helmets on the street because the chances of collision and injury are a lot less than on the road, and I question the compulsory bike helmet laws.
If wearing helmets is mandatory, why don’t we make the inclusion of airbags mandatory for all cars as well then?
Even when I ride on the sidewalk, which is illegal where I live, I have close calls when people are backing out of driveways and such. Not to mention the people that are getting out of their house I almost hit.
http://bicyclesafe.com/
"The Crosswalk Slam
You’re riding on the sidewalk and cross the street at a crosswalk, and a car makes a right turn, right into you. Cars aren’t expecting bikes in the crosswalk, so you have to be very careful to avoid this one. This collision is so common we’ve lost track of the number of people who’ve told us they were hit this way, such as Ray John Ray. One study showed that sidewalk-riding was twice as dangerous as road riding, and another study said it’s even more dangerous than that.
How to avoid this collision:
1. Get a headlight. If you’re riding at night, you should absolutely use a front headlight. It’s required by law, anyway.
2. Slow down. Slow down enough that you’re able to completely stop if necessary.
3. Don’t ride on the sidewalk in the first place. Crossing between sidewalks can be a fairly dangerous maneuver. If you do it on the left-hand side of the street, you risk getting slammed as per the diagram. If you do it on the right-hand side of the street, you risk getting slammed by a car behind you that’s turning right. You also risk getting hit by cars pulling out of parking lots or driveways. These kinds of accidents are hard to avoid, which is a compelling reason to not ride on the sidewalk in the first place.
And another reason not to ride on the sidewalk is that you’re threatening to pedestrians. Your bike is as threatening to a pedestrian as a car is threatening to you. Finally, riding on the sidewalk is illegal in some places. (In Austin, those places are the Drag, and downtown on 6th St. and on Congress). If you do plan on riding on sidewalks, do it slowly and EXTRA carefully, ESPECIALLY when crossing the street between two sidewalks."
"1. Don’t ride on the sidewalk. When you come off the sidewalk to cross the street you’re invisible to motorists. You’re just begging to be hit if you do this. Keith Vick was killed this way in Austin, TX in Dec. 2002."
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"Contrary to popular belief, you increase your chances of getting hit by car when riding your bike on the sidewalk. I know you may find it hard to believe but its true.
While riding in the street is more intimidating, it places you in a position that makes you more visible to the motorist. Usually people will ride on the sidewalk because they want to stay away from cars or they ride against traffic in the street because they are afraid of being hit from behind: they "want to see the cars coming at me". Crashes on sidewalks comprise close to fifty percent of all crash types. They are more common because every driveway forms an intersection and, if you went to driving school you may remember, that most crashes happen at intersections. In traffic engineering jargon where two vehicles cross paths is referred to as a conflict point and traffic engineers work very hard at reducing or eliminating conflict points.
Essentially every driveway that crosses the sidewalk forms a conflict point. Couple this with motorists not stopping at the sidewalk before entering the street and looking at traffic in the street not for bicyclists on the sidewalk and you have recipe for a crash. By cycling in the street you completely avoid these conflict points. The motorist stops before entering the street and is looking where you will be before they cross your path. While these crashes are usually not fatal, they can easily result in an incapacitating injury especially if you are not wearing a helmet. In my expert witness practice, the majority of sidewalk related crashes I’ve been involved with the rider was not wearing a helmet and usually result in brain injury"- http://ezinearticles.com/?Bicycle-Safety—The-Problems-With-Sidewalk-Riding-and-Against-the-Flow-of-Traffic&id=1857311
are you in UK or US ?
if in UK, you are liable to a fixed penalty of £30 for riding on a footpath.
ride on the road.
wear a helmet if you want to
The law is there to protect you. If you choose to ignore them, then do not complain or ask for compensation if you have a head injury whilst in an accident.
Yes. 100% absolutely.
I’ve rode bikes on busy roads for nigh on 6 years now and the number of close calls I have had is ridiculous. Drivers are ass holes and don’t care about cyclists.
Don’t take the risk.
First, you should NOT be riding on the sidewalk. In all jurisdictions I’m aware of it’s illegal.
Second, in many jurisdictions it’s illegal NOT to wear a helmet.
Most important, they are called "accidents" for a reason! Even on a pavement/sidewalk, what if a dog runs in front of you, or a jogger or walker suddenly veers in front of you? If you run over a large stone or piece of wood, or catch a tire in a crack you can be thrown off the bike and land on your head even from a slow, easy ride on the sidewalk. heads and concrete do NOT mix well.
A properly worn helmet (not loosely or unfastened, or pushed back on the head) is ALLWAYS a good idea. It may not totally protect from injury, but it certainly won’t if you are not wearing it! It also provides some sun protection and contributes to head cooling on hot days.
What possible valid reason would you have for NOT wearing a helmet if you have one? Other than vanity?
I would rather look like a dork with a helmet on my head for a commute than be a statistic who has to drink and eat thru a straw the rest of my life sitting in a wheelchair…..Hummm lets think about this one while we still have brain function??? Anyone for road pizza- this guy is buying obviously…
no i wouldnt
yes you should last years alone they said on the internet that 300,000 usa bicyclist injury’s could have been avoided *IF* the cyclist had worn a helmet a helmet can save your life
1. Sidewalks are typically more dangerous than streets. Pedestrians, cars backing out of driveways, dogs, skateboards, etc., etc.
2. Helmets are not mandatory in most places, but its still a good idea. All it takes is a moment’s inattention for you to go down. No it doesn’t happen often, but if you ride enough, it will eventually. Helmets are cheap, effective insurance against brain injury. I won’t swing a leg over without one.
3. Airbags ARE mandatory in cars. Even though they’re redundant if you wear your seatbelt.