Researchers claim to have proved that compulsory helmet laws work

[eclectic_bike]

I'll light the blue-touch paper and retire.............

Australian researchers claim to have proved that compulsory helmet laws work | road.cc | The website for pedal powered people: Road cycling, commuting, leisure cycling and racing. Voted the UK's number 1 cycling website at the 2010 BikeBiz awards.

 

[Mussels]

They discovered that there was a significantly greater fall in head injury rates among cyclists than among pedestrians, and that head injuries declined at a greater rate than leg injuries, which they said was evidence of the benefits of compulsion.

Best make them compulsory for pedestrians too then.

 

[mike killay]

The most telling comments are
1 They are not life saving. The researchers did not categorise the types of injuries before and after compulsion. The guess is that they are talking about minor bumps and cuts.
2 There is no distinction made between mountain bikers and commuters. This is like considering an umbrella carrying pedestrian and a sky diver are doing much the same thing

 

[NRG]

I dont understand this bit: Their research suggests that there was a 29 per cent reduction in head injuries from the period immediately before the laws coming onto the statute book and the period immediately after.

How long was the period before the law was introduced and why did the % not increase after the law was introduced? Surely it should have got better as more took up helmets or did a large number of cyclists say 'sod this' and stopped riding all together!

 

[flecc]

The crucial proof that they don't work in the way that really matters is in the simple fact that Australia has the lowest rate of cycling in the world, the compulsory helmet law ensuring that status remains.

In the Netherlands which has the highest cycling rate in the world, helmets are rarely ever worn and their cycling accident rates are very low.

Helmets are unpopular.

 

[funkylyn]

I'll light the blue-touch paper and retire.............

Australian researchers claim to have proved that compulsory helmet laws work | road.cc | The website for pedal powered people: Road cycling, commuting, leisure cycling and racing. Voted the UK's number 1 cycling website at the 2010 BikeBiz awards.

I'll say one thing.......you're a braver man than me......not too surprising however seeing as I'm a woman LOL

Lynda

 

[Cyclezee]

The crucial proof that they don't work in the way that really matters is in the simple fact that Australia has the lowest rate of cycling in the world, the compulsory helmet law ensuring that status remains.

In the Netherlands which has the highest cycling rate in the world, helmets are rarely ever worn and their cycling accident rates are very low.

Helmets are unpopular.

Could it be that drinking Grolsch and smoking weed makes safer cyclists than drinking Fosters or XXXX

 

[flecc]

Could be John, perhaps it just slows them down more, most of them do ride much slower than us.

Or maybe the weed just makes them fall asleep and fall off their bikes, it's said that people who faint or fall out of bed asleep don't usually hurt themselves.

 

[steveindenmark]

How much did they get paid and for how long, to discover this then?

Steve

 

[Alex728]

Could it be that drinking Grolsch and smoking weed makes safer cyclists than drinking Fosters or XXXX

On this note, there's as much drugs in AU as in NL and of course plenty of booze in both countries. Outside of here, I help run a youth lifestyle forum which is based around the dance music scene and as such gives a lot of harm reduction advice about drugs and helps people seek appropriate assistance when they have overdone it.

NL is of course a relatively tolerant nation (though its no longer and in reality never has been the hedonists paradise its claimed to be - its more that they have pragmatic laws about drugs than they accept everyone doing them).

Australia goes for far heavier regulation, to the point of overrulling "Western" standards of free speech, its technically illegal to discuss drug use on the Internet in Australia.

The young people on our site from NL seem to balance their partying and other life responsibilities and rarely get health problems from thelir lifestyles and drug/alcohol use, whereas many from Australia seem to be suffering serious mental and physical health problems including young people being addicted to class A drugs in their early 20s.

with regard to transport, here a true word is said in jest - the Dutch kids if they have been clubbing or raving take the train or their bike to get back and forth, they ride slower and more carefully and rarely get into accidents,whereas youths in AU or even UK are much more likely to drive under the influence and get into a injury or fatal collision.

So as for regulatory/research approaches, I know which countries research I have much more respect for..

Also they've got better music, I'd much rather hear Tiësto or Armin Van Buuren than most Australian pop music

 

[lemmy]

The crucial proof that they don't work in the way that really matters is in the simple fact that Australia has the lowest rate of cycling in the world, the compulsory helmet law ensuring that status remains.

Compulsory helmet wearing does cut the number of cycling accidents very effectively, though, as Australia illustrates.

I propose that cyclist are compelled to wear not only a helmet but a full Kevlar protection suit in the form of all encompassing high neck one piece body suit incorporating armoured mittens and overshoes.

I think this will guarantee a 100% fall in injury to cyclists not so much because of the protection but because no-one will cycle any more.

If it saves just one life, it's worth it

 

[gerryscott]

Also the fact that Netherlands has likely the best cycle road network in Europe

 

[scarrabri]

Compulsory helmet wearing does cut the number of cycling accidents very effectively, though, as Australia illustrates.

I propose that cyclist are compelled to wear not only a helmet but a full Kevlar protection suit in the form of all encompassing high neck one piece body suit incorporating armoured mittens and overshoes.

I think this will guarantee a 100% fall in injury to cyclists not so much because of the protection but because no-one will cycle any more.

If it saves just one life, it's worth it

Hi, i stopped wearing my hat for a while ,because of all i have read,but tomorrow it goes back on,

 

[Orraman]

Hi, i stopped wearing my hat for a while ,because of all i have read,but tomorrow it goes back on,

Could I ask why?

Genuine interest.

Dave

 

[eclectic_bike]

My take on this is, regardless of whether the statistics prove or disprove that helmets generally work or not I will still wear one. The reason is simply because I know that it will prevent or minimise head injury to me in an accident. Whether it has an overall effect on a 'statistical' population makes no difference to my use of a helmet and how it will protect me in an accident.