Daily, it seems like I hear a story of a cyclist getting hit by a car. According to People for Bikes between 2010 and 2016, fatalities of cyclists struck by vehicles rose by 35 percent, up to 840 souls, in 2016. That increase, supposedly, doesn’t indicate a growing risk, but rather the overall growth of cycling. With that - fatal automobile accidents due to distracted driving have also skyrocketed during that same period. The NHTSA estimates that on any given day, some 660,000 people are using cell phones while they drive (I think it's WAY higher). This distraction is creating additional risk for all road users and especially cyclists/pedestrians as distractions increase the likelihood of a car/bike/person collisions. Here's a stat - 100% of the people hit by a car were hit by a car. If you are the one injured or killed the statistics mean nothing. Your injuries will likely change the course of your life and your recovery can take years; assuming you survive.
But drivers are killing themselves and other drivers and passengers as well. There are over 30,000 vehicle related deaths each year. Safer cars have helped reduce those deaths from over 40,000 in the 70s, 80s, and 90s - though it's like having a better helmet in football - it just makes you feel safer and hit harder. Regardless, that is about 11 car-related deaths per 100,000 in the general population. If you translate the 840 cycling deaths in 2016 to the supposed 47.8 million people who "participate in cycling" - then 1.8 cyclists per 100,000 cyclists are killed. The problem with that is of the cycling participants some rode 1x in the year and others potentially hundreds of times and everything in between. But with that simple analysis you are probably safer cycling than driving – that is unless you cycle all of the time and then the probability of having a car/bike collision instinctively has to go up since you are simply on the road so much more. And when there is an incident the consequences are severe. Earl Gillon from NC was known as an experienced safe rider and covering over 20,000 miles a year - many times over 100 miles in a day. He retired from his career and then, while riding alone on a sunny day in NC at age 64, was hit from behind and is now dead in an instant. Pro cyclist Seth Jones, preparing to leave for his racing season in Europe, was riding alone and hit from behind by a distracted driver who drifted over into the right side white line. Seth barely survived since it happened in front of a firehouse so he was able to get immediate aid and was transported to a local trauma center to stop brain bleeding that would have otherwise killed him.
When hits with cars do happen forty percent of fatalities are from rear end collisions. We all fear/dread the notion of being struck from behind by an inattentive driver. I have to admit I tense up when cars approach from behind double checking my place on the road or shoulder. Are they paying attention? Do they see me? Are they going to move over? Second most common car-bike impact is a t-hit for 10% - like Stacy Stranick - a Charlotte NC cyclist killed while riding alone with a car illegally turning in front of her. In another post maybe we should look into the apparent lack of consequences for drivers who hit cyclists. Groups of cyclists are are hit as well. Yesterday in Townsville Australia a group of five cyclists hit and run major injuries for all. Group rides have been ploughed through on many occasions over the years recently in Davie Florida and other places where there are also fatalities and major injuries.
Another way to look at safety when compared to driving is as follows. With a reported 222M drivers on the road and estimated 47M participating cyclists - and using the known annual death rates - you can see that cycling, per user, is safer than driving or being a passenger in a car. These numbers do not take into account trips or miles per user but that is true on both the car and bike side of this comparison. This is just a per 100k estimate of death rates for known users. So, the idea is fatality rates for cycling is better than automobiles and basically safe; but not as safe as we would like it to be. Until 100% of users cycling are not struck and killed - the 1.8 per 100k cyclists can face horrible consequences doing what they love for fitness, commuting, or transportation.
But drivers are killing themselves and other drivers and passengers as well. There are over 30,000 vehicle related deaths each year. Safer cars have helped reduce those deaths from over 40,000 in the 70s, 80s, and 90s - though it's like having a better helmet in football - it just makes you feel safer and hit harder. Regardless, that is about 11 car-related deaths per 100,000 in the general population. If you translate the 840 cycling deaths in 2016 to the supposed 47.8 million people who "participate in cycling" - then 1.8 cyclists per 100,000 cyclists are killed. The problem with that is of the cycling participants some rode 1x in the year and others potentially hundreds of times and everything in between. But with that simple analysis you are probably safer cycling than driving – that is unless you cycle all of the time and then the probability of having a car/bike collision instinctively has to go up since you are simply on the road so much more. And when there is an incident the consequences are severe. Earl Gillon from NC was known as an experienced safe rider and covering over 20,000 miles a year - many times over 100 miles in a day. He retired from his career and then, while riding alone on a sunny day in NC at age 64, was hit from behind and is now dead in an instant. Pro cyclist Seth Jones, preparing to leave for his racing season in Europe, was riding alone and hit from behind by a distracted driver who drifted over into the right side white line. Seth barely survived since it happened in front of a firehouse so he was able to get immediate aid and was transported to a local trauma center to stop brain bleeding that would have otherwise killed him.
When hits with cars do happen forty percent of fatalities are from rear end collisions. We all fear/dread the notion of being struck from behind by an inattentive driver. I have to admit I tense up when cars approach from behind double checking my place on the road or shoulder. Are they paying attention? Do they see me? Are they going to move over? Second most common car-bike impact is a t-hit for 10% - like Stacy Stranick - a Charlotte NC cyclist killed while riding alone with a car illegally turning in front of her. In another post maybe we should look into the apparent lack of consequences for drivers who hit cyclists. Groups of cyclists are are hit as well. Yesterday in Townsville Australia a group of five cyclists hit and run major injuries for all. Group rides have been ploughed through on many occasions over the years recently in Davie Florida and other places where there are also fatalities and major injuries.
Another way to look at safety when compared to driving is as follows. With a reported 222M drivers on the road and estimated 47M participating cyclists - and using the known annual death rates - you can see that cycling, per user, is safer than driving or being a passenger in a car. These numbers do not take into account trips or miles per user but that is true on both the car and bike side of this comparison. This is just a per 100k estimate of death rates for known users. So, the idea is fatality rates for cycling is better than automobiles and basically safe; but not as safe as we would like it to be. Until 100% of users cycling are not struck and killed - the 1.8 per 100k cyclists can face horrible consequences doing what they love for fitness, commuting, or transportation.
The next time you are driving in a car as a passenger or have your passenger keep track of how many people are texting, distracted, or looking at their phones. In the 70s drivers used to crash when changing the radio station on their car. Now, with so many additional functions and screens in the car, and add to that the functionality of touchscreens, social media, and a smartphone - there are simply too many distractions. In a 2018 Tesla Model X crash - the driver was playing a video game while his car ploughed into a concrete barrier killing himself. People are not concentrating on driving like they should so the roads have become less safe. And we are in this awkward transition from people actually incompetently driving cars to [safer?] automated cars - that may in the end be safer and help reduce or avoid these rear impact car-bike collisions that account for 40% of cyclist deaths.
Number of participants in bicycling in the United States from 2006 to 2018
In Charlotte, NC where a number of people have been hit either from behind or t-boned some of these people have died and some have had their life altered. Is that acceptable risk of participating in the sport or transportation that we love? Only you can decide that for yourself. What some people are doing are rediscovering off-road riding like mountain biking or gravel riding where there is less interaction with vehicles. This is a form of retreat where we give up the roads for safer pass on a dirt or gravel path. Or do we fight and show up on the road and with mass-participation make it safer like in the Netherlands. After two streets in Minneapolis were converted to be more bicycle friendly, bike traffic increased 43%, total vehicle crashes decreased, traffic efficiency was maintained, and parking revenues remained consistent. So, it is possible to improve safety when advocacy is used and cities balance the needs of all users. In the chart below - you can see being hit from behind can lead to fatalities but it is important to point out that, at least in North Carolina, only 4% of incidents are "hit-from-behind" in nature. Another key point is that cyclists also crash themselves quite a bit - in fact 70% of the time - implying that only 30% of crashes actually involve a car although when it does involve a car it can be more severe and especially when from behind.
In conclusion, I take all of that as road cycling is generally safe, at least statistically, so I am not giving it up. I am more likely to be involved in an incident from a mistake rather than hit by a car. But when when riding on the road I also feel it may be safer to ride in a group and use a camera. With both - information about what happened in an incident can help me recover and reduce the likelihood of someone getting away with a hit-and-run. The new cameras record in a loop on a memory card and have crash detection so footage is kept should there be a fall or impact. Whatever you decide about riding on the road be visible with flashing lights (front and rear) and high viz clothing. Regardless, the onus is on the driver to pay attention and not hit cyclists high viz or not. As a cyclist, we can help raise support and awareness for safety by sharing our stories and being respectful to motorists and obey traffic laws. Be safe and I hope to see you on the road - and not read about you one day and vice versa.
Thoughts? Leave a comment.
Sources: Statista, People for Bikes, Outside Magazine, League of American Bicyclists, WeeklyRides.com
Thoughts? Leave a comment.
Sources: Statista, People for Bikes, Outside Magazine, League of American Bicyclists, WeeklyRides.com
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