Cyclist killed in lorry collision

[jefmcg]

I can't remember if it's nationally, or London based but per mile ridden on a bike and driven by car, the ratio is 110 to 70.

you are going to have to find the reference for that, because according to the BBC the ratio is more like 15 to 1.

 

[slowmotion]

you are going to have to find the reference for that, because according to the BBC the ratio is more like 15 to 1.

I'll have a go but I may need some time.

 

[slowmotion]

Sorry, I was totally wrong. Maybe I was comparing cycling to being a pedestrian or something.
Here's some data...
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/358042/rrcgb2013-02.pdf

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

I'll probably be shot down in flames, but the statistics for cyclists killed, or KSI (I forget which) are not nearly as bad as some non-cyclists believe. I can't remember if it's nationally, or London based but per mile ridden on a bike and driven by car, the ratio is 110 to 70. Both too high of course, but quite heartening to me.

Not as bad certainly but I seem to remember a little London assembly battle in which Boris and Jenny Jones took wildly differing views on the K v SI stats. Boris stressed the good news side of fewer killed while JJ took the figures of SI alone per mile ridden, which appeared to have risen. She was accused of talking down cycling, rather viciously, but her point seemed valid to me. The divergence in lower deaths and the increase in seriously injured per mile cycled could, of course, be attributable to better on-the-spot health care from the paramedics and the increase in less experienced cyclists on the roads. However, careless driving appears to be seriously injuring more cyclists per mile ridden. And that is definitely not a good news story.

 

[steveindenmark]

There has be a spate of late.

We all need to take a deep breath, Shake ourselves up and be extra aware for a while.

 

[srw]

Sorry, I was totally wrong. Maybe I was comparing cycling to being a pedestrian or something.
Here's some data...
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/358042/rrcgb2013-02.pdf

It won't surprise you to discover that I think the final comparison presented in that paper (deaths and serious injuries per billion miles) is not necessarily the right one. It might be right for some circumstances, but not for all circumstances. In other circumstances, deaths and serious injuries per trip or per hour might be more appropriate, and both would make cycling look even less risky.

You also miss the fact that most of that paper is discussing the enormous difficulty of estimating how far people ride. Just as a for instance, they don't even discuss the fact that a lot of people ride off-road, whether on gnarly downhill deathtraps or on family-friendly converted railway lines. So the estimates presented in the paper are subject to very significant uncertainty.

I can't remember whether I've seen the paper before - but (re)reading now there's one more thing that strikes me, on the sex and age distribution of injuries.

Young male cyclists in their teens and 20s are the most over-represented male age group as cycling KSI casualties. In 2013 they comprised around 30 per cent of male pedal cyclist KSIs, but only made up for 25 per cent of miles cycled.

In comparison, pedal cyclists in their 30s and 40s are the most prevalent age groups for cycling, accounting for around 50 per cent of miles cycled by males in GB. However, this age group is the most under-represented male age group, comprising of around 40 per cent of all male pedal cyclist KSIs in 2013.

The pattern for females is very different. The most over-represented age groups of female pedal cyclist KSI casualties are aged between 50 and 59. This group makes up around 8 per cent of miles cycled by females, yet account for 16 per cent of casualties.

Around a third of miles cycled by females is covered by people in their 20s. Relatively speaking, this is the group that are least likely to be killed or seriously injured, accounting for only a quarter of all female KSI casualties.

As an actuary who's looked at motor insurance that's not surprising. Young men are risk-seeking, and so get injured; young women are risk-averse, as are middle aged men. Older women tend to be less confident.

You also miss the key sentence in the report, which is important enough to repeat in red and large type.

Although cycling is risky in comparison with driving, it is still a safe mode of transport.

 

[srw]

There has be a spate of late.

We all need to take a deep breath, Shake ourselves up and be extra aware for a while.

*ahem*
http://www.gicentre.net/blog/2013/11/24/risk-cycling-and-denominator-neglect