Helmets stop people cycling

[Mr Haematocrit]

Mikael Colville-Andersen, CEO of bicycle culture specialists Copenhagenize Design Company, said, “Every time you see a helmet you’re thinking, ‘shoot, damn, what that person’s doing is dangerous.’ If I walked through central London with a bulletproof vest on the outside of my clothing and a couple of other people did the same, people would say, ‘Whoa, what’s up with that – is it that dangerous? Is there shooting?’ It’s negative marketing.”

http://www.bikeradar.com/news/artic...-stopping-people-cycling-claims-expert-37428/

 

[BigonaBianchi]

right

 

[Licramite]

Ah so seat belts and airbags stop people driving ?
I see lots of cyclists without helmets on. - it's not compulsory. even if it was do you think the law would be inforced, I see lots of people using thier mobile phones whilst driving 60ton artics or heavy goods.

 

[tyred]

I think there are other ways of looking at this. If the aim is to encourage people to cycle short trips in preference to driving, then possibly.

For example, the lady on her way to pay a small fortune to the hairdresser will not want to come out and have to put on a cycle helmet to ride home again.

People will not want to bother putting a helmet to pop to the shops for a newspaper.

People won't want the hassle of carrying a helmet around with them.

 

[numbnuts]

What a load of crap

 

[snorri]

Ah so seat belts and airbags stop people driving ?.

No, but they have reduced the need for drivers to drive with caution so as to ensure their passengers remain seated. Remember the old days of hanging on as the car rounded a corner even at moderate speeds?
It must have been safer for cyclists in those days, they never dreamed of wearing a helmet.

 

[Monsieur]

Think he has a valid point.
Without going into the ''I wear a helmet because...'' debate , surely the main reasons for riding a bike are fitness, enjoyment and commuting. I've got as a policy whereby if I have to take more than 5 minutes getting dressed to go cycling then the ride isn't worth it as it won't then be enjoyable. I've gone 51 years without wearing one and sure as hell won't do for the next 51 years (wish I'd live that long)

Where are the statistics that say clearly that wearing a cycle helmet is beneficial?

Helmets don't save lives - common sense and awareness save lives.

 

[MontyVeda]

No, but they have reduced the need for drivers to drive with caution so as to ensure their passengers remain seated. Remember the old days of hanging on as the car rounded a corner even at moderate speeds?
It must have been safer for cyclists in those days, they never dreamed of wearing a helmet.

no... i honestly don't. and I'm old enough to remember the pre-mandatory seatbelt days.

only full harness seatbelts stop side to side movement, standard seatbelts only stop you going forwards.

 

[Spinney]

Where are the statistics that say clearly that wearing a cycle helmet is beneficial?

It is definitely beneficial for me. Keeps my hair out of my eyes at slow speeds, at high speeds it helps to reduce the time I spend trying to comb it when I get home.

Not an advantage that would occur to most blokes on here, though.

 

[ufkacbln]

There is evidence that making helmets compulsory reduces cycle use.

There is evidence that the introduction of seatbelt laws and air bags has increased riskier behaviour by drivers.

Motor vehicle occupant safety improvements often come at the expense of those outside the vehicle.

There is a safety rating calleed EuroNCAP the European New Car Assessment Program
One of the aspects they look at is pedestrian safety. There are cars out there that hane a zero rating... i.e there is not a single point in the design that increases the chance of survival of a pedestrian in an impact

 

[ufkacbln]

Bu88er - I have got it wrong for all these years.

I thought it was brakes that stopped people cycling!

 

[numbnuts]

Bu88er - I have got it wrong for all these years.

I thought it was brakes that stopped people cycling!

 

[Mr Haematocrit]

I Thought the article was rather interesting, 36% of the population in Copenhagen cycle everyday and this is massive, it suggests a different mindset or perception of the risks, if we could achieve that in the UK the reduction in the demands placed on the health service would be noticeable IMHO.

 

[Deleted member 20519]

I think there are other ways of looking at this. If the aim is to encourage people to cycle short trips in preference to driving, then possibly.

For example, the lady on her way to pay a small fortune to the hairdresser will not want to come out and have to put on a cycle helmet to ride home again.

People will not want to bother putting a helmet to pop to the shops for a newspaper.

People won't want the hassle of carrying a helmet around with them.

It's lucky that helmets aren't compulsory, isn't it!

 

[Pat "5mph"]

For example, the lady on her way to pay a small fortune to the hairdresser will not want to come out and have to put on a cycle helmet to ride home again.

Well, actually the helmet helps, hair gets a bit flat, better than windswept and frizzy though