How dangerous is cycling?

[col]

I'm winding you up, silly! <rollseyes>

Well dodged there

Luck vs statistics, no contest.

I can see where your coming from,telling us that x number have been killed really informs you in depth doesnt it

 

[need2]

Depends who it is cycling out there,it isn't always down to the drivers.

I've seen some shocking cycling out there recently.

maybe so,,but when you have boy racers banging down little country lanes as if their doing the f1 you have 2 get out of the way quickly or you aint going to make it how

 

[hackbike 6]

Yeah have that down the Mile End Road as well.

 

[BentMikey]

When regular cyclists live on average 2 years longer than the rest of the population, that would really make cycling dangerous, wouldn't it? *rolls eyes* at the pro danger crowd on here.

 

[hackbike 6]

I don't think our fallen colleagues would agree.

 

[wafflycat]

Whatever you do... do not ever go to sleep in a bed. People die in their sleep in a bed. It's a bloody dangerous thing to do this sleeping lark.

 

[Shady]

Well I've lived on the Isle of Man for over 30 years apart from a few years at uni and down near that London, and so far there has only been one cycling death that I can recall which unfortunately was a young lad killed by a wheel coming off an HGV.

There are only about 80000 people on the island and there are a hell of a lot of cyclists so I like those odds.

Motorcycling deaths are a whole different kettle of fish however, especially around TT time.

 

[hackbike 6]

I think the odds can be increased in our favour with more info on how to do it well.

Do they still do cycling proficiency tests?

Whatever you do... do not ever go to sleep in a bed. People die in their sleep in a bed. It's a bloody dangerous thing to do this sleeping lark.

Hmmm a bit off track here.

They don't die due to accidents unless it's got something to do with smoking or a car drives though your front room.Generally it's natural causes.

 

[jonesy]

I wonder how long the average car journey is? I'm sure that my 11 mile each way commute is longer than the kind of trips made by most car commuters and school-runners, but their average is bumped up enormously by very long journeys at week-ends and holidays when they use motorways - roads with all the hazards designed out of them and consequently a relatively low accident rate.

I agree.

Look at DfT transport statistics, National Travel Survey 2006
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/personal/mainresults/nts2006/


Table 3.2 Trips and average trip length by main mode: 1995/1997 to 2006

Average trip length by bicycle is 2.4 miles, by car 8.5 miles.


Also see:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/roadstraffic/traffic/
Table 7.4 Road traffic: by type of vehicle and class of road: 2006

It is pretty obvious that a simple comparison of casualties per billion km travelled between cars and bicycles is pretty meaningless; cycle trips are mostly short trips on local roads whereas over 60% of car mileage is undertaken as longer trips on major roads. A risk rate for cars that is heavily weighted towards motorway driving is not a meaningful risk comparator for cycle trips.

It is a great pity that DfT, having provided all these data that demonstrate the great difference between cycling and car trips, then go and present tables of casualty rate per billion km as well...

 

[wafflycat]

I think the odds can be increased in our favour with more info on how to do it well.

Do they still do cycling proficiency tests?

Whatever you do... do not ever go to sleep in a bed. People die in their sleep in a bed. It's a bloody dangerous thing to do this sleeping lark.

Hmmm a bit off track here.

They don't die due to accidents unless it's got something to do with smoking or a car drives though your front room.Generally it's natural causes.

I suspect many a cyclist dies from something other than cycling, even quite a few from natural causes.

 

[Baggy]

I suspect many a cyclist dies from something other than cycling, even quite a few from natural causes.

If you look through the obituaries in the CTC magazine the majority of cyclists mentioned therein seem to die of natural causes, aged on average 85.

One chap rode over 7,000 miles in his 90th year

 

[Noodley]

One chap rode over 7,000 miles in his 90th year

No wonder he died then is it? Foolish behaviour at that age.

 

[Jaded]

I can see where your coming from,telling us that x number have been killed really informs you in depth doesnt it

If I had the remotest idea of where you were coming from, or of what point you were trying to put across in this post, I'd try to disagree or agree.

 

[Noodley]

Cycling is not dangerous.

There you go.

 

[Jaded]

How dangerous is cycling?

Not a lot.