Timeline for Does wearing a bicycle helmet make the cyclist safer?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
12 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Feb 1, 2013 at 23:29 | comment | added | yo' | I do not have any statistics on either of these two points. I can only add my experience from two large cities: In Prague, I always wear a helmet, because the drivers are very aggressive whatever you do (and their behaviour doesn't really change). In Paris, I do not wear a helmet, because my experience and experience of others is that drivers treat you much more badly when you wear a helmet. My conclusion is that answer to this question depends a lot on where you ride your bike and what are the local habits there. | |
| Jun 1, 2011 at 22:19 | comment | added | freiheit | The wind of the vehicle can also throw you off balance, the car may not be considering their mirror or other above-wheel protrusions in their width estimate, and the car may be overestimating how straight a line the cyclist is riding in. There's a basic human startle reflex that makes keeping a straight line difficult when several tons of steel rush by at 50 miles an hour inches away. | |
| Jun 1, 2011 at 16:07 | comment | added | Lagerbaer | The annoyance and disturbance has the potential to throw you off balance. | |
| Jun 1, 2011 at 14:43 | history | edited | Rabskatran | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
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| May 28, 2011 at 15:19 | comment | added | user unknown | A vehicle which passes close doesn't hit the cyclist, but passes - by definition. Closely passing cars might be annoying and disturbing, but I can't see how they should be a risk. Most car drivers fear about the proper surface of their car, and aren't interested in accidents themselves - whether helmet-wearing biker or naked head. | |
| May 28, 2011 at 6:16 | comment | added | Wai Yip Tung | On your second point, you can also argue the other way. People who wear helmet are more safety conscious and less incline to risky behavior. | |
| May 28, 2011 at 6:12 | comment | added | Wai Yip Tung | I seriously question whether Ian Walker's result is reproducible. When I pass a cyclist in a car, I need to pay full attention to the road condition. I have zero impression on whether the cyclist wear a helmet or not, or what kind of bike they are riding. Let alone can I alter the pass distance. Someone setup a road side camera can probably verify his result. | |
| May 27, 2011 at 16:02 | comment | added | Martha F. | Some references on passing distance with or without helmets: bhsi.org/walkerstudy.htm and sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001457506001540 | |
| May 27, 2011 at 15:42 | comment | added | Rabskatran | @Konrad : I will ask the friend that told be about this and add a link is available. | |
| May 27, 2011 at 13:45 | comment | added | user unknown | @Rabskatran: You can also argue the opposite way (bullet 2): A helmet-wearing cyclist always gets conscious of the risks of cycling when pulling the helm on. | |
| May 27, 2011 at 10:45 | comment | added | Konrad Rudolph | Your second point was mentioned by Lagerbaer as “risk homeostasis”. Your first point would be very interesting with a reference. | |
| May 27, 2011 at 10:02 | history | answered | Rabskatran | CC BY-SA 3.0 |