Bicycle crashes and collisions

Bicycle Crashes and Collisions

Cycling safely depends far more on who you are than where you ride. Cycling skill is the most important factor in reducing cycling crashes. For example, college-age adult cyclists crash nearly as often as children. As they gain more skill, either through experience or training (e.g club cyclists), cyclists have fewer crashes.

The crash rates noted in the table at right involve either bicycle damage or sufficient injury to require medical treatment. Most crashes, usually falls not resulting in serious injury, are unreported.

Children have more crashes and collisions than experienced cyclists - nearly seven times as many per kilometre travelled.
Source: Forester, "Effective Cycling (6th Edition)", 1993.

Falling is the most common source of injury for cyclists. Most crashes do not involve a motor vehicle. Children are involved in fewer car-bike collisions than adult cyclists.

Car-bike collisions (children) 10%

Car-bike collisions (adults) 18%

Car-bike collisions (total population) 17%
Source: Forester, "Effective Cycling (6th Edition)", 1993.

The most dangerous facility is the bike path, with a crash rate 2.6 times that of the average roadway. Cyclists who ride under arduous conditions (heavy traffic, mountains, at night, in the rain) have lower rates than flat-land, fair-weather recreational cyclists. Riding to work on arterial roadways at rush hour is the among the safest of all cycling activities.

Collisions with motor vehicles cause the most deaths, however. Motor vehicles are involved in 90% of bicyclist deaths (91% for males, 86% for females). Motor vehicles are involved in 12% of cycling injuries treated in emergency rooms.

Most cycling injuries occur at home or on roads and streets within five kilometres of home. The majority of children injured at home are less than 10 years old and are injured on sidewalks and driveways.
Source: Baker, et al, "Injuries to Bicyclists: A National Perspective", 1993.

Children have the highest risk of death or injury. Mostly this is because children are more likely to ride bikes than older members of the population, but they are also the least skilled and least experienced riders. Most people greatly reduce their use of the bicycle after age 14 - notice in the chart at right how injury rates drop off quickly after this age.

Highest death rates are in the 10 - 14 age range (2.06 per 100,000 population for males and 0.41 per 100,000 population for females). Males aged 10 - 14 and females aged 5 - 9 have highest emergency room injury rates (13.1 per 1,000 population and 7.3 per 1,000 population, respectively).

Source: Baker, et al, "Injuries to Bicyclists: A National Perspective", published by The Johns Hopkins Injury Prevention Centre, sponsored by the Snell Memorial Foundation, 1993.

Teaching cyclists safe practices before they reach age 12 has the greatest impact on preventing injuries and deaths.

The earlier children learn to ride safely, the greater their chances of avoiding injury. For example, cycling deaths can be reduced by as much as 83 percent and injuries by 62 percent if safe cycling practices are learned by age 10. If education is delayed until age 15, deaths can be reduced by at most 62 percent and injuries by at most 36 percent.

Sources: Baker, et al, "Injuries to Cyclists", 1993; Cross, "Bicycle Safety Education: Facts and Issues", published by AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 1978.

Saskatchewan Information:
For children 5 - 9 years of age, cycling ranks second (after falls) as a leading cause of injury-related admissions to hospital. For children aged 10 - 14, cycling is the third leading cause of injury (after falls and sports).

Source: "Child Injury in Saskatchewan: Injury Hospitalizations and Deaths, 1989-1994", published by the Saskatchewan Institute on Prevention of Handicaps, May 1996.

How safe is riding a bike?

Information on Car-Bike Collisions

Five Basic Principles of Traffic Cycling

Cycling in Saskatoon (off-site link)

Back to CAN-BIKE index page

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Bicycle Crashes and Collisions
Cycling safely depends far more on who you are than where you ride. Cycling skill is the most important factor in reducing cycling crashes. For example, college-age adult cyclists crash nearly as often as children. As they gain more skill, either through experience or training (e.g club cyclists), cyclists have fewer crashes. The crash rates noted in the table at right involve either bicycle damage or sufficient injury to require medical treatment. Most crashes, usually falls not resulting in serious injury, are unreported. Children have more crashes and collisions than experienced cyclists - nearly seven times as many per kilometre travelled. Source: Forester, "Effective Cycling (6th Edition)", 1993.
Falling is the most common source of injury for cyclists. Most crashes do not involve a motor vehicle. Children are involved in fewer car-bike collisions than adult cyclists. Car-bike collisions (children) 10% Car-bike collisions (adults) 18% Car-bike collisions (total population) 17% Source: Forester, "Effective Cycling (6th Edition)", 1993. The most dangerous facility is the bike path, with a crash rate 2.6 times that of the average roadway. Cyclists who ride under arduous conditions (heavy traffic, mountains, at night, in the rain) have lower rates than flat-land, fair-weather recreational cyclists. Riding to work on arterial roadways at rush hour is the among the safest of all cycling activities. Collisions with motor vehicles cause the most deaths, however. Motor vehicles are involved in 90% of bicyclist deaths (91% for males, 86% for females). Motor vehicles are involved in 12% of cycling injuries treated in emergency rooms.
Most cycling injuries occur at home or on roads and streets within five kilometres of home. The majority of children injured at home are less than 10 years old and are injured on sidewalks and driveways. Source: Baker, et al, "Injuries to Bicyclists: A National Perspective", 1993.
Children have the highest risk of death or injury. Mostly this is because children are more likely to ride bikes than older members of the population, but they are also the least skilled and least experienced riders. Most people greatly reduce their use of the bicycle after age 14 - notice in the chart at right how injury rates drop off quickly after this age. Highest death rates are in the 10 - 14 age range (2.06 per 100,000 population for males and 0.41 per 100,000 population for females). Males aged 10 - 14 and females aged 5 - 9 have highest emergency room injury rates (13.1 per 1,000 population and 7.3 per 1,000 population, respectively). Source: Baker, et al, "Injuries to Bicyclists: A National Perspective", published by The Johns Hopkins Injury Prevention Centre, sponsored by the Snell Memorial Foundation, 1993.
Teaching cyclists safe practices before they reach age 12 has the greatest impact on preventing injuries and deaths. The earlier children learn to ride safely, the greater their chances of avoiding injury. For example, cycling deaths can be reduced by as much as 83 percent and injuries by 62 percent if safe cycling practices are learned by age 10. If education is delayed until age 15, deaths can be reduced by at most 62 percent and injuries by at most 36 percent. Sources: Baker, et al, "Injuries to Cyclists", 1993; Cross, "Bicycle Safety Education: Facts and Issues", published by AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 1978. Saskatchewan Information: For children 5 - 9 years of age, cycling ranks second (after falls) as a leading cause of injury-related admissions to hospital. For children aged 10 - 14, cycling is the third leading cause of injury (after falls and sports). Source: "Child Injury in Saskatchewan: Injury Hospitalizations and Deaths, 1989-1994", published by the Saskatchewan Institute on Prevention of Handicaps, May 1996.
How safe is riding a bike? Information on Car-Bike Collisions Five Basic Principles of Traffic Cycling Cycling in Saskatoon (off-site link) Back to CAN-BIKE index page
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