Highlights The overall accident risk for e-bikes is somewhat higher than that of conventional bicycles, but only for female cyclists. Males have a higher accident risk on bicycles than females. Being unfamiliar with your bicycle increases accident risk. E-bike accident victims are more likely to be unfamiliar with their bicycle, and females are more often novel e-bike users. E-bikes are more often involved in balance-related accidents, but these are rare.
Abstract E-bikes are becoming increasingly popular, and are given an important role in the green mobility of the future. However, some have raised concerns that the increased speed and the increased weight of the e-bike can lead to more accidents among cyclists riding an e-bike, as compared to conventional bicycles. Furthermore, it has been suggested that e-bikes may appeal to new groups of cyclists with little cycling experience, which may further impede cyclist safety. Previous research has not provided a clear picture. We investigate these questions with data from three surveys carried out in Norway (N = 7752). A logistic regression analysis comparing conventional and electric bicycles, controlling for age gender and exposure, shows an overall risk increase (all accidents) for e-bike users. The results suggest that this increased risk derives from females having a higher accident risk on e-bikes. For men there is no risk difference between e-bikes and conventional bikes. Some, but not all, of this elevated risk can be attributed to being unfamiliar with the bicycle. E-bikes are not more likely to cause serious accidents than conventional bicycles. In-depth analysis of accident causation showed that there was no difference in the factors leading to accidents, except that there was a somewhat higher prevalence of accidents resulting from balance problems with e-bikes.
Gender differences in accident risk with e-bikes—Survey data from Norway
2019-07-22
Aufsatz (Zeitschrift)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
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