Bicycling is a popular activity in British Columbia. Partly because of the moderate climate where much of the population lives, bicycling is both a common recreational activity and a mode of transportation for many individuals. Unfortunately, each year a number of bicyclists are killed in collisions and many more are injured. A large majority of bicycling deaths and disabling injuries result from head injury. About 75% of all bicyclist fatalities, and two-thirds of hospital admissions for bicycling injury involve head trauma (Rivara et al., 1998). Accordingly, the development of effective bicycle helmets, followed by promotion of their routine correct use, has long been a priority in the injury prevention community. To address the problem of low helmet wearing rates among bicyclists, in 1996 British Columbia became the first Canadian province to enact a law mandating helmet use by bicyclists of all ages when riding on a public roadway. This followed the example of efforts to reduce head injuries through transportation policy in Australia and New Zealand. Since 1994 all states and territories in both those countries have required bicycle helmet use by riders of any age. Helmet use laws, especially those covering riders of all ages, have proved to be effective in increasing the rate of helmet wearing.
Bicycle Helmet Use in British Columbia: Effects of the Helmet Use Law
2000
28 pages
Report
No indication
English
Transportation Safety , Road Transportation , Transportation , Transportation & Traffic Planning , Safety device effectiveness , Bicycle safety , Helmets , British Columbia , Safety devices , Bicycle rider injuries , Bicycle rider fatalities , Bicycle accidents , Safety laws , Fatality prevention , Injury prevention
Bicycle Helmet Use in British Columbia
British Library Conference Proceedings | 1996
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