Correlation between speed and death

[Afren]

The number of super-fast electric bikes in the Netherlands has soared 60% in the past two years to 17,200, according to new figures from national statistics agency CBS. The bikes, which can travel at up to 45 kph, are particularly popular with the over-55s and the province of Utrecht has the highest density in the country. There are also far more electric mopeds on the roads – up 74% to 6,000 in the two years to July 1, the CBS said. At the same time, the number of registered traditional mopeds has gone down 2.8% or nearly 15,500. The number of cyclists killed on the Dutch roads outstripped the number of people killed in cars for the first time in 2017, according to figures from the national statistics office CBS last year. The over-65s account for two-thirds of deaths among cyclists, and e-bikes were involved in one in four bike accidents.

 

[elect]

I'm inclined to think that the best safety countermeasuers comes from appropriate infrastructure.

If you think about the last moped trend, this has brought a lot of new users on the cycling paths. This sums up to the new bike users.

All of this concurs in putting the existing-infrastructure under pressure.

Ergo, we would need better bike tracks, wider, with multiple lanes per direction, ecc ecc

 

[Dionigi]

A similar statistic in the USA has been observed with older men and motorcycles. Old men, two wheels and speed is a bad combination. The old man class, of which I belong, live in denial that there reaction time and driving skills have not diminished and in fact take the opposite approach by saying they need faster bikes to be safe.

 

[Dewey]

I wish the US had an equivalent to the mature Dutch second hand market. Look at this website, nation-wide delivery and a battery warranty! https://www.tweedehandsfietsen.nl/tweedehands-elektrische-fiets

 

[jim6b]

I wish the US had an equivalent to the mature Dutch second hand market. Look at this website, nation-wide delivery and a battery warranty! https://www.tweedehandsfietsen.nl/tweedehands-elektrische-fiets

Is it grumpy to point out, ya just hijacked the thread which was "Correlation between speed and death."

 

[jim6b]

FYI, from today's WSJ:

Electric-Bike Rider Is Fourth Killed This Year
BY PAUL BERGER AND BEN CHAPMAN
A rider of an electric-powered bicycle has died days after being involved in a collision with an elderly man walking in Manhattan’s Central Park.
The death is the fourth involving an e-bike rider this year, and the first in which no other vehicle was involved, city officials said Thursday.
It comes as e-bikes and e-scooters become increasingly popular on New York City’s crowded streets, even though they are illegal.
Cyclist Charles Cheeseboro and a 77-year-old man collided at a crosswalk on East Drive at 74th Street at about 3:21 p.m. on Monday, a New York Police Department spokesman said.
Mr. Cheeseboro, who was 43 and lived in Harlem, was hospitalized with head injuries. He died Wednesday.
The pedestrian suffered minor injuries, NYPD officials said. Officers haven’t determined who had the right of way or how fast Mr. Cheeseboro was traveling.
State and city legislators have pushed to legalize e-scootersand bicycles at speeds limited to between 15 and 20 miles an hour. But some officials, including Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio, have expressed safety concerns.
Scooter-share companies, such as Bird and Lime, are jostling to enter New York City, with the potential to reach its eight million residents, as well as tens of millions of tourists.
But city officials have said that electric vehicles must be legalized at the state level before they can be considered for city streets. The firms’ efforts have been helped by a push to legalize e-bikes, which are widely used by delivery workers.
Thousands of e-bikes have been confiscated by police in recent years, and riders have incurred $500 fines, prompting an outcry from advocates.
Mr. Cheeseboro wasn’t using the e-bike for work, police said, adding that he wasn’t wearing a helmet.
New York state legislators passed a bill earlier this year legalizing e-bikes and scooters. The measure, which hasn’t been signed by Mr. Cuomo, omitted language proposed by the governor requiring riders to wear a helmet. A spokesman for Mr. Cuomo said the legislation is under review.
A city transportation department spokeswoman said Thursday: “We take this tragedy very seriously and will discuss any recommendations with fellow agencies involved in the park’s operational and enforcement areas.”
Mr. Cheeseboro’s family couldn’t be reached for comment.
—Jim Oberman contributed to this article.

 

[harryS]

A friend just returned from the Netherlands and she said walking in the city was scary because many cyclists did not pay attention to traffic signals. Always a very credible person. If she said it, I believe it.

 

[Afren]

My wife and I visited keukenhof gardens in April and used the opportunity to cycle from Lisse to Haarlem which is about 20 miles away. What we found unusual and in fact frightening was the number of motor bikes (scooters and mopeds) using bike lanes. I have no idea whether it's legal for them to use the cycle lanes but it was very unexpected and unpleasant. Our favourite countries in Europe for cycling are France, Spain and Portugal.

 

[jim6b]

This is video of cyclist in Netherlands, is if you can find one wearing a helmet.

Summer cycling in the Netherlands,

And then ask, were fatalities are related to speed . . . or lack of safety gear.

 

[Afren]

You see them wearing helmets when on racing bikes but not commuter or recreation and leisure cyclists. Personally, I would never cycle without a helmet no matter whether it's a legal requirement or not.

 

[J.R.]

Good infrastructure, no helmets, occasional motor scooter. Respectful riders!

I'd still wear a helmet. I guess when in Rome...

 

[Afren]

 

[Dewey]

FYI, from today's WSJ: Electric-Bike Rider Is Fourth Killed This Year

Awful. The article does quote the governors office as saying the legislation remains under review, good to know.

 

[Afren]

Speed kills. Lack of proper infrastructure kills. Lack of investment kills. Stupidity on the part of the cyclists and other road users kill. Unfortunately, the only way politicians take notice is when more of us perish.

 

[jim6b]

Speed kills. Lack of proper infrastructure kills. Lack of investment kills. Stupidity on the part of the cyclists and other road users kill. Unfortunately, the only way politicians take notice is when more of us perish.

You left out, lack of helmets. Was that intentional?

 

[Dewey]

Unfortunately, the only way politicians take notice is when more of us perish.

2019 is the third year roads fatalities have exceeded 40,000 per year, Awful.

 

[Afren]

You left out, lack of helmets. Was that intentional?

You're wrong. If you read what I said again, you'll see that I said "stupidity ...kills".

 

[Afren]

2019 is the third year roads fatalities have exceeded 40,000 per year, Awful.

Yes, absolutely tragic and in most cases, avoidable.

 

[Ken M]

2019 is the third year roads fatalities have exceeded 40,000 per year, Awful.

If we want to assign infinite value to saving lives, we would have 10mph speed limits on the interstates and highways. We all know that there is a cost to having higher speed limits that the human body can sustain without serious injury.

The best way to deal with all this on a bike / ebike is to ride at a speed that is safe for the conditions present and pay attention to everything (cars, people, lights, path condition, etc.). I'm 58 years old and I remember riding my bike at like 12 years old at speeds well above 20mph downhill so it's not automatically unsafe to go over 20mph on a bike. That said I crashed on an icy bridge on my ebike last year at about 22mph and my head (wearing a helmet) went into a fence post and I fractured 3 cervical vertebrae. I'm just not getting back on an ebike and will likely have neck issues the rest of my life but I'm not going to run around saying that there is no reason to ever go over 20mph on a bike. I'm still going to hit upwards of 35mph when I'm riding (when in road side bike lane where cars are going that fast or faster).

 

[Afren]

"---so it's not automatically unsafe to go over 20 mph on a bike. That said I crashed on an icy bridge on my ebike last year at about 22mph and my head (wearing a helmet) went into a fence post and I fractured 3 cervical vertebrae'.
You're quite right but, it's definitely safer to go at 10 mph than 20 mph and one is more likely to survive an accident at 22 mph, like you did, than if one were to have an accident at 32 mph. There's no denying that speed plays a massive part in whether you have an accident in the first place and how serious the accident proves to be if one is unfortunate to be involved in one. It is all a question of balance (no pun intended).