Date: Thursday, 12 January 2006
Title: National Highway Safety Administration Bicycle Report
Source: http://www.dailypeloton.com/displayarticle.asp?pk=8746
Remarks: Statistics for accidents in the USA
In wake of the recent tragic accident in Wales to a bike group and the many accidents and fatalities to cyclists around the world this past year the following report gives a statistical look at how dangerous it is for cyclists to be out on American roads. In it we might find some guidance in how we can improve our own safety and safety for all cyclists around the world. Most fatalities occur in urban areas (66%) between the hours of 5 and 9 p.m. during the busiest traffic hours and onset of twilight (30%). If a case can be made for avoiding high traffic areas and improvement and addition of bike paths in the urban environment these statistics are all one needs. The time of the fatalities also points up the usefulness of lights and white/reflective clothing as darkness approaches. 36% of all fatalities occurred not surprisingly during the peak months of riding in the summer months of June through August. Obviously alcohol and cycling are as dangerous as drinking and driving with fatal accidents with riders under the influence of alcohol showed at over 20%. Drunk drivers are a hazard of their own, with the universal use of cell phones, taking a minute to call the police and promptly reporting a drunken driver you see could save a fellow cyclists life. Although it looks that it is safer riding a bike than being a pedestrian, with 84% of total fatalities for pedestrians, the fact is that there are more pedestrians in most urban areas and one shouldn't take comfort in this statistic. Stay safe out there. Advocacy efforts to improve education, teaching children safe bike habits, bike paths, bike lanes that limit co-mingling traffic and bikes deserve our support. The Bicycle League of America in the USA leads this effort, you can join here. Latest Advocacy News here. "I am proud to be a member of the League of American Bicyclists. I look at it as an investment in our future. After all, the more that people are biking, the more influence cyclists will have on improving conditions, and the more likely there will be other American Tour de France champions." Lance Armstrong NHTS Administration report: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has released statistics of cyclist deaths and crashes in 2004, and the numbers make for sober reading. In 2004, 725 cyclists were killed in traffic crashes, and more than 41,000 were injured. This is a sharp increase from 2003's 629 deaths, although it is still lower than the 802 deaths in 1994. The first automobile crash in the United States occurred in New York City in 1896, when a motor vehicle collided with a pedalcycle rider (Famous First Facts, by Joseph Kane). More than 49,000 pedalcyclists have died in traffic crashes in the United States since 1932 — the first year in which estimates of pedalcyclist fatalities were recorded. The 350 pedalcyclists killed in 1932 accounted for 1.3 percent of the 27,979 persons who died in traffic crashes that year. In 2004, 725 pedalcyclists were killed and an additional 41,000 were injured in traffic crashes. Pedalcyclist deaths accounted for 2 percent of all traffic fatalities, and pedalcyclists made up 1 percent of all the people injured in traffic crashes during the year. The number of pedalcyclist fatalities in 2004 was 10 percent lower than the 802 fatalities reported in 1994. The highest number of pedalcyclist fatalities ever recorded in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) was 1,003 in 1975. Pedalcyclists accounted for 13 percent of all non-motorist traffic fatalities in 2004. Pedestrians accounted for 84 percent, and the remaining 2 percent were skateboard riders, roller skaters, etc. Pedalcyclist fatalities occurred more frequently in urban areas (66%), at non-intersection locations (67%), between the hours of 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. (30%), and during the months of June, July, and August (36%). |In 1994, the average age of pedalcyclists killed in traffic crashes was 28.9; in 2004 the average age of those killed was 38.7, and the average age of those injured was 28.6. Pedalcyclists under age 16 accounted for 21 percent of all pedalcyclists killed and 32 percent of those injured in traffic crashes in 2004. In comparison, pedalcyclists under age 16 accounted for 37 percent of all those killed in 1994. Pedalcyclists age 25 and older have made up an increasing proportion of all pedalcyclist deaths since 1994. The proportion of pedalcyclist fatalities age 25 to 64 was 1.4 times higher in 2004 than in 1994 (56% and 41%, respectively). Nearly one-fifth (19%) of the pedalcyclists killed in traffic crashes in 2004 were between the ages of 5 and 15. The pedalcyclist fatality rate for this age group in 2004 was 3.1 per million population — about 24 percent higher than the rate for all pedalcyclists (2.5 per million population). The injury rate for this age group was 286 per million population, compared with 140 per million population for pedalcyclists of all ages. Alcohol involvement — either for the driver or the pedalcyclist — was reported in more than one-third of the traffic crashes that resulted in pedalcyclist fatalities in 2004. In 28 percent of the crashes, either the driver or the cyclist was reported to have a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 grams per deciliter (g/dL) or higher. Lower alcohol levels (BAC .01 to .07 g/dL) were reported in an additional 6 percent. Nearly one-fourth (24%) of the pedalcyclists killed had a BAC of .01 g/dL or higher, and one-fifth (20%) had a BAC of .08 g/dL or higher. Most of the pedalcyclists killed or injured in 2004 were males (87% and 76%, respectively), and most were between the ages of 5 and 44 (58%and 78%, respectively). In 2004, the pedalcyclist fatality rate per capita was almost 7 times as high for males as for females, and the injury rate per capita was more than 3 times as high for males as for females.
Information on pedalcyclist traffic fatalities is available from the National Center for Statistics and Analysis, NPO-101, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590. NCSA information can also be obtained by telephone or by faxon-demand at 800-934-8517. Fax messages should be sent to 202-366-7078. General information on highway traffic safety can be accessed by Internet users at www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/ncsa. To report a safety-related problem or to inquire about motor vehicle safety information, contact the Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236.
Other fact sheets available from the National Center for Statistics and Analysis are Overview, Alcohol, Occupant Protection, Older Population, Speeding, Young Drivers, Pedestrians, Children, Large Trucks, Motorcycles, School Transportation-Related Crashes, State Traffic Data, and State Alcohol Estimates. Detailed data on motor vehicle traffic crashes are published annually in Traffic Safety Facts: A Compilation of Motor Vehicle Crash Data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System and the General Estimates System.
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