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Don't wear a helmet while commuting

Downhiller

Downhiller

Turbo Monkey
Sep 20, 2004
1,498
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CROATIA....europe....CROATIA
sorry if this was before

quote said:
Traffic rules - wear a wig
14 September 2006
By KAMALA HAYMAN

Cyclists may be safer wearing a long-haired wig than a helmet, new research suggests.


In England, a Bath University study found drivers gave a wider berth to cyclists with long hair than those wearing helmets.

The study, by psychologist Dr Ian Walker, also found bare-headed cyclists were given more room than those wearing helmets.

Walker used a bicycle fitted with a computer and an ultrasonic distance sensor to record data from more than 2500 overtaking motorists. He wore a helmet half the time.

During his research, he was struck by a bus and a truck – both times while wearing a helmet.

In research to be published in the Accident Analysis and Prevention journal, Walker found drivers, on average, passed 1.33m from his bicycle. However, when he wore a long-haired wig – to give the impression he was female – overtaking drivers gave him an extra 14cm. By contrast, when he was wearing a helmet, they passed 8.5cm closer. Larger vehicles also narrowed the gap, with trucks passing 19cm closer than cars and buses, 23cm closer.

He wanted to do more research to understand why drivers appeared to give female cyclists such a wide berth. It was possible they were seen as less predictable than male riders because they were not seen on the road as often as male cyclists.

Walker said helmet wearing – which was not compulsory in England – was known to be useful in low-speed falls, so was "definitely good for children". However, he said it remained controversial whether they offered any real protection for someone hit by a car.

He suggested drivers saw cyclists with helmets as more serious, experienced and predictable than those without, and therefore needing less space when overtaking.

Waikato University senior psychology lecturer Samuel Charlton said cyclists should not stop wearing helmets in the hope drivers would give them a wider berth. Charlton, whose research looked at driver behaviour, said some drivers saw cyclists as being in the way.

"We want to encourage people to use bicycles ... but we haven't figured out a way to keep them safe yet, and that's a real issue," he said.

The Transport Ministry said evidence showed that making helmets compulsory had significantly increased cyclists' safety.

A three-year Otago University study found the move reduced head injuries by almost 20 per cent.
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