The road users statistically most likely to cause casualties

[trevor brooker]

I read this - very interesting about cyclists - I'm amazed so many kill themselves ( I don't know how?)

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/cars/news/the-road-users-statistically-most-likely-to-cause-casualties-whether-you-re-a-driver-cyclist-or-pedestrian-find-out-who-poses-you-the-greatest-threat/ar-BB1dpsVw?ocid=msedgdhp#image=6

 

[oyster]

Cycling is, overall, amazingly safe (in terms of deaths). Would be interesting to know more about those that do occur without involvement of any other road user. I imagine they would include having a heart attack while riding, going off a cliff, and hitting a wall.

They appear to just throw in the hands-free driving comment - without clarifying what they even mean by it!

I do wonder why everything between cars with no driver assistance and full hands-free (or total automation) is routinely ignored? Things like pre-crash detection, adaptive cruise control, lane departure, awakeness/tiredness detection, etc., seem to have the potential to make a big difference.

 

[Edward Elizabeth]

Yep, safer than walking, comsiderably less likely to die of head injuries than a car driver, yet guess which one is pressured by society into wearing a crap hat?

 

[flecc]

I do wonder why everything between cars with no driver assistance and full hands-free (or total automation) is routinely ignored? Things like pre-crash detection, adaptive cruise control, lane departure, awakeness/tiredness detection, etc., seem to have the potential to make a big difference.

Experience of what actually happens in practice?

I have almost all that on my car, but have much of it switched off because it's such a nuisance.

Take lane departure for example. Like all of us the most often used roads are those local leaving our homes. With a huge volume of parking on them, even on the bus routes, all traffic spends as much time across the centre line as to the left of it. The resultant constant alerts drove me up the wall in no time and off it went.

And for most of us the majority of driving is on congested roads not suited to using any cruise control, so I've rarely used my smart version.

Most of all our driving is shorter trips where alert/tiredness detection isn't needed. Mine is switched on and often gives me false alarms. That's because with London driving skills so ever present we all often get very close to each other in rapid manoeuvres, giving the system a fright.

And I've described in here examples of the problems with the radar and sonar detection due to the false activations caused by our road circumstances. Getting the the brakes suddenly slammed on for no reason is disconcerting to me and even more scary for the person behind.

All in all none of it is as wonderful as the makers and theorists make out, most of it is just a pain and sometimes even dangerous.
.

 

[oyster]

Experience of what actually happens in practice?

I have almost all that on my car, but have much of it switched off because it's such a nuisance.

Take lane departure for example. Like all of us the most often used roads are those local leaving our homes. With a huge volume of parking on them, even on the bus routes, all traffic spends as much time across the centre line as to the left of it. The resultant constant alerts drove me up the wall in no time and off it went.

And for most of us the majority of driving is on congested roads not suited to using any cruise control, so I've rarely used my smart version.

Most of all our driving is shorter trips where alert/tiredness detection isn't needed. Mine is switched on and often gives me false alarms. That's because with London driving skills so ever present we all often get very close to each other in rapid manoeuvres, giving the system a fright.

And I've described in here examples of the problems with the radar and sonar detection due to the false activations caused by our road circumstances.

All in all none of it is as wonderful as the makers and theorists make out, most of it is just a pain.
.

Circumstances make a big difference, on that I can agree.

I use adaptive cruise control quite a lot - partly because it is so very easy to speed when the roads are good and clear. ACC lets me look outside - which is where my focus should be - without having to keep my eye on the speedo.

Tiredness has cut in a couple of times - and although it might feel intrusive, those occasions have been appropriate. Long trip on my own, feeling fine, and needing a nudge to actually stop for a few minutes. (Mostly partner will need the loo - but on my own, that doesn't often happen.)

But even humble reversing warnings/cameras can help to prevent cars driving into someone walking behind a car.

 

[flecc]

But even humble reversing warnings/cameras can help to prevent cars driving into someone walking behind a car.

Indeed, I have sonic proximity warnings all around my car, plus all four directions cameras feeding the centre screen according to need, and those are useful. But that's mostly for very low speed stuff like parking.
.

 

[Fordulike]

I think a small minority of cyclists are a danger to themselves.

I've witnessed riders blatantly ignore red lights, ride at speed in conditions that require extreme caution, ride with shopping on the handlebars or one handed with a shopping bag in the other hand.

I've seen riders wearing giant pairs of Beats, oblivious to any aural dangers, no helmets, bikes clearly not adjusted for the rider (seat way too high or too low). Riders, usually younger ones, who think it's cool to wheelie everywhere, unaware that they lose the ability to steer, once the front wheel leaves the ground.

Factors that are usually not obvious to the eye are, cheap and nasty tyres, which probably act like riding on ice in the dry, poor maintenance of brakes, in fact the list goes on and on

 

[WheezyRider]

I think a small minority of cyclists are a danger to themselves.

I've witnessed riders blatantly ignore red lights, ride at speed in conditions that require extreme caution, ride with shopping on the handlebars or one handed with a shopping bag in the other hand.

I've seen riders wearing giant pairs of Beats, oblivious to any aural dangers, no helmets, bikes clearly not adjusted for the rider (seat way too high or too low). Riders, usually younger ones, who think it's cool to wheelie everywhere, unaware that they lose the ability to steer, once the front wheel leaves the ground.

Factors that are usually not obvious to the eye are, cheap and nasty tyres, which probably act like riding on ice in the dry, poor maintenance of brakes, in fact the list goes on and on

Don't forget no lights at night *sigh*. Seen a lot of that lately.

 

[oyster]

Don't forget no lights at night *sigh*. Seen a lot of that lately.

Have to say, we see quite a lot of that on cars, let alone bicycles!

Both the cars I regularly drive have automatic headlamps. Only very rarely do I ever need to switch them manually. I suspect this is widespread and is why we actually see fewer cars with their headlamps off in the dark.

Really don't want to complicate bicycles, but something deep down is making me wonder if automatic lights could be fitted to bicycles? I suspect a lot depends on power - if you have plenty, as in a decent ebike, maybe they wouldn't be a bad idea?

 

[WheezyRider]

Have to say, we see quite a lot of that on cars, let alone bicycles!

Both the cars I regularly drive have automatic headlamps. Only very rarely do I ever need to switch them manually. I suspect this is widespread and is why we actually see fewer cars with their headlamps off in the dark.

Really don't want to complicate bicycles, but something deep down is making me wonder if automatic lights could be fitted to bicycles? I suspect a lot depends on power - if you have plenty, as in a decent ebike, maybe they wouldn't be a bad idea?

I see it often with cars where the day time lights are on, which fools the driver into thinking they have their main lights on. With street lighting on, it can be hard to realise the headlights aren't on.

 

[montwo]

I think a small minority of cyclists are a danger to themselves.
I've seen... no helmets

Shocking.

 

[flecc]

I read this - very interesting about cyclists - I'm amazed so many kill themselves ( I don't know how?)

Dutch cyclists have a low death rate compared to us, but astonishingly their government report that 40% of their circa 200 deaths per annum are with no other person or vehicle involved. About 80 of them killing themselves in isolation somehow each year.
.

 

[flecc]

I think a small minority of cyclists are a danger to themselves.
I've seen no helmets

Shocking.

Doesn't always follow though.

I was cycling lifelong from the early 1940s and there were no cycling helmets until very recent times, so I didn't bother with them even when they did eventually appear.

I've never banged my head in any road accident so a helmet was never needed.

The same went for motorcycling, when I started that in 1950 there were no consumer helmets and when one finally appeared it was made out of compressed cork! I motorcycled for 23 years without a helmet until they were finally made compulsory in 1973, but again I never knocked my head once.

This cycling and motorcycling record reveals something that doesn't get considered often enough, how much we are able to protect ourselves without such aids.

Like everybody in those helmetless days we knew only too well how vulnerable we were so rode accordingly, avoiding having the accidents in the first place. Something certainly not true of so many of today's helmeted cyclist who I see riding very stupidly at times and asking for trouble.
.

 

[montwo]

Doesn't always follow though.

It doesn't. And sarcasm doesn't always come across in text.
I'm 54 - the only time I've used a helmet on a bicycle is when I've used a skilift first.

 

[flecc]

It doesn't. And sarcasm doesn't always come across in text.
I'm 54 - the only time I've used a helmet on a bicycle is when I've used a skilift first.

Apologies, I did wonder if sarcasm was intended but was unsure!
.

 

[montwo]

Apologies, I did wonder if sarcasm was intended but was unsure!
.

I obviously wasn't clear enough.

 

[flecc]

I obviously wasn't clear enough.

Or I'm getting slower on the uptake, I am 85 !
.

 

[richtea99]

I read this - very interesting about cyclists - I'm amazed so many kill themselves ( I don't know how?)

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/cars/news/the-road-users-statistically-most-likely-to-cause-casualties-whether-you-re-a-driver-cyclist-or-pedestrian-find-out-who-poses-you-the-greatest-threat/ar-BB1dpsVw?ocid=msedgdhp#image=6

There were 100 cyclists deaths in 2019 (RAS40004 link):

Reported road collisions, vehicles and casualties tables for Great Britain

Detailed statistics about reported personal injury road collisions for Great Britain, vehicles and casualties involved.

www.gov.uk

Of the 100, 14 died without any other vehicle being involved (cell B16 in the spreadie).

Not many compared to your average Covid day.
And also fewer than those folks dying from being unfit too.

 

[PP100]

I read this - very interesting about cyclists - I'm amazed so many kill themselves ( I don't know how?)

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/cars/news/the-road-users-statistically-most-likely-to-cause-casualties-whether-you-re-a-driver-cyclist-or-pedestrian-find-out-who-poses-you-the-greatest-threat/ar-BB1dpsVw?ocid=msedgdhp#image=6

That's deaths, I wonder what the relative risks of serious (eg life changing) injuries are for each mode and are they similar?

 

[richtea99]

Follow my link

Cell I17:
- 2672 cyclists seriously injured by a car
Cell B17:
- 243 cyclists seriously injured on their own
etc...