For some years now road safety experts have been observing a phenomenon whereby cities that have lots of bikes have better safety.
Not just for bikes, but for all road users.
This is somewhat baffling for many people who tell us bike riding is dangerous and makes roads more hazardous.
But the evidence keeps stacking up with a new study out showing that it makes a significant difference if there are bikes on the street, not just a small difference.
For example, between 2015 and 2019, overall traffic fatality rates per 100,000 residents in the US cities of Boulder, Corvallis, and Davis, — all with high bicycling rates — were 2.1, 2.8, and 1.4, respectively, versus a national average of 11.3 for all U.S. cities over the same period.
Researchers at the Universities of New Mexico and Colorado studied seven small to mid-sized US cities with high bicycling rates and paired them with seven similar cities that did not have such high rates to discover what might be behind the phenomenon.
There were 719 total fatal collisions, 192 fatal pedestrian collisions, and 22 fatal bicycle collisions in the study cities between 2010 and 2019. Paired comparison cities had 61.4% more total traffic fatalities and 40% more pedestrian fatalities than the cities with high bicycling rates
"Findings suggest that high-bicycling small and mid-size cities are safer than their peers in terms of total and pedestrian fatality rates,” the paper says.
“While we would assume that they would also be safer for bicyclists, sample sizes were too small and exposure data was lacking, precluding a definitive conclusion on bicyclist safety.”
The bike-strong cities had more pedestrians, lower levels of driving, high density built environment and street networks, shorter trips, and lower speeds.
"If cities wish to improve their traffic safety outcomes, they should first and foremost plan and design for the convenience and safety of those not using a personal automobile,” the researchers conclude.
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