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I love riding my bike, but the stats are quite grim for road deaths AND injuries https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cyclist_deaths_in_U.S._by_year https:/

I love riding my bike, but the stats are quite grim for road deaths AND injuries https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cyclist_deaths_in_U.S._by_year https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cyclist_deaths_in_U.... 49,000 people in the US are injured on the road every year- You may say its a false equivalency, but there are 33,000 gun deaths (suicides/homicides) in the US every year

misja111 9y ago
But you are comparing injuries to deaths. There are 'only' around 750 deadly bike accidents per year. Compare this to motor vehicle deaths: there are 35,000 of those per year in the USA .. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_in_U.S._by_year https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_i...
- maxerickson 9y ago
  The more interesting stats for cycling would be deaths per mile for several different types of riding. A commuter can design a low risk route and manage their own behavior, both things that have an impact on safety.
  - blarghh 9y ago
    Yeah, how many delivery salmon are injured every year? Like, they're riding basically a motorcycle, usually without lights, against traffic.
- salesguy222 9y ago
  The reason I chose cycling injuries is because a cycling injury is usually quite serious and debilitating- aka, it might as well be a death, because you will not be able to live life quite the same after. Furthermore, 49,000 cycling injuries is very high when you consider that only a few percent of the US commute by bike (a few million people), but hundreds of millions of people drive by car!
  - pavel_lishin 9y ago
    > The reason I chose cycling injuries is because a cycling injury is usually quite serious and debilitating Is it? When I think of cycling injuries, I typically think of broken arms, wrists, etc. No fun at all, but unless it's a particularly bad break, it only means being pretty severely inconvenienced until you heal. (This is assuming you wear a helmet, of course - brain trauma is no fun no matter what the cause.)
    - salesguy222 9y ago
      I suppose it's possible that x% of the injuries are not a big deal, but even just broken bones open the door to chronic disease (arthritis, nerve impingement) and potential disability. Traveling by car can also put you at risk of permanent disability, but generally you are more protected- what would kill you on a bike would disable you in a car, and what would disable you on a bike would merely inconvenience you in a car I really love my bike, and my go kart, and motorcycle, and all of the lightweight forms of transportation I have that pose very little danger to me on a flat, clear road But I really think that even with most drivers being alert, the physics of sharing the road are very broken It's either ban cars, make bike only highways, or tell riders to ride at their own risk and pray for an insurance claim
DanBC 9y ago
You should be comparing all death, not just road death. Cyclists have an increased risk of dying in a road traffic accident, but decreased risk of dying from stroke, heart disease, cancer, etc etc.
- usrusr 9y ago
  Since "stroke, heart disease, cancer, etc" is almost equivalent with dying from old age, theoretically any risk of violent premature death would be "statistically healthy". Fortunately cycling is nowhere near dangerous enough to have a noticeable effect of that kind. Wingsuit BASE jumping, now that is a mode of transportation where I would be wary of any statistical health benefit.
  - hawkesnest 9y ago
    Only if you think that folks leaving this world after 45-54 years are doing so because of old age! http://www.worldlifeexpectancy.com/usa-cause-of-death-by-age-and-gender http://www.worldlifeexpectancy.com/usa-cause-of-death-by-age...
leecarraher 9y ago
i was thinking the same thing, what's the overall benefit. lower heart disease and cancer risk by some amount in your future, versus an increase in road accident risk today. The solution is more bike lanes of course. And by bike lanes, i mean clear lanes, not garbage lane for shit from the road to be pushed into.
- salesguy222 9y ago
  Absolutely agree with you. Unfortunately in the US, auto makers and the peripheral industries have the politicians and most of the public opinion in a death grip It isn't worth holding our breath for even a token bike highway project LOL :(
  - maxerickson 9y ago
    US highways are not particularly scenic, but they are generally quite bike friendly (not limited access roads, just highways), with construction standards calling for full width shoulders. It's local roads where there isn't much room. There's also a lot of recreational paths that end up making areas quite a lot more bike accessible. And I mean rail trails extending for tens of miles along transport corridors, not just trails to nowhere in parks.
    - salesguy222 9y ago
      US bikes aren't allowed on interstates, but they are allowed on major roads which do have nice shoulders Unfortunately, even with wide shoulders and good visibility, "accidents" still happen thanks to unalert/hostile drivers (check out the recent terrible death of Mike Hall in Aussieland) Rail trails are pretty cool to be honest, and there is a good and much needed network here. Of course, it will never be as extensive or well maintained as auto roads are here in the US for political reasons
      - maxerickson 9y ago
        US bikes aren't allowed on interstates, but they are allowed on major roads which do have nice shoulders Yes, that's why I said "(not limited access roads, just highways)", because of the ambiguity in the word "highway". A couple of states do allow bike access on a large portion of limited access highways, mostly in the west. We don't have bike trails because they are expensive and little used (because of population density more than anything). That's a political reason, it isn't exactly a surprising or awful reason.

misja111 9y ago

But you are comparing injuries to deaths. There are 'only' around 750 deadly bike accidents per year. Compare this to motor vehicle deaths: there are 35,000 of those per year in the USA .. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_in_U.S._by_year https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_i...

maxerickson 9y ago
The more interesting stats for cycling would be deaths per mile for several different types of riding. A commuter can design a low risk route and manage their own behavior, both things that have an impact on safety.
- blarghh 9y ago
  Yeah, how many delivery salmon are injured every year? Like, they're riding basically a motorcycle, usually without lights, against traffic.
salesguy222 9y ago
The reason I chose cycling injuries is because a cycling injury is usually quite serious and debilitating- aka, it might as well be a death, because you will not be able to live life quite the same after. Furthermore, 49,000 cycling injuries is very high when you consider that only a few percent of the US commute by bike (a few million people), but hundreds of millions of people drive by car!
- pavel_lishin 9y ago
  > The reason I chose cycling injuries is because a cycling injury is usually quite serious and debilitating Is it? When I think of cycling injuries, I typically think of broken arms, wrists, etc. No fun at all, but unless it's a particularly bad break, it only means being pretty severely inconvenienced until you heal. (This is assuming you wear a helmet, of course - brain trauma is no fun no matter what the cause.)
  - salesguy222 9y ago
    I suppose it's possible that x% of the injuries are not a big deal, but even just broken bones open the door to chronic disease (arthritis, nerve impingement) and potential disability. Traveling by car can also put you at risk of permanent disability, but generally you are more protected- what would kill you on a bike would disable you in a car, and what would disable you on a bike would merely inconvenience you in a car I really love my bike, and my go kart, and motorcycle, and all of the lightweight forms of transportation I have that pose very little danger to me on a flat, clear road But I really think that even with most drivers being alert, the physics of sharing the road are very broken It's either ban cars, make bike only highways, or tell riders to ride at their own risk and pray for an insurance claim

DanBC 9y ago

You should be comparing all death, not just road death. Cyclists have an increased risk of dying in a road traffic accident, but decreased risk of dying from stroke, heart disease, cancer, etc etc.

usrusr 9y ago
Since "stroke, heart disease, cancer, etc" is almost equivalent with dying from old age, theoretically any risk of violent premature death would be "statistically healthy". Fortunately cycling is nowhere near dangerous enough to have a noticeable effect of that kind. Wingsuit BASE jumping, now that is a mode of transportation where I would be wary of any statistical health benefit.
- hawkesnest 9y ago
  Only if you think that folks leaving this world after 45-54 years are doing so because of old age! http://www.worldlifeexpectancy.com/usa-cause-of-death-by-age-and-gender http://www.worldlifeexpectancy.com/usa-cause-of-death-by-age...

leecarraher 9y ago

i was thinking the same thing, what's the overall benefit. lower heart disease and cancer risk by some amount in your future, versus an increase in road accident risk today. The solution is more bike lanes of course. And by bike lanes, i mean clear lanes, not garbage lane for shit from the road to be pushed into.

salesguy222 9y ago
Absolutely agree with you. Unfortunately in the US, auto makers and the peripheral industries have the politicians and most of the public opinion in a death grip It isn't worth holding our breath for even a token bike highway project LOL :(
- maxerickson 9y ago
  US highways are not particularly scenic, but they are generally quite bike friendly (not limited access roads, just highways), with construction standards calling for full width shoulders. It's local roads where there isn't much room. There's also a lot of recreational paths that end up making areas quite a lot more bike accessible. And I mean rail trails extending for tens of miles along transport corridors, not just trails to nowhere in parks.
  - salesguy222 9y ago
    US bikes aren't allowed on interstates, but they are allowed on major roads which do have nice shoulders Unfortunately, even with wide shoulders and good visibility, "accidents" still happen thanks to unalert/hostile drivers (check out the recent terrible death of Mike Hall in Aussieland) Rail trails are pretty cool to be honest, and there is a good and much needed network here. Of course, it will never be as extensive or well maintained as auto roads are here in the US for political reasons
    - maxerickson 9y ago
      US bikes aren't allowed on interstates, but they are allowed on major roads which do have nice shoulders Yes, that's why I said "(not limited access roads, just highways)", because of the ambiguity in the word "highway". A couple of states do allow bike access on a large portion of limited access highways, mostly in the west. We don't have bike trails because they are expensive and little used (because of population density more than anything). That's a political reason, it isn't exactly a surprising or awful reason.