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What are the death rates for bicyclists vs small cars like this? I recently considered a motorcycle and the death rates were too appalling for me to go through

What are the death rates for bicyclists vs small cars like this? I recently considered a motorcycle and the death rates were too appalling for me to go through with it. Having a metal cage around you and windows is too vital for me. Edit: I found this. >The motorcycle fatality rate is over 17 times greater, and bicycle fatality rates are nearly 10 times greater than that for automobiles.

tobz1000 4y ago
layer8 4y ago
The question is how often bikes get into an accident vs. cars, relative to the number of comparable trips made, which is difficult to measure. The above statistics probably only tell you that if you get into an accident that happens to get reported, what is your relative survival rate then. It’s not surprising that bike riders have a lower survival rate when a car is involved. That doesn’t mean that bike riders in general have a lower life expectancy than car drivers.
- masklinn 4y ago
  An other question is, what does that become when you actually invest in proper bike and pedestrian infrastructure?
- cycomanic 4y ago
  There are actually studies (e.g. mentioned here https://www.cyclingweekly.com/fitness/cyclists-live-longer-asked-google-weve-got-answer-389628 https://www.cyclingweekly.com/fitness/cyclists-live-longer-a...) which show that people who commute by bike live the longest.
- spacedcowboy 4y ago
  It took being hit by a car three times (two minor collisions, the last one hospitalized me) for me to give up on the e-bike idea. Car drivers (at least in the Bay Area) are not ready for bikes going at speed, IMHO, they just don’t look, or at least, they don’t see. This thing might work out better than the bike because it’s a lot more visible, but I actually doubt there’d be much take-up. As someone else said, a second-hand leaf or similar would probably be better.
bambax 4y ago
I've been driving a motorcycle for over 30 years; I still own one although I never use it anymore. I may die today on my bicycle but one thing is certain: I'm too old to die young.
missedthecue 4y ago
Almost 100% of fatal bicycle accidents involve a vehicle. In urban areas where cars are banned or unable to navigate, the cycling death rate is basically zero. It's sort of like a market failure. It's in everyone's best interest to ride bicycles, but since we can't individually control what everyone else does, it's in our best interest to ride automobiles -- thus continuing the safety issue.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
asdff 4y ago
I think with the bike fatality rate especially thats pretty skewed by the fact that no one has any education on how to ride a bike safely on the road at all. At least with motorcycles you need to take a class to prove roadworthiness. Some people riding bikes are also perhaps drunk or high, the same is true for cars of course, but consider how often you see clearly not sober/mentally unwell people riding bikes in big cities these days and how often they might end up in dangerous situations. That being said if you bike safely by taking the lane for example, and you avoid a lot of potential accidents on a bike: https://i.redd.it/x8qqewx3m7l91.png https://i.redd.it/x8qqewx3m7l91.png

tobz1000 4y ago

layer8 4y ago

The question is how often bikes get into an accident vs. cars, relative to the number of comparable trips made, which is difficult to measure. The above statistics probably only tell you that if you get into an accident that happens to get reported, what is your relative survival rate then. It’s not surprising that bike riders have a lower survival rate when a car is involved. That doesn’t mean that bike riders in general have a lower life expectancy than car drivers.

masklinn 4y ago
An other question is, what does that become when you actually invest in proper bike and pedestrian infrastructure?
cycomanic 4y ago
There are actually studies (e.g. mentioned here https://www.cyclingweekly.com/fitness/cyclists-live-longer-asked-google-weve-got-answer-389628 https://www.cyclingweekly.com/fitness/cyclists-live-longer-a...) which show that people who commute by bike live the longest.
spacedcowboy 4y ago
It took being hit by a car three times (two minor collisions, the last one hospitalized me) for me to give up on the e-bike idea. Car drivers (at least in the Bay Area) are not ready for bikes going at speed, IMHO, they just don’t look, or at least, they don’t see. This thing might work out better than the bike because it’s a lot more visible, but I actually doubt there’d be much take-up. As someone else said, a second-hand leaf or similar would probably be better.

bambax 4y ago

I've been driving a motorcycle for over 30 years; I still own one although I never use it anymore. I may die today on my bicycle but one thing is certain: I'm too old to die young.

missedthecue 4y ago

Almost 100% of fatal bicycle accidents involve a vehicle. In urban areas where cars are banned or unable to navigate, the cycling death rate is basically zero. It's sort of like a market failure. It's in everyone's best interest to ride bicycles, but since we can't individually control what everyone else does, it's in our best interest to ride automobiles -- thus continuing the safety issue.

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

asdff 4y ago

I think with the bike fatality rate especially thats pretty skewed by the fact that no one has any education on how to ride a bike safely on the road at all. At least with motorcycles you need to take a class to prove roadworthiness. Some people riding bikes are also perhaps drunk or high, the same is true for cars of course, but consider how often you see clearly not sober/mentally unwell people riding bikes in big cities these days and how often they might end up in dangerous situations. That being said if you bike safely by taking the lane for example, and you avoid a lot of potential accidents on a bike: https://i.redd.it/x8qqewx3m7l91.png https://i.redd.it/x8qqewx3m7l91.png