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news
White cycle helmetStudy (still) indicates that drivers give cyclists wearing helmets less room when overtaking
It’s everyone’s favourite brand of news – academic rebuttal news. But don’t worry, it’s about cycle helmets so one way or another there’s a good chance you’ll find something to get worked up about.
Back in 2006, Dr Ian Walker of the University of Bath conducted an experiment you may be aware of within the context of the eternal helmet debate.
Cycling with and without a helmet and with and without a wig, he discovered that cyclists are afforded more space by passing drivers if they are (or at least appear to be) female or if they’re not wearing a helmet.
(In a separate study, conducted in 2013, Walker found that some drivers will pass too closely no matter that you wear.)
Bicycling.com reports that the helmet and wig study (not its official name) was questioned by researchers from the University of New South Wales in 2013.
They analysed the same data – 2,355 observations over 200 miles of riding – and concluded that “bicycle helmet wearing is not associated with close motor vehicle passing.”
They argued that that the average passing distances were greater than one metre – a distance that in some places would not be considered a “close pass.”
Walker and Dorothy Robinson have now responded to the response via a recently published paper in Accident Analysis & Prevention.
Referring to the University of New South Wales analysis, they write: “Their conclusion was based on omitting information about variability in driver behaviour and instead dividing overtakes into two binary categories of ‘close’ and ‘not close’; we demonstrate that they did not justify or address the implications of this choice, did not have sufficient statistical power for their approach, and moreover show that slightly adjusting their definition of ‘close’ would reverse their conclusions.”
They also present a new analysis of the original dataset, measuring directly the extent to which drivers changed their behaviour in response to helmet wearing. “This analysis confirms that drivers did, overall, get closer when the rider wore a helmet.”
Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.
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32 comments
Quote from the NSW people - "They argued that that the average passing distances were greater than one metre – a distance that in some places would not be considered a “close pass.”
I was riding with an Australian chap this weekend. I got shouty with several vehicles that I thought close passed us, and my friend said in Australia, the minimum was a metre at something like 40 kmh and increased for a faster speed. Why don't the researchers at NSW think 1m is not a close pass? Most of us can reach a metre with our arms, how is that NOT too close?
It is NOT!
0b09e3473e0d88b5c50f164649cb3f1e.jpg
They look suspicously like nazi squirrels to me.....
There's no evidence to suggest that the Nazis formed an alliance with the squirrels.
Reinhold Löw playing with squirrel nazi totenkopf officer wehrmacht waffen-ss animal human feeding1.jpg
Someone hasn't typed "Attack of the Killer Mutant Nazi Ninja Squirrel from Outer Space" into Google recently.
Explain that squirrel apologist.
Well, that doesn't necessarily involve Nazis - modern Berlin is quite a liberal place (with pretty good cycle infrastructure to boot).
If it would please the court, I would like to submit the tale of Tommy Tucker: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Tucker_(squirrel)
He appeared on the radio alongside President Franklin Roosevelt to promote the sale of war bonds.
red cross.jpg
They are feeding the squirrel, so I am pretty sure it was just following hor d'oeuvres.
Ignore Hawkinspeter. He contradicts everything we say...
(or squirrels it away to use later on against us)
Yes it is
No it isn't!
Is it a coincidence that the contrary research was carried out by scientists in New South Wales? We know all about Australia and helmets.
It did indeed strike me also. Generally, you'll find that research which shows helmets to be effective is from Australia or one or two other sources e.g. Thompson, Rivara and Thompson or their colleagues in Seattle.
When I was a lad a arguement was a argument. We had to get up in morning at ten o'clock at night, half a hour before we went to bed and then get up again and have a swift bicker before we had nothing for breakfast and then we had to go to work and pay the boss for the shear pleasure of working for nothing - nothing - and then if we hadn't at least had a punch up or a divergence of opposing views before we got home then our dad and our mother would tan our arses until we were black and blue and then kill us and dance on our graves.... and you try telling the young people today that and they won't believe you.
I’ll get the popcorn. Salted or Caramel?
B67AA0B0-C0C8-4B65-AF19-0B8954932FCC.gif
Always buttered. What kind of idiot wants salted or caramel? FFS. You popcorn nazis have got to stop this anti butter bullshit.
OK, I’ll bring the buttered. But I don’t want any greasy fingerprints everywhere.
It's (almost) Christmas, let's not argue.
I disagree. We must have an arguement. What shall we argue about?
Let's argue about how to spell argument.
No it isn't.
Oooooohhh, yes it is!!
"there’s a good chance you’ll find something to get worked up about."
Oooooh, snap. It may currently be summer in Australia, but those New South Wales researchers don't need to go outside, because they just got burned.
Is this the right room for an argument?
Let's get to it!
Would that be the five minute argument or the full half hour?
I've told you once.
No you haven't!
Yes I have
I've told you once.
Edit: damn, someone else has beaten me to it.
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