Oxford and Cambridge cycle survey reveals top tips for reducing risks

Oxford and Cambridge cycle survey reveals top tips for reducing risks
================================================== ===================

A new report has been published describing the training, skills and
experiences of 5,000 cyclists in Oxford and Cambridge.

The survey was commissioned by a group of organisations led by
Oxfordshire County Council and Cambridge City Council.

It revealed that around 40% of cyclists had avoided accidents - coming
off their bikes once in ten years or even less often, and the survey
went on to give some clues to why this is.

For instance, when asked for tips on cycling, the most common piece of
advice people gave for reducing risks was to be aware of everything,
to observe other road users and anticipate their movements.

The second most popular piece of advice was about positioning on the
road - to ride a metre or so out from the kerb or from parked cars so
as to avoid hazards and to deter drivers from overtaking too closely.

The most serious types of accidents involved a vehicle overtaking a
cyclist. Women seem to be more likely than men to have these types of
accident.

The survey also found that women were more likely to say they find it
hard to look back over their shoulders and to tell when it is safe to
pull in to traffic. More work needs to be done to understand why this
is the case.

The most common type of incident by far was slipping or skidding due
to a hazard such as a pothole, metal cover, ice, loose gravel, a
greasy road or a low kerb at a shallow angle.

Cllr David Robertson, the County Council's Cabinet Member for
Transport, said: "There is a lot to learn from this survey both for
the authorities and the individual cyclists.

"We plan to use these findings to improve conditions and training
advice particularly through links with our partners on the project."

The report is available to download from
www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cyclingsurvey


Notes:

1. The Oxford & Cambridge Cycling Survey, conducted by Dr Ian Walker
of Bath University on behalf of Oxfordshire County Council. Available
to download from http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cyclingsurvey.htm

2. Key findings of the survey we

o Close to 5,000 people returned a survey form. The peak age range of
respondents was 21-30.
o The most common reasons for bicycle trips were commuting and
shopping.
o The longest journey a person regularly made by bicycle was,
typically, 3.3 miles.
o The clear majority of bicycles were traditionally framed, with
derailleur gears, rim brakes, and battery lamps front and rear.
o Men were substantially more likely than women to carry out routine
maintenance on their bicycles.
o One-third of respondents had experienced an accident in the past
year, 72% of which resulted in no actual injury.
o 61% of seriously injurious accidents (and 93.8% of all accidents)
were not reported to authorities. Even for serious accidents caused by
a motorist, less than one-third were reported.
o Women have been found more likely than men to experience certain
types of serious accident; accordingly, they reported being
substantially less able to look back over their shoulders and to tell
when it is safe to pull into traffic.
Partner organisations
The Oxford and Cambridge Cycle Survey was led by Oxfordshire County
Council in partnership with Cambridge City Council, and the following:
" Oxford City Council
" Cambridgeshire County Council
" University of Oxford
" Cambridge University
" Oxford Brookes University
" John Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust
" The Oxford Bus Company
" BMW Plant Oxford
" Stagecoach Oxford
" Oxfam
" CTC - the national cyclists' organisation
" Oxford Primary Care Trust

Contact
Dr Ian Walker, Bath University on 07881 908508
Celia Jones, Oxfordshire County Council on 07775 638994
Clare Rankin, Cambridge City Council on 01223 457108

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at CHS, Puget Sound

Just zis Guy, you know? wrote:
The survey also found that women were more likely to say they find it
hard to look back over their shoulders and to tell when it is safe to
pull in to traffic. More work needs to be done to understand why this
is the case.

I suspect that the explanation is likely to involve bras.

--
Danny Colyer (the UK company has been laughed out of my reply address)
URL:http://www.speedy5.freeserve.co.uk/danny/
"He who dares not offend cannot be honest." - Thomas Paine

"Danny Colyer" wrote in message
...
Just zis Guy, you know? wrote:
The survey also found that women were more likely to say they find it
hard to look back over their shoulders and to tell when it is safe to
pull in to traffic. More work needs to be done to understand why this
is the case.

I suspect that the explanation is likely to involve bras.


My overshoulderboulderholder does not impede me looking over my shoulder...
honest - and I have big boulders...

Cheers, helen s ;-)




--
Danny Colyer (the UK company has been laughed out of my reply address)
URL:http://www.speedy5.freeserve.co.uk/danny/
"He who dares not offend cannot be honest." - Thomas Paine

"wafflycat" waffles*A*T*v21net*D*O*T*co*D*O*T*uktyped



"Danny Colyer" wrote in message
...
Just zis Guy, you know? wrote:
The survey also found that women were more likely to say they find it
hard to look back over their shoulders and to tell when it is safe to
pull in to traffic. More work needs to be done to understand why this
is the case.

I suspect that the explanation is likely to involve bras.


My overshoulderboulderholder does not impede me looking over my shoulder...
honest - and I have big boulders...

I don't have big boulders; I don't always wear a bra. I always found
turning backwards difficult.

Women have narrow shoulders and their arms are usually fairly
lightweight. Having a short upper body means we ride bikes with short
stems. I think the effect of all this is that it is difficult to turn
the head without causing some handlebar movement, the effect of which is
greater on the sort of set-up many women will choose. (This also make
riding with hands off the handlebars _much_ more difficult)

--
Helen D. Vecht:
Edgware.

Section 3.2.5 makes an interesting read; it was "an open question, each
respondent was asked about the best piece of advice they had ever been
given on cycling".

Of particular note to me was the differing % of men and women suggesting
that "advice on wearing helmets" was of most importance.

At Fri, 17 Jun 2005 22:17:58 +0100, message
was posted by Helen Deborah
Vecht , including some, all or none of the
following:

Women have narrow shoulders and their arms are usually fairly
lightweight. Having a short upper body means we ride bikes with short
stems. I think the effect of all this is that it is difficult to turn
the head without causing some handlebar movement

I thin k it's also true that women have longer legs in proportion to
their height than men do, but most bikes have a geometry designed for
men. That is going to make it more difficult to look back, because
the upper body is more stretched out so movement of the head and
shoulders will have more effect on handling.


Guy
--
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

"To every complex problem there is a solution which is
simple, neat and wrong" - HL Mencken

"Just zis Guy, you know?" typed


At Fri, 17 Jun 2005 22:17:58 +0100, message
was posted by Helen Deborah
Vecht , including some, all or none of the
following:

Women have narrow shoulders and their arms are usually fairly
lightweight. Having a short upper body means we ride bikes with short
stems. I think the effect of all this is that it is difficult to turn
the head without causing some handlebar movement

I thin k it's also true that women have longer legs in proportion to
their height than men do, but most bikes have a geometry designed for
men. That is going to make it more difficult to look back, because
the upper body is more stretched out so movement of the head and
shoulders will have more effect on handling.

Women can't win this way; short stem - small movements cause big
effects on steering
Long stem - body more stretched out so head movements cause steering
movements.

Short top tubes can cause toe/tyre conflict...

--
Helen D. Vecht:
Edgware.

Following on from Helen Deborah Vecht's message. . .
"wafflycat" waffles*A*T*v21net*D*O*T*co*D*O*T*uktyped
"Danny Colyer" wrote in message
...
Just zis Guy, you know? wrote:
The survey also found that women were more likely to say they find it
hard to look back over their shoulders and to tell when it is safe to
pull in to traffic. More work needs to be done to understand why this
is the case.

I suspect that the explanation is likely to involve bras.


My overshoulderboulderholder does not impede me looking over my shoulder...
honest - and I have big boulders...

I don't have big boulders; I don't always wear a bra. I always found
turning backwards difficult.

Women have narrow shoulders and their arms are usually fairly
lightweight. Having a short upper body means we ride bikes with short
stems. I think the effect of all this is that it is difficult to turn
the head without causing some handlebar movement, the effect of which is
greater on the sort of set-up many women will choose. (This also make
riding with hands off the handlebars _much_ more difficult)

My 2p.
I wonder if it is that women are keener to look behind (scared rabbit
mode) than men who may occasionally glance. Perhaps also men are less
likely to /percieve/ it as a problem and don't consider it worthy of
reporting - even if they 'know they ought' to look behind more often but
the hassle brings them into bad habits which they aren't keen to admit.

(As a result of reading this bit yesterday I decided to have a bit of a
practice: Result = Could do better, must try harder. )

Note the second bit of the report "... and to tell when it is safe to
pull in to traffic. " Somehow that doesn't come as a shock, but
interesting nevertheless.


--
PETER FOX Not the same since the glue company came unstuck

www.eminent.demon.co.uk - Lots for cyclists

On Sat, 18 Jun 2005 23:57:01 +0100, Helen Deborah Vecht
wrote:

Women can't win this way; short stem - small movements cause big
effects on steering
Long stem - body more stretched out so head movements cause steering
movements.

Short top tubes can cause toe/tyre conflict...


Is this why I see fewer women than men cycling?

Al C-F mtyped


On Sat, 18 Jun 2005 23:57:01 +0100, Helen Deborah Vecht
wrote:

Women can't win this way; short stem - small movements cause big
effects on steering
Long stem - body more stretched out so head movements cause steering
movements.

Short top tubes can cause toe/tyre conflict...


Is this why I see fewer women than men cycling?

No. The CTC doesn't appear to know why this is the case.

I suggest (in no particular order)

1) Fear of traffic.
2) 'Fashion' considerations[1]
3) Patronising attitudes by bike-shop staff
4) Sexual harassment on the roads
5) Fear of assault on 'facilities'
6) Cycle parking issues


[1] Clothing, hair-styles, sweat etc

Many women have smaller feet than I do (41.5 so do many men!) and
toe/tyre conflict may be less problematic for them.

--
Helen D. Vecht:
Edgware.