Road safety
Cycling
When cycling it is good to:
- wear a cycle helmet;
- use lights at all times;
- wear something fluorescent and reflective to improve visibility – see and be seen;
- never take lifts on the back of a friend’s bike;
- never listen to music while cycling;
- obey all traffic signs and traffic light signals.
A helmet has a hard, plastic shell on the outside and foam on the inside.
If you hit your head, the foam in your helmet increases the time taken for the head's speed to reach zero, which reduces the forces applied to the skull and neck.
This results in less harm being done and less damage to the head and neck.
The smooth, plastic outer shell allows your head to safely skid across the ground without jerking your neck.
Essentially, if you do hit your head, your helmet will take the brunt of the impact, reducing the forces which lead to injury.
Speed and road safety
Speed is a major factor in most road accidents.
As drivers move faster, their stopping distance increases, and collisions cause more severe injuries.
There are several road safety measures designed to reduce speed, particularly in built up areas.
These include:
- Setting speed limits and then enforcing them with fines and penalties – a cheap, quick way of reducing road traffic injuries. Studies suggest that a 1 mph decrease in travelling speed would lead to a 2–3% reduction in road crashes. However, speed limits have only a short-lived effect on reducing speed unless they are backed up with fines and visible speed cameras.
- Speed cameras - these are cheap, easy to instal and a very cost-effective means of reducing road crashes. In some regions and countries, speed limits vary according to weather, traffic conditions, and time of day, e.g., the Westlink, Belfast.
- Speed bumps - vehicles’ front wheels pass over the bump entirely before the rear wheels pass over - causing the driver to experience two bumps. This requires drivers to slow to pass over them safely and comfortably.
Advantages of speed bumps
- quick and easy to instal;
- low cost;
- they work – studies have shown 40% reduction in speed for most vehicles;
- their impact does not wear off over time – drivers get used to other measures like “Slow” signs and they become less effective.
Disadvantages of Speed bumps
- they can cause damage to vehicles;
- they can be noisy.
Other measures to keep speed down include:
- road narrowing – vehicles slow down as they pass through a narrow section of road;
- rumble strips - the driver experiences a number of rapid bumps and surface noise, causing them to slow down;
- roundabouts – drivers slow down as they approach roundabouts which can be mini roundabouts or larger ones;
- speed warning signs and flashing lights – e.g., “20 is plenty” signs in estates and near schools – however drivers quickly get used to these signs and they become less effective.
