NTL Record

Title Bicycle Use and Safety in Paris, Boston, and Amsterdam
Record ID 34309
Personal Name
Creator
Osberg, J. Scott; Stiles, Sarah C.
Source Transportation Quarterly, Fall, Vol. 52, No. 4, pp. 61-76; An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 4th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Control in Amsterdam, The Netherlands,. May 18, 1998; 31p. in various pagings
Corporate Creator New England Medical Center, Boston; Tufts University
Publisher New England Medical Center, Boston; Tufts University
Publication Date 19980000
Language English
Abstract This article examines bicycle use and safety behavior in Paris, Boston, and Amsterdam. Population-adjusted bicycle and passenger car death rates in France, the United States, and The Netherlands provide context for understanding bicycle use and safety behavior. Observation data on helmet use and use of lights at night are also presented. Boston has the fewest bicycles per hour at 55, Paris is next at 74, compared to 242 cyclists per hour in Amsterdam. Thirty-two percent of Boston cyclists wore helmets versus only 2.4% of Paris cyclists and only 0.1% of Amsterdam cyclists. In contrast, Paris cyclists were far more likely to use lights at night (45.2%), than Boston cyclists (15.6%) or Amsterdam cyclists (7.6%). With bicycle and car deaths as the numerators, and the French, U.S., and Dutch populations as the denominators, the Netherlands appears to have a dramatically lower death rate for people in passenger cars and for the combined group of cyclists and passenger car occupants. Transportation safety policies in the Netherlands appear to be working better than policies in the U.S. or France. Politicians, transportation planners, and safety experts can learn a lot from the Dutch about how to promote cycling and build a safe bicycle friendly environment.
Rosap ID dot:6031
Rosap URL https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/6031
TRT Terms Bicycle crashes; Bicycle travel; Bicycle commuting; Bicycle helmets; Cyclists; Bikeways; Bicycle lanes; Fatalities; Safety programs
Classification NTL - PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLES - Bicycles;
NTL - SAFETY AND SECURITY - SAFETY AND SECURITY;
NTL - SAFETY AND SECURITY - Accidents
Geographical
Coverage
Amsterdam (Netherlands); Paris (France); Boston (Massachusetts)
OCLC 40536210
Resource type Journal Article
URL https://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/34000/34300/34309/bikeuse_PBA.pdf
Format PDF
Database NTL Digital Repository