MontyVeda
a short-tempered ill-controlled small-minded troll
- Location
- Lancaster... the little city.
my brother's like that with his kids... and as a result they seldom go out on their bikes, which is a shame.
Evaluation of New Zealand’s bicycle helmet law
- Thread starter classic33
- Start date
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Good point, maybe those taking it up are beyond the Xbox age.
My kids rode with a helmet on from an early age, they still wear helmets. They are now 41, 36 and 25, so it did not stop them.
mickle
innit
- Location
- 53.933606, -1.076131
None of my four kids own helmets.
Flick of the Elbow
less than
- Location
- Pentlands Water of Leith
There could be many reasons for this completely unrelated to the ill-timed helmet compulsion of 25 years ago.
mickle
innit
- Location
- 53.933606, -1.076131
Not one of my four kids currently owns a helmet.
Flick of the Elbow
less than
- Location
- Pentlands Water of Leith
I blame the parents.
Do they own bikes? Are you expecting them to buy their own helmets? Do you care if they wear helmets or not?
Some more information required.
If you been to NZ, you will notice that it is sparsely populated and distance to schools and conveniences are quite distant away from the urban centres. However there is a strong sports cycling culture but not the commute on bike culture like the European cities. The deep freezer is still the mainstay as well freshly gown veg, chicken and eggs in the back garden.
Wobblers
Euthermic
- Location
- Minkowski Space
Can any of these reasons explain the stepwise fall in numbers coincident with the time that compulsion was brought in?
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Distances are not conducive to cycling. We drove from Wellington to Napier and only passed through one major town. No way you could cycle that route. Get outside the towns and you are on major roads and the NZ drivers are mad! I cycled the Kapiti coast cycle path - 50 miles there and back - along quiet back roads and cycle paths. But that was it, no other cycle routes in that part of the country. No cycle lanes in major cities either. NZers seem to be more into off roading rather than road cycling and certainly not communting. I guess Christchurch may be a different, as it is flat, but I haven't been down there for a while. Wellington and Auckland would be too hilly to cycle.
Wobblers
Euthermic
- Location
- Minkowski Space
So what?
Unless this has changed substantially in the last 25 years it has little bearing on the fall in numbers cycling in NZ.
(And I think we need a kiwi to comment on NZ cycling culture... paging @User, User to the thread please)
Wobblers
Euthermic
- Location
- Minkowski Space
Except whole population studies do not show any difference between the casualty rates of those with helmets and those without. In other words, the best epidemiological evidence we have does not establish that helmet wearing brings any safety benefits.
OP
OP
classic33
Leg End Member
Choice of cycling without a helmet in New Zealand isn't there!
Wobblers
Euthermic
- Location
- Minkowski Space
I would hazard a guess that the researchers used other countries other than NZ. I also think it reasonable to expect the laws of physics to apply equally well there...
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