0 Cyclists Fatalities midway through this year

Slydice

I was reading the thread asking if there is a garda bikes auction and ended up on garda.ie where I saw these stats:
http://www.garda.ie/Controller.aspx?Page=1368&Lang=1

Traffic Fatalities up to 9am on 22nd June 2010
Pedestrians: 23
Drivers: 48
Passengers: 19
Motorcyclists: 7
Pillion Passengers/Other: 1
Pedal Cyclists: 0
Total Year to Date: 98

Pedal Cyclists are the only category not to have had a fatality.

I thought that was interesting.

ednwireland

considering there must be a rise in novice cyclists with the bike to work scheme, thats suprising (but welcome)

Captain Havoc

Slydice wrote: »

I was reading the thread asking if there is a garda bikes auction and ended up on garda.ie where I saw these stats:
http://www.garda.ie/Controller.aspx?Page=1368&Lang=1


Pedal Cyclists are the only category not to have had a fatality.

I thought that was interesting.

It was on crimecall last night (first time I've watched it in 10 years). It's a really good stastic as the comparison for 2009 (not sure if it was this time last year or for 12 months) was 4. Anyone who watched crimecall last night (if any are under 75) might look at those stats and realise cycling is not only cheap, quick, environmentally friendly and healthy but is also very safe. The gard did say that it was good to see and mentioned that there had been a significant rise in the number of people using bikes, but I don't know if he meant that 0 out of a lot more cyclists is good or the fact there's more of us has helped, which I'm sure it has as drivers are more aware of us and we take up a good chunk of the road now, so we're hard to miss. I have to say, when I was up in Dublin last Thursday, I saw a hell of a lot of cyclists, which I thought was very positive.

kennyb3

This is definitely a tempting faith thread, the minute we start re-joycing someone will do something really stupid. it is really glad to hear though.

Diairist

administator - do your duty! ban these people immediatedly....

(also - my bike hasn't been stolen. that's almost a year I think.)

(I'm about to be banned too, aren't I?)

gbee

This came up a little while back in a slightly different form.

I posted that in my area most of the well known cyclist terrorist were killed in action~ you only die once.

I also see less maniac cyclists coming up in the younger generation and those guys in the racing tights seems to be more aware of traffic too and I've also said I see more of them actually obeying the rules of the road themselves too.

All too frequently the story was the cyclist insisting and demanding his piece of road and frustrated motorists trying to overtake.

Now I hope we don't release a load of moppets onto the road with this comment, but near me, the cyclists are courteous, mostly using the cycle lanes provided and queue in traffic where cycle lanes don't exist.

I'm speaking as a driver; it's far easier to avoid a cyclist when he or she gives you the correct signals, checks and moves off with a wave from me, it's great ~ hope it lasts.

tunney

Slydice wrote: »

I was reading the thread asking if there is a garda bikes auction and ended up on garda.ie where I saw these stats:
http://www.garda.ie/Controller.aspx?Page=1368&Lang=1


Pedal Cyclists are the only category not to have had a fatality.

I thought that was interesting.

Great, I'm due an accident.

Cabaal

Fantastic news

RobFowl

Good link and great news.
lets hope it stays that way

tomasrojo

I'd say it's there's a complex of factors at work here, but the recession may have something to do with it. The start of the decline in general traffic fatalities seems to be 2007, which was the start of the recession in earnest. The recession may also be behind the rise in cyclist numbers, though cycling was also long overdue a revival in its fashionability.

It's good news, whatever the cause. As said above, cycling numbers are well up, there are a lot of novice users around, and rather capricious Dublin Bike users too, so one might have feared a rise in cycling fatalities, but so far so good (touch wood).

Edit: I see that Ireland was recognised for its good work in reducing traffic fatalities the other day. It would be strange if Ireland were effectively getting an award for engineering a crippling recession!
http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/0622/roads.html

Also (from that link) it looks as if the privately run speed cameras will be hitting the streets later this year. I think the legislation to allow private companies to run the speed cameras is at its final draft now.

neris

good to hear that but there are still idiots driving around who dont take notice of cyclists especially oaps likee the idiot who nearly tookme out of it on saturday morning. 40km cycle and 250 meters from home old dope pulls out of a side road without looking nearly went into the back passanger window of his car

folan

gbee wrote: »

This came up a little while back in a slightly different form.

I posted that in my area most of the well known cyclist terrorist were killed in action~ you only die once.

I also see less maniac cyclists coming up in the younger generation and those guys in the racing tights seems to be more aware of traffic too and I've also said I see more of them actually obeying the rules of the road themselves too.

All too frequently the story was the cyclist insisting and demanding his piece of road and frustrated motorists trying to overtake.

Now I hope we don't release a load of moppets onto the road with this comment, but near me, the cyclists are courteous, mostly using the cycle lanes provided and queue in traffic where cycle lanes don't exist.

I'm speaking as a driver; it's far easier to avoid a cyclist when he or she gives you the correct signals, checks and moves off with a wave from me, it's great ~ hope it lasts.

Same as myself. Also, since i started cycling myself, im more aware to what all the hand gestures mean and am watching for them too!

also, I have said "hole" in warning to myself in the car.

unionman

Re: thread title, let's hope it stays that way for a long, long time.

victorcarrera

The recent opening of the new motorways has contributed to the improved stats for cyclists also by removing many of the heavy/high speed and high risk vehicles and drivers from the national primaries.
Of course this may just result in redistributing the death rate among the motorway users.

Captain Havoc

victorcarrera wrote: »

The recent opening of the new motorways has contributed to the improved stats for cyclists also by removing many of the heavy/high speed and high risk vehicles and drivers from the national primaries.
Of course this may just result in redistributing the death rate among the motorway users.

This is so true, if anyone knows the old main Waterford - Kilkenny road, it was a horrble road to cycle on and it's only a minor miracle there wasn't fatalities more often. It was like a country lane with lorrys and heavy traffic on it. Since the new stretch of motorway has opened from Danesfort to Waterford, when you cycle it in the evening about 2 cars will pass ya, it's a fantastic road to cycle now and I don't feel like I'm taking my life into my hands. It'll be a great job once the Carlow to Danesfort section opens as the old Kilkenny to Carlow road will be dead and it's a good wide road and I'm absolutely convinced that with a quiet and hard-shouldered section of road like that, it will continue to encourage people to take up cycling.

I think this is a testament to how visible the dublinbikes scheme has made cycling within the city, and further afield due to word of mouth etc.. In Dublin, credit must also be given to the 5axel ban. I notice that drivers are generally more aware of cyclists in the day to day scheme of things, more so than 2/3 years ago anyway.

Its a great statistic if we can keep it that way.

delta_bravo

Deleted User wrote: »

I think this is a testament to how visible the dublinbikes scheme has made cycling within the city, and further afield due to word of mouth etc.. In Dublin, credit must also be given to the 5axel ban. I notice that drivers are generally more aware of cyclists in the day to day scheme of things, more so than 2/3 years ago anyway.

Its a great statistic if we can keep it that way.

I think you're a bit Dublin-centric in your analysis there. Most cycling fatalities occur outside the capital. The 5 axle ban has helped but lately I have seen the odd few on the quays. The biggest fall in cycling fatalities occured last year

2002: 18
2003: 11
2004: 11
2005: 10
2006: 13
2007: 17
2008: 15
2009: 4
2009

Agreed about being very Dublin Centric, but I would assume (and am open to correction) that most cycling would take place in the capital?

I am very happy that cycling is becoming such a safe mode of transport as well as being reliable and quick!

Cabaal

Could it also be the fact that the construction side of things has bombed out starting in 2007, this in turn would lead to less construction traffic on the roads so:
- Less large trucks
- Less vans

Both of which have nice big large blind spots and are often involved in accidents with cyclists due to this (especially trucks).

Also what about less SUV's on the road...more to the point less SUV's on the road that people can't drive, the boom meant many people had them but couldn't drive them properly as the were larger then the car they were used to,

Could be two factors perhaps?

Vélo

Just the other day some elderly relation of mine, who I never met, was hit by a cyclist in the UK. She was walking along the footpath when the accident happened. She was over visiting someone. I don't have much more info on it.

I know it didn't happen in Ireland but it did happen to an Irish person.

seamus

Cabaal wrote: »

Could be two factors perhaps?

Possibly. You could also cite the number of new roads which have opened which don't or which rarely carry cyclists - M and N roads primarily. These remove large vehicles from regional roads and single-lane N roads, therefore creating less danger for cyclists.

Cabaal

seamus wrote: »

Possibly. You could also cite the number of new roads which have opened which don't or which rarely carry cyclists - M and N roads primarily. These remove large vehicles from regional roads and single-lane N roads, therefore creating less danger for cyclists.

Very true, guess really there is no single factor has to be a combination of many I'd imagine,

DualFrontDiscs

I saw a large lorry this afternoon with a warning sticker on it's rear left bumper, basically a bike in a red circle with a cross through it, saying something along the lines of don't pass on inside, may be turning left.

There was possibly something there about a blind spot too. Not sure.

I wouldn't have undertaken anyway, but it might give some a pause for thought.

I thought it was a good idea.

DFD.

tomasrojo

I remember some trucks used to have two signs on the back, one either side. The right one said "Passing Side"; the left said "Suicide".

monument

Hopefully it remains at zero.

The RSA published "Pedal Cyclists Road Casualties 1998 - 2008" in March.

delta_bravo wrote: »

I think you're a bit Dublin-centric in your analysis there. Most cycling fatalities occur outside the capital. The 5 axle ban has helped but lately I have seen the odd few on the quays. The biggest fall in cycling fatalities occured last year

2002: 18
2003: 11
2004: 11
2005: 10
2006: 13
2007: 17
2008: 15
2009: 4

Where is this data from?

The RSA says here that 7 cyclists died in 2009.

Also in the above document mention document on cyclists and road casualties, it lists the following as the cyclists road deaths from 1998-2008:

Edit: I'll bold the years that do not correspond.

1998 - 21
1999 - 14
2000 - 10
2001 - 12
2002 - 18
2003 - 11
2004 - 11
2005 - 10
2006 - 9
2007 - 15
2008 - 13
[2009 - 7]

Beasty

victorcarrera wrote: »

The recent opening of the new motorways has contributed to the improved stats for cyclists also by removing many of the heavy/high speed and high risk vehicles and drivers from the national primaries.
Of course this may just result in redistributing the death rate among the motorway users.

Motorways are much safer than normal roads, and tend to have much lower fatality rates

Interestingly there has been a general downard trend in road deaths across the board - there were 397 in 2005 and it was down to 242 last year. This year is looking even more encouraging with only 98 and we are nearly half way through the year.

I am sure there are a number of factors, and I suspect the ones already mentioned have something to do with it - a recession not only reduces road use overall, but probably means some drivers are a little less impatient when they are on the road

delta_bravo

monument wrote: »

Hopefully it remains at zero.

The RSA published "Pedal Cyclists Road Casualties 1998 - 2008" in March.



Where is this data from?

Its taken from this. I believe it was compiled by a member on this forum. Perhaps it is missing some info

limklad

The RSA and the Gardai figures do not correlate in any pattern then the method of collection by both will need to be reverified by an independent audit.

I am assuming the RSA get their figures from the Gardai then the Gardai data collection method need an over haul and independently verified.

Slydice

Damn!
http://www.garda.ie/Controller.aspx?Page=1368&Lang=1

Traffic Fatalities up to 9am on 29th July 2010
Pedestrians: 24
Drivers: 54
Passengers: 28
Motorcyclists: 10
Pillion Passengers/Other: 1
Pedal Cyclists: 1
Total Year to Date: 118

buzzingnoise

brilliant news.
It would be interesting to know how many hospital a&e admissions cyclists account for compared to motorists and the major sports. I'm sure it would be quiet significant given the relatively small number of regular cyclists nationally. The nature of the injury could be quiet revealing ie: could it have been avoided with helmet use, cycle paths etc.
That would probably be a more useful statistic.
Personally I don't see why cyclists couldn't be included in the national road safety motorbike awareness Television campaign also.

tomasrojo

Slydice wrote: »

Damn!

Do you have a link?

tomasrojo

buzzingnoise wrote: »

brilliant news.
It would be interesting to know how many hospital a&e admissions cyclists account for compared to motorists and the major sports. I'm sure it would be quiet significant given the relatively small number of regular cyclists nationally. The nature of the injury could be quiet revealing ie: could it have been avoided with helmet use, cycle paths etc.
That would probably be a more useful statistic.
Personally I don't see why cyclists couldn't be included in the national road safety motorbike awareness Television campaign also.

It's much harder to decide whether a cyclist could survive a collision than you might think. Helmets, for example, might ameliorate some injuries, but make others worse. Also, many fatalities with head injuries have extensive injuries to the vital organs in the body core as well.

As for cycle tracks, you'd also have to consider whether a cycle track CONTRIBUTED to the fatality. Some cyclists have been killed using cycle tracks that "invited" them to pass HGVs on the inside.

As for motorbike, they should be treated on their own. Motorcycling is many times more dangerous than cycling, which is itself about as dangerous as walking or being a car passenger. Cyclists have a 2-3% traffic share and usually are about 2-3% of fatalities (though more like 0.8% this year, and cycling numbers are rising right now). Motorcyclists are 1-2% traffic share, but 12% of fatalities.

Slydice

tomasrojo wrote: »

Do you have a link?

my bad, it's the same link as the first one: http://www.garda.ie/Controller.aspx?Page=1368&Lang=1

I'll edit it into the post aswell.

CramCycle

buzzingnoise wrote: »

brilliant news.

I'm confused, are you saying the death of a cyclist is a good thing?

fergalr

2002: 18
2003: 11
2004: 11
2005: 10
2006: 13
2007: 17
2008: 15
2009: 4

I just have to say one thing here, in the context of the comments above:

Be very careful about trying to interpret statistics like these, and looking for causal factors, like the recession, less trucks etc

Before you do any of that, you have to do some sort of analysis of the figures and see whether the perceived fall is actually statistically significant.

The decrease in deaths - while obviously a good thing - may not actually be a result of a reduced risk of deaths. Everything could be just as dangerous as before, but due to random chance, less accidents happen.
Things like this are generally modelled as a poisson process, and there's tests of significance you can do.

I'm not saying do all these tests in casual discussions, just saying to bear in mind that from those figures, you could say cyclist road deaths decreased by over a factor of 3 in 2009 - but that wouldn't tell you nearly as much as if the reduction was from 1500 to 400.

buzzingnoise

CramCycle wrote: »

I'm confused, are you saying the death of a cyclist is a good thing?

You are confused. Brilliant news that there are 0 cyclist deaths in the last 6 months.
Read the thread title. Your response is a poor reflection on you as a person.

CramCycle

buzzingnoise wrote: »

You are confused. Brilliant news that there are 0 cyclist deaths in the last 6 months.
Read the thread title. Your response is a poor reflection on you as a person.

Just to nip this in the bud. The post before said that there was one death, your post afterwards might be misinterpretted by you saying "brilliant news".

My response was just to show that not reading a thread before posting may lead some to misinterpret what you have posted, there was no offence intended.

I am immensely glad that regardless of the reasons, that road deaths are going down. I have noticed, in the city alot more wariness taken by other road users for the safety of cyclists but this is a personal reflection that pry isn't seen by everyone.

jimm

Slydice wrote: »

Damn!
http://www.garda.ie/Controller.aspx?Page=1368&Lang=1

Sad to report that it was a 70 year old who was knocked off his bike as he was returning home after marshalling at a race. He was a member of the IVCA and I heard he was a good racer in his day. Doubly tragic was the fact that it was his son who collided with him. R.I.P.

Herald articles here:

http://www.herald.ie/national-news/son-knocks-down-his-cyclist-dad-70-on-fathers-day-2246530.html

http://www.herald.ie/national-news/oap-hit-by-son-on-fathers-day-buried-2256519.html

tomasrojo

That is a bizarre and appalling story. His poor son.

Heisenberg.

This post has been deleted.

ThisRegard

Scien wrote: »

The amount of people I see jumping the lights on my canal route commute each day is reckless.

The canal is pretty bad alright, gets worse the closer you get to Baggot Street. I always hope that me always stopping at a red light and then over taking the RLRs at a fantastically high speed before the next bridge might help some of them see the futility in doing so It's the same people every morning too.

I actually saw a funny one the other day, well funny to me, not to pedestrians as you'll see. I was the first bike stopped at Baggot Street bridge, cars going across us had the green light and I knew that pedestrians had their green light next before I got mine. Pretty soon I was surrounded by bikes who were all anticipating the green light, including some motorcyclists. The light for crossing traffic went orange, one guy jumped the light and everyone else, including one motorcyclist, went with him. They all went through the red light as the pedestrians tried to cross amid all these fools. There was only myself and the girl beside me left waiting at the red light, bar cars of course.

Cabaal

ThisRegard wrote: »

I actually saw a funny one the other day, well funny to me, not to pedestrians as you'll see. I was the first bike stopped at Baggot Street bridge, cars going across us had the green light and I knew that pedestrians had their green light next before I got mine. Pretty soon I was surrounded by bikes who were all anticipating the green light, including some motorcyclists. The light for crossing traffic went orange, one guy jumped the light and everyone else, including one motorcyclist, went with him. They all went through the red light as the pedestrians tried to cross amid all these fools. There was only myself and the girl beside me left waiting at the red light, bar cars of course.

Bloody idiots, the Gardai really need to crack down on these fools

Victor

Unfortunately, this may actually be the second cyclist death of the year, although it is unclear if he was actually cycling at the time.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/0405/1224267706414.html

delta_bravo

Victor wrote: »

Unfortunately, this may actually be the second cyclist death of the year, although it is unclear if he was actually cycling at the time.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/0405/1224267706414.html

I remember that incident seeing it on the news. Very tragic.

CramCycle

Found this today:

http://www.traceysolicitors.ie/blog/cyclists-in-dublin-facts-figures-on-accidents/

Published by a solicitors firm in Dublin, I remember someone asking for something similar.

seamus

Very interesting point here too:

The report also found that November was the worst month for collisions

Just after the clocks go back, it's darker cycling/driving home, people are unaccustomed to the darkness and lights aren't being switched on/attached as early as they should be.

Something to consider when November rolls around.

tomasrojo

Very interesting. The high proportion of fatalities caused by left-turning trucks/buses has been known for some time, but very little action taken so far -- though there was a scene-for-scene remake by the RSA of a British HGV awareness video.

Not sure about this:

Provide additional cycling infrastructure on a “most used routes” priority basis.

That's generally where they put the infrastructure, and a lot of that infrastructure has made cycling more hazardous or considerably less pleasant. I'm still in favour of a moratoriumo on new facilities until there can be legally binding standards about what is acceptable.

VERYinterested

I hope this cyclist injured on Wednesday afternoon pulls through, critically ill in Beaumont. Gardai are appealing for witnesses. It happened on Braemor Road in Churchtown Dublin, I saw the aftermath, the Gardai were still at the scene after 10.30pm, accident happened at 4.30pm.

There are two houses being renovated at the spot where it happened and a lot of the times I pass, workmen have their vans parked on the cycle lane, I hope that this was not the cause of this accident.

http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/appeal-for-witnesses-to-dublin-accident-468170.html

irishmotorist

I passed by just after 17:30 myself and the guy had been taken away but the gardai were still there. The cycle lane here is brutal and it's a stretch of road where the road is particularly buzzy. I wasn't aware of the building works going on here though. Not sure what caused it.

delta_bravo

It is a dodgy stretch alright, particularly as you are going downhill towards rathfarrnham where cars can come out from landscape road in the cycle lane while you are hurtling towards them.

the fact the person is in Beamount would indicate some head injury, hopefully they recover

VERYinterested

It happened as you drive from Dundrum to Rathfarnham, there is a turn on the right for Milltown Drive, just opposite that, apparently the Merc came out of Milltown Drive, houses beside each other, 101 & 103 are being gutted.