Bicycle Helmet

Safety Gear

Bicycle Helmet

A bicycle helmet is a type of helmet that is designed to alleviate impacts to the head of a cyclist in case of an accident. Bicycle helmets are different from the crash helmets used by the riders. Bicycle helmets are manufactured with lightweight material and have vents for circulation of air. In India, the use of bicycle helmets are not mandated or governed by Motor Vehicles Act or any other legislation. Therefore, mostly people who ride bicycle for health benefit or take it as athletic activity use helmet but the regular bicycle rider who use bicycle for regular commuting do not use bicycle helmet. Even children who use bicycle for going to school seldom wear bicycle helmet. The higher price range of a bicycle helmet is a major factor that mostly people avoid buying and using it. For safety purposes, in addition to bicycle helmet it is recommended to use kneecaps and elbow caps while riding a bicycle.

What may be inferred from the research that are now available and whether helmet use by cyclists should be encouraged or mandated, either simply for youngsters or for riders of all ages. In particular, the argument over bicycle helmet rules has been a topic of heated debates. There have been frequent interpretations by the academic and scientific institutions as varying presumptions and interests for use of helmet by the bicycle riders.

Bicycle Riders and Road Crash Fatalities

Bicycle riders are among one of the Vulnerable Road Users (VRUs). Other road users in this category include pedestrians and two-wheeler riders. As compared to pedestrians, fatalities of bicycle riders in India are very less due to the fact that majority of people do not use bicycle for daily commuting. In India, out of the total number of vehicles share of two-wheelers comprises 75% share. This implies that a major population uses two-wheelers or other personal mode of transportation for their day to day need.

As per the road crash statistics of year 2022 published by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), Government of India 4,836 bicycle riders died which has share of 3% of the total fatalities. In Rajasthan, 55 bicycle riders died in road crashes which contributes only 0.5% of the total deaths reported in 2022. Irrespective of a smaller number of road crash deaths of bicycle riders, it is always recommended to use bicycle helmet and other safety measures meant for bicycle riders.