Safety in Numbers in NYC

In anticipation of the LA Bike Summit on March 7th, the UEPI blog will carry some guest entries by some of our distinguished Bike Summit guest keynote speakers. The first in this series is by Noah Budnick, Deputy Director of Advocacy for Transportation Alternatives in New York City.

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Safety in Numbers in NYC

Noad Budnick interviewing David Byrne (Photo Credit: Streetsblog)

The “Safety in Numbers” phenomenon is proving true in New York City. First documented in cities aroundthe world and chronicled in research published in the American Journal of Public Health, safety in numbers dictates that the crash, injury and fatalities rate falls as more people regularly ride bikes because faced with more cyclists on the streets, drivers become accustomed to noticing cyclists and driving safely around them.
The steady annual increase in regular cycling in New York City has added up to one-third more cyclists on the streets each day today than in 1998. During the same time, the number of annual bicycle crashes and cyclist deaths has decreased almost 40%.
Ergo, anything the City does to encourage increase cycling – building greenways and bike lanes, creating secure bike parking, undertaking powerful public awareness and effective encouragement campaigns – makes cycling safer.
By the same token, anything the City does to discourage bike riding – mandatory bike licensing, bike ticket blitzes, compulsory helmet laws – will do more harm than good. Because compulsory helmet laws in other cities have decreased cycling by up to 30%, it is estimated that the increase in mortality due to an erosion of the Safety in Numbers effect would eclipse and safety effect of a New York City mandatory helmet law.
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Tags: LABikeSummit, Transportation, uepi