With or without you: the plight of the bike helmet

Michael Restin

27.9.2021

Translation: Jessica Johnson-Ferguson

Every year, the Swiss Council for Accident Prevention (BFU) counts helmets. Who wears one, on which type of bike and when? The results are in: when it comes to protecting their heads, cyclists have a mind of their own.

In Switzerland, it’s entirely up to you if you want to wear a bike helmet or not. Unless you ride an e-bike that supports you up to 45 km/h. In this case, a helmet is mandatory. It’s a compulsion the Federal Council would like to extend to all e-bikes. While the TCS backs this, Pro Velo is against it.

You could say that experts, politicians and cyclists are doing each other’s heads in over helmets. But the helmet is also a political issue in other countries. Some countries have a general helmet compulsion, and others require you to wear a helmet outside of cities (but not if cycling up a steep hill). Many countries have made it mandatory for children and adolescents to wear a helmet, and the US has 49 different regulations depending on the region. What’s lacking is one truth about which path is best.

Many approaches, no silver bullet

And so, we’ve had to make up our own minds whether we want to protect our heads with a helmet or not. As I’m in my early 40s, I statistically speaking belong to the group of eager beavers. According to the current BFU survey, 30- to 44-year-olds are the most avid helmet wearers. 67 per cent protect their heads when using an (un-motorised) bike.

Maybe my age group is so responsible in order to be a good role model for their children. And 62 per cent of these wee ones tag along with their flower and dinosaur helmets. At least that’s the case until they turn 14. Well, flowers and dinosaurs are ditched earlier than that, but there comes a time when the helmet goes, too. The helmet quota among teenagers and young adults drops to 42 per cent until these wild ones become prudent 30-plus cyclists. The circle of life.

But it’s not as simple as that. It seems our urge for freedom varies. Not only when it comes to age. The reason why we get on a bike in the first place also plays a big role in the helmet question. From April to June, the people at BFU determined the general vibe of cyclists that year, counted helmets, asked for the destination of the rides and determined the types of bikes used. This was done over 8,500 times at 67 counting posts across the country. The numbers confirm the trend of recent years: never before have so many cyclists worn a helmet. On classic bikes, 57 per cent of riders protect their heads with a helmet. That’s five per cent more than in 2019. Whether they wear a helmet depends on the situation.

Free time

Getting on your bike purely for the sake of cycling is probably the best reason you can have. It means freeing your head from stress. But what does it mean when it comes to protecting your head?

Today, 62 per cent of cyclists use a helmet when cycling in their free time. That’s five per cent more than in 2019. In other words, the majority of cyclists are happy to use a helmet when their bike isn’t a means of transport but purely used for the fun of it.

Going to work or school

When used to commute between two spheres of life, a bike mainly represents a means of transport. It takes you from A to B and back to A again. With or without a helmet?

On the way to work or the classroom, helmets are used by less than half of cyclists. While 46 per cent wear one on their way to work, 43 per cent of students use one to get to school. For the latter group, that’s two per cent lower than in 2019. For working professionals, the number has gone up by three per cent. Surprisingly, the gap between the two groups is small considering that adolescents and young adult are generally more likely to put themselves at risk.

Going shopping

Quickly heading to the shop to restock the fridge? Shopping is a part of life that’s often done with the help of a bike. But do people bother with a helmet when their hands are carrying shopping bags?

When your stomach is rumbling or you're in desperate need of a new pair of shoes or anything else from the shops, helmets are not a priority. Only 32 per cent of cyclists use one on these occasions – even though the nastiest accidents can also be lurking just outside the front door. The helmet is struggling to establish itself on routine routes and, unlike on joyrides, tends to be left at home.

Helmet compulsion – yay or nay?

The general tendency is: when it comes to bike helmets, many cyclists are consistently inconsistent and, depending on the situation, wear one or not. But overall, more people than ever before are using head protection. Even without a helmet compulsion, 70 per cent of e-bike riders wear a helmet. But on fast e-bikes only 93 per cent do – even though it's compulsory. Would mandatory helmets for all e-bike riders make a difference? Or even a helmet compulsion for all cyclists? Bicycle associations fear that a helmet compulsion might make (rental) bikes unattractive. They argue that in cycling paradises such as Copenhagen, the helmet rate is low but the infrastructure is highly developed. Maybe true freedom on a bicycle can only be attained if there’s enough room it.

Michael Restin

Senior Editor

Michael.Restin@digitecgalaxus.ch

Simple writer and dad of two who likes to be on the move, wading through everyday family life. Juggling several balls, I'll occasionally drop one. It could be a ball, or a remark. Or both.

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