Bicycle helmets in Australia
Encyclopedia
Bicycle helmet
use in Australia
has been mandatory since 1989, the first country to do so. The current legally required standard for a bicycle helmet is AS/NZS 2063.
The accessibility of compulsory helmets was considered as one of the many reasons for the comparatively low usage of Melbourne's bicycle sharing system inaugurated in 2010. Increased access to helmets in local shops saw usage of the bike share scheme almost double in late 2010 to an average of 183 trips a day
In 2010, a district court judge in NSW agreed that there is no conclusive evidence to the benefits of wearing bicycle helmets.
A study conducted by the University of New South Wales in 2011 concluded that Mandatory Helmet Laws led to a 29% reduction in cycling related head injuries.
A 2011 study commissioned by the Queensland Government found Helmet wearing was associated with a 69% reduction in the likelihood of head or brain injury and a 74% reduction in the likelihood of severe brain injury. It also found little evidence to support the claim that mandatory helmet usage discouraged bike riding.
Bicycle helmet
A bicycle helmet is a helmet intended to be worn while riding a bicycle. They are designed to attenuate impacts to the skull of a cyclist in falls while minimizing side effects such as interference with peripheral vision...
use in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
has been mandatory since 1989, the first country to do so. The current legally required standard for a bicycle helmet is AS/NZS 2063.
Bicycle usage
When mandatory bicycle helmet laws were enacted in Australia, slightly more than one third of bare-headed cyclists ceased to ride their bicycles frequently. Cycling participation levels in Australia have now increased to well above the level recorded before helmet laws were introducedThe accessibility of compulsory helmets was considered as one of the many reasons for the comparatively low usage of Melbourne's bicycle sharing system inaugurated in 2010. Increased access to helmets in local shops saw usage of the bike share scheme almost double in late 2010 to an average of 183 trips a day
Head injuries
During 1977-80 in the state of Victoria cyclist casualties, prior to the helmet legislation, sustained head injuries including severe head injuries, more than twice as frequently as the helmeted motorcyclist casualties.In 2010, a district court judge in NSW agreed that there is no conclusive evidence to the benefits of wearing bicycle helmets.
A study conducted by the University of New South Wales in 2011 concluded that Mandatory Helmet Laws led to a 29% reduction in cycling related head injuries.
A 2011 study commissioned by the Queensland Government found Helmet wearing was associated with a 69% reduction in the likelihood of head or brain injury and a 74% reduction in the likelihood of severe brain injury. It also found little evidence to support the claim that mandatory helmet usage discouraged bike riding.