Press release

30 January 2008

The number of cyclists that was admitted to hospital as a result of a crash involving a motor vehicle decreased in the period 1984-2005. However, the number of cyclists admitted to hospital as a result of a single vehicle crash increased. These are the cyclists who collided with another cyclist, a pedestrian, or who fell off their bikes. This is reported in the SWOV publication Cyclist hospital admissions; An analysis of crashes and injuries.

In 1984, a total of almost 6,400 injured cyclists were admitted to hospital. In 2005 this number had grown to almost 8.200. In 1984, 2,000 cyclists were admitted to hospital after a crash with a motor vehicle. In 2005 their number had gone down to 1,500. The number of injured cyclists that were admitted to hospital after a single vehicle crash has risen from approximately 4,400 in 1984 to about 6,700 in 2005. This group mainly suffers leg injury; in one third of the crashes the injuries involve head injury.

For the group of cyclists injured in crashes involving a motor vehicle, the injury severity has decreased. This is not the case for cyclists involved in single vehicle crashes: their injury severity decreased hardly or not at all.

The favourable developments concerning in-patients as a result of motor vehicle crashes are even more remarkable, because in the period that was studied both the number of bicycle kilometres and the number of motor vehicle kilometres travelled increased considerably. SWOV considers it likely that this is not an isolated development, but that the decreasing number of injured cyclists after a crash with a motor vehicle is due to measures like the construction of roundabouts, bicycle paths and zones 30.

No study has been made of the unfavourable development of the number of cyclists injured in single vehicle crashes. SWOV recommends further research of this subject. This research will have to pay attention to the layout of bicycle facilities, the road surface, and obstacles in and alongside the road. SWOV also recommends investigating in which way injury prevention for cyclists can make a contribution to a decrease of the number injured cyclists.

This report only discusses the developments of the numbers of injured cyclists. In the near future a report will be published which goes into the developments of the numbers of traffic casualties, among which cyclists, for the period up to and including 2006.

This press release in Pdf