Police officers in the South Moravian region draw attention to the beginning of the cycling season and encourage cyclists and drivers to take extra caution. “Cyclists should use a helmet that can save lives in an accident,” Becalm police spokesman Kamala told CTK today. With reduced visibility, it is necessary to use reflective elements to see the cyclist, added Hedonic police spokesman Petri.
Every year, police in South Moravia record hundreds of bicycle accidents. “Last year there were 257 bicycle accidents in the region, three cyclists died, and 28 were a child,” said regional police spokesman Petra Verona. According to police statistics, cyclists (along with pedestrians and motorcyclists) on the roads are the most vulnerable. Bicycle rides everyone, but not everyone realizes that when he goes on the road, he becomes a full-fledged road user.
That is why police officers appeal to all road users to keep in mind the increased movement of cyclists on the roads. “It is necessary to count on this and to be mutually beneficial to each other.” Drivers should be anticipating and expecting unusual behavior by cyclists, and people on bicycles should have the right equipment, “said Locker.
More important than a helmet is passive safety
Karat warned that every cyclist should have a helmet and a safety vest. “It is clear from practice that if a cyclist is involved in an accident, he will at best cope with slight injuries.” Although the law imposes an obligation to wear helmets to cyclists under the age of 18, we recommend that everyone should have it, “said Karat.
According to the Interior Ministry, one of four serious cycling injuries is head injuries and half of all cycling accidents are hit by the rider’s head. Most serious bicycle accidents will not happen on busy roads, but on quiet side streets. Therefore, parents need to have a constant overview of where their kids are moving and to see if their children have a properly equipped bicycle and they use bicycle helmets.
The cycling helmet must be of an approved type and must be well clamped on its head – it must not move on its head. Each type of helmet must therefore have ATEST 8SD (product complies with ČSN EN 1078). The helmet protects not only the shoulder and forehead, but also partly the face, the temples and the ears.
Using a helmet is one of the ways to eliminate cycling injuries. According to research carried out in recent years by the British Royal Society for Accident Prevention (ROSPA), over 2,800 cyclists die each year on the roads of the European Union, and another 139,800 are injured.
The risk of injuries to cyclists can be reduced in several ways – safe driving style, adaptation of the transport environment which takes into account the presence of cyclists in the traffic flow, but also the use of quality certified cycling helmets and various protectors and gloves.
ROSPA says that if every cyclist used a cycling helmet, the risk of head injuries would be reduced by 85% and the risk of brain injuries by 88%, with around 600,000 head injuries each year in the EU due to cycling. According to professional medical literature, a concentrated blow to the head can kill the adult as soon as it falls at 11 km / h; even at a lower speed.
Not everyone is inclined to use the heel. According to veteran cyclist Vita, everyday life comes daily to situations where the likelihood of harm to health or life is much higher than when we cycle (for example, walking along the busiest road, stopping at the public transport stop, etc.) and nobody Wear some protective aids. “The business with fear is the easiest deal, companies know it, and most people simply do not think rationally,” believes Vita, who rides a bicycle without a helmet.
Much more important than a helmet and a reflective vest (passive safety) is not only active safety according to him, i.e. how to behave on a bicycle on the road, what to do in no case or when to increase vigilance. “Do not rely on the privilege of crossing the junctions, not to use unnecessarily defensive, to use hearing (not just to see), to be able to see, etc.,” says Vita. These principles are mainly highlighted in children. When parents learn this, they will do much more for their safety than buying a helmet, Vita believes.