De Fietsersbond thinks cyclists must be separated even more from other traffic than now. Although the total number of traffic fatalities has been decreasing for years, the number of killed cyclists and pedestrians remains stable.
According to research from NU.nl of more than 45,000 traffic accidents between 2007 and 2012 with cyclists and pedestrians, the so-called vulnerable road users. The data comes from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment and ongelukken.staanhier.nl.
According to de Fietsersbond, there has been more focus on better infrastructure for cyclists for a while. That essentially means that cyclist paths and roads intersect less.
“But the number of vulnerable road users that decease, doest not drop. More attention for this problem is needed,” said a spokesman for de Fietsersbond.
Crossroads
The data show that about 60 percent of fatal bicycle accidents occur at a crossroad. In two out of five accidents non-yielding to traffic is the cause. Also, not giving passage (17.3 percent) and steering errors (11.5 percent) are common causes.
“Most accidents, including fatal, are between cyclists and car drivers”, de Fietsersbond says. This also comes forward from the data. Almost half of the cyclists caught in traffic death collided with a passenger car.
In one out of 25 cases, it’s a clash between cyclists leading to a fatal outcome. Pedestrian fatalities are caused by cars in 58.3 percent of cases.
Although the total number of fatalities is steadily declining, the number of perished cyclists slightly increased. Pedestrian deaths are hardly declined . The decrease in fatalities is mainly among passenger car drivers.
Students
Most fatal accidents involving vulnerable road users happen in the afternoon between 15:00 and 16:00 on weekdays. Over the weekend , the number of traffic accidents and deaths drops.
Mainly students, 70 – and 80 -year-olds perish as a cyclist or pedestrian. According to de Fietsersbond this is simple to explain. “The group that cycles the most consists mainly of students . And if you cover more miles, you are more likely to have an accident.”
Elderly
“In addition, the elderly are particularly vulnerable in traffic. If they have an accident, they don’t recover so well.” In addition, the government encourages the elderly to remain longer in cycling. Electric bicycles are also a major incentive.
“But that can backfire. Electric bikes go faster than ordinary bicycles. They are also slightly heavier, so more difficult to control.” Currently, a course is not required when purchasing such a vehicle.
De Fietsersbond doesn’t think it’s necessary, but is of the opinion that more information is needed when purchasing an electric bike. “It would be a good thing if you’re being told about the risks when purchasing an eletric bicycle.”