Analyzing bicycle accidents in Switzerland

• Research unit: COST
• Project number: C12.0027

Key words (English)

traffic safety; bicycle; accident analysis; injury

Research programs (English)

COST-Action TU1101 - Towards safer bicycling through optimization of bicycle helmets and usage

Short description (English)

This project aims at analyzing bicycle accidents in Switzerland using the national police data base, the data base of the police of the Canton of Zurich (rural environment) and the data base of the Zurich City Police (urban environment). Special attention will be paid to accidents involving e-bikes. Accidents will be reconstructed to learn more about collision circumstances such as collision speeds. The data derived in this study will be discussed with respect to the expected protective potential of a bicycle helmet according to standard EN 1078 - this is particularly relevant in view of the current discussions to introduce a helmet use enforcement for e-bikes in Switzerland. The knowledge gained from accident analysis will form the basis for further approaches to improve helmets (as envisaged in the COST Action) and it will also be of help to discuss other approaches for preventing bicycle accidents.

Partners and International Organizations (English)

BE; HR; DK; FI; FR; DE; EL; IE; IL; IT; NL; NO; PT; SI; ES; SE; CH; UK

Abstract (English)

Bicycle accidents with a special focus on electrical bicycles (e-bikes) were investigated in this project. Accident data of the years 2011 and 2012 was compiled based on the Swiss national police data base, the data base of the police of the Canton of Zurich and the data base of the Zurich City Police. The analysis of the data available allowed describing the accident situation in Switzerland to the best possible detail. Various factors related to the persons involved in an accident and the possible causes of the accident were described statistically. With regard to e-bikes this systematic investigation is the first of its kind and forms therefore a basis for the development of measures to prevent accidents. Furthermore, it serves as a reference for future analyses. In addition to the analysis of accident statistics, individual cases were reconstructed to gain a better understanding of the situation on-site and factors that influence the accident outcome. Key findings, all based on data covering the two year period, include that e-bikes who sustain a police recorded accident wear helmets more often than bicyclists and e-bikes in the age range of 40 to 65 years more often sustain severe injury than bicyclists. Future research is needed to follow-up the work started with this project to obtain a larger number of cases and thus a clearer picture on how accidents of bicyclists and e-bikers develop.

References in databases (English)

Swiss Database: COST-DB of the State Secretariat for Education and Research Hallwylstrasse 4 CH-3003 Berne, Switzerland Tel. [phone] Swiss Project-Number: C12.0027