The relation between speed environment, age and injury outcome for bicyclists struck by a motorized vehicle – a comparison with pedestrians

Abstract

This study analyzes (a) the relation between injury severities, the age of the bicyclist and the speed environment at accident locations (mean travel speed of the traffic flow involved in the accident) where a bicyclist was struck by a motorized vehicle and (b) how these relations differ from those for struck pedestrians. Accident data from Sweden for the years 2004–2008 was used to identify accident locations to analyze the relations between speed environment, age and injury outcome. Seventy-seven accident sites were used for field measurements and further analysis. The results show that both speed environment and age have considerable correlation with injury severity. There was a statistically significant relation between injury severity and the speed environment, and large proportion of the serious bicycle accidents occur at locations with speeds below 30km/h. Also, the risk of serious injuries or fatalities seems to increase after the age of 45. To our knowledge this is the first study that uses the mean travel speed in this manner for analyzing injury severity of struck bicyclists.