London cycling stats

Tim Hall said:

I seem to recall Tom Crispin posting TFL(?) stats regarding cycling
safety on London, specifically that very few, possibly zero, children
were killed while cycling in the lasdt year for which records are
available.

I also recall it was zero for 2005

Quoted message said:

I'm not trying to challenge their choice, but am interested to know if
there is a general reduction in numbers of school children cycling at
this time of year.

My kids are on school hols this time of year :-)
(sorry)

I bet there's an upsurge after xmas with their new bikes, there's been
plenty in the street and down the park the last few days

However, the last day of term my daughter's bike was the only one in
the school bike shed

POHB said:

Tim Hall said:

I seem to recall Tom Crispin posting TFL(?) stats regarding cycling
safety on London, specifically that very few, possibly zero, children
were killed while cycling in the lasdt year for which records are
available.

I also recall it was zero for 2005

Quoted message said:

I'm not trying to challenge their choice, but am interested to know if
there is a general reduction in numbers of school children cycling at
this time of year.

My kids are on school hols this time of year :-)
(sorry)

I bet there's an upsurge after xmas with their new bikes, there's been
plenty in the street and down the park the last few days

However, the last day of term my daughter's bike was the only one in
the school bike shed

I used to cycle to school in KoT all year round. I still seem to be
alive.

Which school would that be?

...d

On 12/28/2006 18:58:49 'POHB said:

Tim Hall wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I seem to recall Tom Crispin posting TFL(?) stats regarding cycling
safety on London, specifically that very few, possibly zero, children
were killed while cycling in the lasdt year for which records are
available.

Quoted message said:

I also recall it was zero for 2005

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I'm not trying to challenge their choice, but am interested to know if
there is a general reduction in numbers of school children cycling at
this time of year.

Quoted message said:

My kids are on school hols this time of year :-) (sorry)

Quoted message said:

I bet there's an upsurge after xmas with their new bikes, there's been
plenty in the street and down the park the last few days

Quoted message said:

However, the last day of term my daughter's bike was the only one in the
school bike shed

They will all be fine, as long as they wear helmets. Flame suit on!

--

Buck

I would rather be out on my Catrike

http://www.catrike.co.uk

Buck said:

They will all be fine, as long as they wear helmets. Flame suit on!

Helmets and flame suits? Steady on, mate, this is cycling to school
we're taking about, not F2 racing.

Besides, you'd get all hot and sweaty, wouldn't you?

-dan

--
http://www.coruskate.net/

Buck said:

They will all be fine, as long as they wear helmets. Flame suit on!

Helmets and flame suits? Steady on, mate, this is cycling to school
we're taking about, not F1 racing.

Besides, you'd get all hot and sweaty, wouldn't you?

-dan

--
http://www.coruskate.net/

Daniel Barlow said:

Buck said:

They will all be fine, as long as they wear helmets. Flame suit on!

Helmets and flame suits? Steady on, mate, this is cycling to school
we're taking about, not F2 racing.

Besides, you'd get all hot and sweaty, wouldn't you?

-dan

Yes you would! I have often noted whilst wearing a triple layer Nomex
suit and Nomex underwear in a rally car that ...

" I'm not sure if this stuff works or if it's just the fact that you are
so hot wearing it that you woudn't notice a fire if it broke out"

Tim Hall said:

I seem to recall Tom Crispin posting TFL(?) stats regarding cycling
safety on London, specifically that very few, possibly zero, children
were killed while cycling in the lasdt year for which records are
available.

Quoted message said:

My sister lives in Kingston upon Thames and has 3 kids, at least one
of which cycles to school a few miles away. But it seems that she and
her husband discourage him cycling in the winter months as they feel
cycling in the dark in SW London isn't the way to a long and fruitful
life.

Quoted message said:

I'm not trying to challenge their choice, but am interested to know if
there is a general reduction in numbers of school children cycling at
this time of year.

When I cycled to school fifty years ago, along with hundreds of other
local school kids, the number cycling in the winter months dropped by
about half, but was rather variable, being less on nice dry days and
more on nasty wet days. Nobody was ever seriously injured in an
accident cycling to or from school. Injuries to pupils were always
reported to the entire school in morning assembly, often with advice
about how to avoid a similar fate. But several were seriously injured
in rough games like rugby (boys) and hockey (girls), one had a falling
javelin run right through his shoulder on sports day, one boy was
killed on a golf course, and one boy was killed by a school teacher
who was demonstrating that it was quite safe to lift people up by the
head. The boy's neck snapped, apparently a rare genetic defect.

Since many more cycled to school for far more time than those who
played sports spent on the sports field, cycling to school was clearly
one of the safest school-associated physical activities by a
considerable margin.

--
Chris Malcolm [email hidden] DoD #205
IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
[http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]

Chris Malcolm wrote on 31/12/2006 19:07 +0100:

Quoted message said:

When I cycled to school fifty years ago, along with hundreds of other
local school kids, the number cycling in the winter months dropped by
about half, but was rather variable, being less on nice dry days and
more on nasty wet days. Nobody was ever seriously injured in an
accident cycling to or from school. Injuries to pupils were always
reported to the entire school in morning assembly, often with advice
about how to avoid a similar fate. But several were seriously injured
in rough games like rugby (boys) and hockey (girls), one had a falling
javelin run right through his shoulder on sports day, one boy was
killed on a golf course, and one boy was killed by a school teacher
who was demonstrating that it was quite safe to lift people up by the
head. The boy's neck snapped, apparently a rare genetic defect.

Similar here. Of all the people in my school none were killed or
injured cycling, one died of leukemia and two were killed in a head on
collision with an HGV while riding a "borrowed" moped on the wrong side
of the road. One had a badly damaged leg from being t-boned on a
motorbike by a car. We also had a javelin accident, but through the leg.

--
Tony

"...has many omissions and contains much that is apocryphal, or at least
wildly inaccurate..."
Douglas Adams; The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Tony Raven said:

Similar here.  Of all the people in my school none were killed or
injured cycling, one died of leukemia and two were killed in a head on
collision with an HGV while riding a "borrowed" moped on the wrong side
of the road. One had a badly damaged leg from being t-boned on a
motorbike by a car.  We also had a javelin accident, but through the leg.

IIRC, only one person at my school was killed on a bicycle. He wasn't
commuting at the time though, he rode it off the end of a breakwater and
into the sea. I don't think they ever found the body.
--
Chris

"Chris Slade" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Tony Raven said:

Similar here. Of all the people in my school none were killed or
injured cycling, one died of leukemia and two were killed in a head on
collision with an HGV while riding a "borrowed" moped on the wrong side
of the road. One had a badly damaged leg from being t-boned on a
motorbike by a car. We also had a javelin accident, but through the leg.

IIRC, only one person at my school was killed on a bicycle. He wasn't
commuting at the time though, he rode it off the end of a breakwater and
into the sea. I don't think they ever found the body.
--

One person at my school died while cycling but not on the way to school. We
too had someone skewered by a javelin - a deliberate act of malice.....One
or two casualties through homemade incendiary and/or explosive devices that
misbehaved were also observed.

In news:[email hidden],
Chris Slade <[email hidden]> tweaked the Babbage-Engine to tell us:

Quoted message said:

IIRC, only one person at my school was killed on a bicycle. He wasn't
commuting at the time though, he rode it off the end of a breakwater
and into the sea. I don't think they ever found the body.

Only one of my skool chums killed on a bicycle too, IIRC, and he had the
appalling luck to be knocked down and killed on the very first day of the
summer holibobs.

--
Dave Larrington
<http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk>
You can't have ham!

vernon said:

One person at my school died while cycling but not on the way to school. We
too had someone skewered by a javelin - a deliberate act of malice.....One
or two casualties through homemade incendiary and/or explosive devices that
misbehaved were also observed.

Seems to be a bit of a theme developing here. Has anyone ever been
skewered by a javelin while cycling? Did the helmet help?

-dan

--
http://www.coruskate.net/

Tim Hall said:

I seem to recall Tom Crispin posting TFL(?) stats regarding cycling
safety on London, specifically that very few, possibly zero, children
were killed while cycling in the lasdt year for which records are
available.

My sister lives in Kingston upon Thames and has 3 kids, at least one
of which cycles to school a few miles away. But it seems that she and
her husband discourage him cycling in the winter months as they feel
cycling in the dark in SW London isn't the way to a long and fruitful
life.

I'm not trying to challenge their choice, but am interested to know if
there is a general reduction in numbers of school children cycling at
this time of year.

I expect so. Cycling among all age groups drops in winter months. The
light shoudn't affect children of primary age who finish school
generally at about 3.30 when it's still light. It may be more of an
issue at secondary schools which may have later classes or if a child
attends an after school club.

I make a point of taking children on night-time rides so they can
experience cycling with lights under supervision before goinf off on
their own.