title: Bicycling crash characteristics: An in-depth crash investigation study.
abstract: The aim of this study was to describe the crash characteristics and patient outcomes of a sample of patients admitted to hospital following bicycle crashes. Injured cyclists were recruited from the two major trauma services for the state of Victoria, Australia. Enrolled cyclists completed a structured interview, and injury details and patient outcomes were extracted from the Victorian State Trauma Registry (VSTR) and the Victorian Orthopaedic Trauma Outcomes Registry (VOTOR). 186 cyclists consented to participate in the study. Crashes commonly occurred during daylight hours and in clear weather conditions. Two-thirds of crashes occurred on-road (69%) and were a combination of single cyclist-only events (56%) and multi-vehicle crashes (44%). Of the multi-vehicle crashes, a motor vehicle was the most common impact partner (72%) and distinct pre-crash directional interactions were observed between the cyclist and motor vehicle. Nearly a quarter of on-road crashes occurred when the cyclist was in a marked bicycle lane. Of the 31% of crashes that were not on-road, 28 (15%) occurred on bicycle paths and 29 (16%) occurred in other locations. Crashes on bicycle paths commonly occurred on shared bicycle and pedestrian paths (83%) and did not involve another person or vehicle. Other crash locations included mountain bike trails (39%), BMX parks (21%) and footpaths (18%). While differences in impact partners and crash characteristics were observed between crashes occurring on-road, on bicycle paths and in other locations, injury patterns and severity were similar. Most cyclists had returned to work at 6 months post-injury, however only a third of participants reported a complete functional recovery. Further research is required to develop targeted countermeasures to address the risk factors identified in this study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Victoria, Australia. Electronic address: ben.beck@monash.edu.
authors.forename: Ben
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Beck
authors.affiliation: Melbourne School of Design/Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Stevenson
authors.affiliation: Monash University Accident Research Centre, Monash University, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Stuart
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Newstead
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Victoria, Australia; Emergency and Trauma Centre, The Alfred, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cameron
authors.affiliation: General Surgery, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Victoria, Australia; Department of Surgery, The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Rodney
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Judson
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Victoria, Australia; Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, The Alfred, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Elton R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Edwards
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bucknill
authors.affiliation: Institute of Transport Studies, Faculty of Engineering, Monash University, Victoria, Australia; Amy Gillett Foundation, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Marilyn
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Victoria, Australia; Centre for Improvement in Population Health through E-records Research (CIPHER), Farr Institute, Swansea University Medical School, Swansea University, UK.
authors.forename: Belinda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gabbe
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001315:Australia; D001642:Bicycling / Q000293:injuries* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004779:Environment Design; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018986:Motor Vehicles / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012449:Safety; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: Bicycle crash; Bicycle lane; Bicycle path; Cycling; Patient outcome; Pedal cyclist; Return to work