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Vancouver police crack down on bicycle riders not wearing helmets
by kate | July 3, 2008 at 12:13 pm | 10837 views | 15 comments
I find this so irritating. They should leave it to the individual about whether to wear a helmet.
Or even - "when" to wear a helmet.
As usual, the discourse around these policies and laws presents a radical oversimplification, changing the issue into a thing where you should either always always always wear a helmet, even when walking within 4 metres of a bike, and when sitting, especially at a cafe if it is outdoors, and for sure at night, since you could easily fall out of bed and damage the melon.
Versus no no, you should never never wear a helmet, to acquiece would be tantamount to playing footsie with the nanny state. Or something like that.
But how about something simpler, like, I will wear a helmet if I am riding on a highway but not when I am at the seaside, and this is something I can determine on my own. Yeah. Something like that!
Vancouver cyclists heading out to enjoy a ride without a helmet are exposing themselves to a greater risk this summer — a ticket from police.Const. Tim Fanning said police are on track to hand out nearly three times the number of $35 fines for not wearing a helmet this year compared to 2007.
"In 2006, we wrote just under 700 tickets. Last year, we wrote just under 800. And this year, to date, we've written just under 1,300 tickets," Fanning said on Tuesday.
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July 3, 2008 at 12:13 pm by kate, 10837 views, 15 comments
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Comments (15)
at 12:30 on July 3rd, 2008
What a colossal waste of police resources. How about tackling the growing gang war in this town. Are helmetless cyclists really the city's greatest menace? Ridiculous.
at 12:42 on July 3rd, 2008
Helmetless cyclists should be tasered. immediately. joke.
at 12:58 on July 3rd, 2008
kate, I like this story. It's good stuff.
I agree with you - I think that when riding on a highway then riders should be required to wear a helmet, but maybe not at other times - although I think children should always have to wear one.
Also, I'm not sure Julian was joking with his previous statement... ;)
at 13:23 on July 3rd, 2008
Of course the other problem is that most helmets look like alien babies.
at 17:18 on July 3rd, 2008
I, for one, always wear an alien baby on my head when i ride my bike.
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altrugonat 13:49 on July 3rd, 2008
This is just business, they need to make money and "we are protecting you" is a good excuse. Oh yeah, you are protecting me because I'm so dump I don't know how I can break my head.
I'm sorry but I don't see you that efficient in other areas where you should protect me...
Vancouver is listed as one of the most dangerous cities in Canada!
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KyleFat 14:33 on July 3rd, 2008
As a Industrial Design student I realized the problem that most cyclists have with their helmets is how they look and how they fit. For my final thesis I choose to develop an innovative and stylish cycling accessories with the goal of encouraging more people to enjoy cycling. Currently this is only a concept.
for more details check out my blog here:
http://bicycleconcepts.blogspot.com/
KyleF has contributed a photo to this story.
at 17:17 on July 3rd, 2008
I can't believe you all think you have the wisdom to decide for yourself whether or not it's safe to be riding without a helmet... that's preposterous... Anarchy! (Or maybe you just have a head injury)
at 18:33 on July 3rd, 2008
Did they also make helmets mandatory for motorcycles? Here in US I commonly see people wearing helmets when riding a bike and don't when driving a motorcycle.
at 18:31 on July 3rd, 2008
kate, I like this story. It's good stuff. how about for rollerbladers? I remember in elementary they had this loong talk with us about helmets and safety. I would hate to get a ticket for not wearing a helmet.
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scribble1at 19:14 on July 3rd, 2008
A young girl who strapped on her helmet before biking away from the Monona Center in Madison Wisconsin
scribble1 has contributed a photo to this story.
at 19:31 on July 3rd, 2008
I'm with you Kate. Helmet-use discretion ought to be a fundamental freedom. The police have bigger fish to fry, not alien babies.
at 20:49 on July 3rd, 2008
kate, I like this story. It's good stuff.
The Vancouver police be working to make the streets safer for cyclists. So safe that cyclists wouldn't NEED helmets to protect them from reckless drivers.
A fine isn't going stop me from going helmetless. Heck, I don't even have brakes on my bike. I'd rather spend $35 on a piece of paper than on a foam bucket with a strap.
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dkeachieat 18:12 on July 10th, 2008
This helmet is in the waiting room for ER at Sierra Memorial Hospital, as a testimony to a life saved by a helmet. The hospital has a fund that gives free helmets to kids, in the Grass Valley, CA, area.
dkeachie has contributed a photo to this story.
at 18:37 on July 11th, 2008
"Cracking down" on bicycle safety in this way is as misguided as police crackdowns on issues of public disorder like kids drinking in parks. When the public hears warnings like this mass-ticketing this summer, people start to think wearing--or not wearing--a helmet is the surefire solution to bike safety when much more than a helmet is required to ensure your safety on the road. Judgement, awareness, and biking in such a way that cars won't need to physically react to you in order to keep you safe from harm are some ways that one could avoid an accident in the first place. Just as drinking in a park isn't a gateway drug to using cocaine (as a lot of parents are told to think when they hear similar police-media reports about public park order), not wearing the helmet is by no means a brimstone-laced route to getting into an accident. That's not to say helmets aren't important, but they're not the whole solution to being safe on a bike.