I.e., they wouldn't want anyone to get the impression that human life is fragile.

And children who have to be in protective cars seats and not allowed in front car seats while riding in automobiles should not be allowed to be perched or towed on or trailed behind a bicycle on roadways!

2013 Mar 26 Tuesday 13:10 U (1:10 PM PT)

How can a "brain bucket" / helmet prevent stupidity?

Witnessed a teenage cyclist attempting to ride a bike and manipulate a smart phone yesterday 2013 Mar 25 Monday circa 15:00 (3:00 PM) west bound on Iron Mountain Blvd just west of Oswego Lake Country Club entrance.

Yes the teenager crossed the white line into traffic and demonstrated an ID10T error. Fortunately the driver in front of us was not on their phone. Would have made an interesting court case. After clean up of a bio-hazard crash site.

Charles, oncoming traffic won't be a problem when there aren't any cars. However as experience has proven, the absence of cars, trucks, and buses doesn't protect a braincase from a curbstone.

Twenty years ago, my youngest brother was put into a coma after an idiot suddenly decided to make a right turn from the far left lane in Milwaukee. As it was, he spent nearly three weeks with a less than 10 percent chance of survival, and only woke up about twenty minutes before he was to be fitted with a tracheotomy tube. Not only was he in therapy for two years, but he lost half of his left lung from complications during his recovery. The only reason why he was a casualty and not an organ donor was because he was wearing a helmet when said dork cut him off. I've made a point of wearing a helmet ever since. (I personally wouldn't mind if the bike clowns continued to play in traffic without helmets, in the same way that I actively encourage the Critical Massholes to ride naked among the potholes. However, they're usually the ones who leave someone else wracked with guilt when they pull a bonehead stunt and turn said bones into powder.)

No brains, no bucket.

Does anyone know where to get real data on bike deaths per mile of travel?

Thanks
JK

And why is it that no-one, adult or child, wears helmets in The Netherlands, or Copenhagen, etc? Don't think they have many bike deaths either. Could it be that they deliberately retrofitted their cities (which other European countries did not) to be safer for walking and biking? And/or they have strict penalties for hitting a cyclist or pedestrian?

Could it be that they deliberately retrofitted their cities

Could it be that Amsterdam and Copenhagen engineered their vehicle road systems to reduce auto-bike interactions? Amsterdam, in particular, has a lot of streets were bicycles are flat out forbidden...maybe that would be a good start for Portland - start BANNING bikes on major streets (especially where off-street bike routes exist) and channelling them onto safer routes.

Years ago, the City and the biking community (which wasn't ruled by edicts from the BTA, which didn't exist at that time) solicited input from long-term commuters who suggested safe alternative, low-traffic volume routes which were put on a biking map and used by sensible people.

I haven't seen a Portland biking map in some time so I don't know if this system is still being followed. I do see more posturing and self-entitlement, even when it is not in the best interest of safety or traffic control.

The last time I rode in Amsterdam, I noticed that they had a huge system of bike trails on the dikes where motorized vehicles were not allowed. There were alternative routes as well. My favorite postcard is still taped to the fridge - showing a trashed clunker, locked to a fence with the words, "Welcome to Amsterdam" across the bottom.