Why Helmets Should Be Compulsory?

Falling off a bicycle can cause sober and sometimes serious head injuries. Wearing a helmet helps to protect our vital organs - the brain. We should wear helmets every time we are cycling, as well as kids. Even if a child thinks this is uncool and he looks funny, you should tell him that, it looks way less cool to have face all scarred up from sliding on the concrete or dirt. Research shows that half of the injuries received by cyclists are to the face and head and about 75% of all bicyclist deaths each year result from head injuries (“Do You Need a Bike Helmet”.) Helmets are not the big issue only in the United States; however, some countries found the way to deal with it. Special classes and tests for cyclists would be a perfect solution to this problem.

In March 2002 two young elementary students asked their city council, what do they think: should bicycle helmets be made mandatory for all cyclists? On April 25, 2002 in Richardson, Texas, the city council responds to the question and had decided against a law requiring bicycle helmets for children under 12. Of course they had their reasons to make this decision to the request made by two young girls. If they would have taken it more seriously, they might view it differently.

Assistant City Manager Mike Wanchick said, "A helmet seems to give a false sense of security to the cyclist, who feel less vulnerable and may ride less cautiously," he also announce, "As a result, riders wearing a helmet are more likely to have an accident."(The Dallas Morning News) The Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute (BHSI) statistics show four states reported for 40 percent of bicycle deaths in 2000; where Texas was one of them. Nevertheless, Wanchick says that "our basic position is that bicycle safety is a parents' primary obligation," adding " What hurts kids are cars and we need to be working the traffic citations out there people who are licensed to drive cars, not kids learning to ride bicycles"(The Dallas Morning News.) Even though, 10 of the largest cities in Texas have bicycle-helmet regulations including Dallas and Fort Worth. The BHSI shows in the statistics that about 800 bicyclists die in the US every year. Moreover, one out of eight of the cyclists injured have a brain injury.

The city also cited U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) data reports that the number of head injuries to cyclists has increased by 10% percent since 1991; even with the increase of helmet use. Number of cyclists has decline at the same time, the data indicated, increasing the rate of head injuries per active cyclist throughout the decade by 51% percent. The CPSC data also shows a significant reduction in cycling where use of helmet is not mandatory. "That represents a public and private loss because cycling is an efficient, healthy and environmentally friendly form of transportation," (The Dallas Morning News) Mr. Wanchick said.

Statistics from the Institute for Traffic Safety analysis support helmet usage affirmed, "Wearing a bike helmet can reduce the risk of head injury by 85% percent and brain injury by 90% percent."(“Helmet Related Statistics from Many Sources”) One of the facts is that we have laws and mandatory training