If you ride a bike, someone will eventually express concern for your safety. “Isn’t biking dangerous?” they’ll ask in one way or another. Thanks to scientists at Utrecht University’s “Institute for Risk Assessment,” that question just became a little easier to answer.
Their study, “Do the Health Benefits of Cycling Outweigh the Risks?” was recently published in Environmental Health Perspectives and the answer to their question was a resounding, “Yes!” Even though riding a bike exposes people to more deadly air pollution and traffic crashes than driving a car, the health benefits of bicycling’s physical activity far outweighed those risks.
The authors conclude that the health benefits of cycling are on average nine times greater than the risks associated with driving a car.
When we ask, “Do the Health Benefits of Cycling Outweigh the Risks?” it’s difficult to consider the risks of inactivity when frightening images of grisly crash scenes stay so fresh and emotionally-charged in our minds. As a result, it’s easy to get hung up on the perceived risks of our travel choices.
Studies like this one help us to take a step back and recalibrate those perceptions. Who would’ve imagined, for instance, that when biking instead of driving, air pollution poses a much greater threat than the traffic around you? Perhaps face-masks are the new helmet. More importantly, studies like these remind us that active lifestyles keep us healthy and living longer.
Still, the BTA is not ignoring the risks, highlighted by this study, that bicyclists face. Our programs reduce road conflicts and by encouraging biking, we are cutting down on air pollution.
Rather than asking ourselves if bicycling is worth the risk, we should be asking if NOT biking is worth the risk.
