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The study applied the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) to explore motorcycle riders’ underlying behavioural, normative, and control beliefs towards Advanced Rider Assistance Systems (ARAS). Each belief was explored in terms of three categories of technologies, (i) advanced technologies that help riders manage riding according to situations and conditions, (ii) advanced technologies that help riders to stop, and (iii) advanced technologies that help riders to corner. Eight focus groups were conducted with 39 motorcycle riders (Mage = 44.54 years, 27 males) who resided in Australia. First, participants completed a short online questionnaire which asked demographic information (e.g., age, gender, riding experience), before taking part in a 50-minute semi-structured online focus group. Participants’ knowledge of ARAS differed depending on the type of technology, with most participants reporting good to excellent knowledge of cruise control and standard anti-lock braking system (ABS) and a poor to fair understanding of selectable riding modes and cornering ABS. For behavioural beliefs, two common advantages reported for all three categories of technologies were safety and that the technologies would benefit new riders or riders with less experience. The three common disadvantages included concerns over riders’ reliance on the technologies, cost, and loss of skill or false sense of security. For normative beliefs, participants reported that their loved ones (i.e., partner, family, and friends) would approve of them using these technologies, with participants perceiving that ‘purists’ (i.e., riders who prefer to ride traditional motorcycles) would disapprove. For control beliefs, cost, lack of information on the safety of advanced technologies, and not being able to switch off systems were reported as barriers to use. Lowering insurance premiums, education/test rides, technologies as selectable options, and availability, were all identified as factors that would encour, Safety and Security Science

Micro-mobility use, such as electric scooters (e-scooters), offers convenience and environmental benefits (Christoforou et al., 2021; Vestri, 2021) and it has increased over the last five years following the introduction of shared e-scooter schemes in the United States in 2017 (Christoforou et al., 2021 ). Following the introduction of shared e-scooters there has been an observed increase in the number of people choosing to use personal devices (Haworth et al., 2021). E-scooters are typically used more for transport (Sanders et al., 2020), often replacing active travel modes than motor vehicle use (Sanders et al., 2020) although that is location-dependent (Wang et al., 2022). The use of shared and personal e-scooters is primarily associated with travel time and money savings, as well as the enjoyability of the transport mode (Christoforou et al., 2021 ). Perceived lack of safety has been shown to influence consumer acceptance (Kopplin et al., 2021). E-scooter riders have been shown to be at risk of trauma to the head and extremities (Bauer et al., 2020), although little is known about the events leading to trauma (e.g., fall as a result of rough terrain, collision with a vehicle). Protective equipment can reduce the risk of incidents (e.g., improving visibility of vulnerable road users) or lessen the risk of injury (e.g., helmets). Generally, little is known regarding the use of helmets and other protective equipment by e-scooter riders, except when injuries occur. Trauma studies have reported low ( 4.4%; Trivedi et al., 2019) to moderate (46%; Mitchell et al., 2019) use of helmets. While the majority of e-scooter presentations occur during evenings (Vemon et al., 2020), little is known about the use of reflective equipment by scooter riders. The aim of this paper is to explore factors that influence the use of protective equipment, including helmets and reflective equipment, by e-scooter riders. [From: Introduction]

There are worrying reports of escalating numbers of emergency department presentations by riders and pedestrians with injuries caused by electric scooters (e‐scooters). In Brisbane, injuries involving shared e‐scooters were monitored for about 2 months in early 2019; of the 109 patients for whom data were available, 12 had minor head injuries, three major head injuries, 23 upper limb fractures, and seven lower limb fractures. Not wearing helmets, travelling at more than 30 km/h, and alcohol consumption were identified as significant factors in e‐scooter accidents...

Many jurisdictions around the world have implemented laws to require a minimum distance when motor vehicles pass cyclists, but research into the factors influencing passing distances has produced inconsistent results, indicating the need for future research. This study examined the factors influencing motorists’ compliance with a legislated bicycle passing distance rule in Queensland, Australia. Unlike the earlier studies, which used volunteer riders to record passing events, this study used a naturalistic study design to record passing events where none of the motorists or the cyclists were aware of being studied. As a result, this study captured the ‘true’ driving and riding behaviours during passing events. The likelihood of non-compliance was greater on higher (70–80 km/h speed limits) and lower (40 km/h) speed roads than 60 km/h roads, at curved road sections, and on roads with narrower traffic lanes. Rider characteristics (age, gender, helmet status, type of clothing, type of bicycle, and individual or group riding) had no statistically significant association with compliance status. The findings indicate that efforts to improve cyclist safety during overtaking events should focus on non-rider related factors, such as roadway infrastructure characteristics.

Minimum passing distance (MPD), or three-foot, laws have been introduced in several countries to reduce the occurrence and severity of crashes occurring when motorists overtake cyclists. However, research into the effectiveness of these laws is lacking. This study was an evaluation of a 2-year trial of a MPD rule in Queensland, Australia. The evaluation comprised of four components; (i) Police officers (n = 21) were interviewed to evaluate the practicality of implementing the rule; (ii) Motorists (n = 4,332) and cyclists (n = 3,013) were surveyed to assess their awareness, attitudes and self-reported compliance; (iii) passing events (n=3,202) were observed at 15 urban, regional, and tourist locations on South East Queensland roads to assess compliance with the rule; (iv) analysis of police crash, injury, and infringement data. Police reported that the rule was difficult to enforce and many motorists surveyed doubted their ability to accurately judge lateral distance. Just over half of the motorists (52.5%) and almost all cyclists (94.7%) agreed with the rule. Most motorists and cyclists surveyed had observed motorists giving cyclists more space when overtaking than 12 months earlier. The observed non-compliance rates were 12.1% at low speed sites (60 km/h or lower speed limits) and 20.9% at high speed sites, suggesting that compliance with the MPD rule was relatively good. It is premature to draw conclusions regarding the road safety benefits of the road rule given the lack of pre-implementation data and detailed crash and injury data. These initial findings, however, suggest that the MPD road rule encourages motorists to provide more space to cyclists and as such, improves cyclist safety.

Police crash reports are often the main source for official data in many countries. However, with the exception of fatal crashes, crashes are often underreported in a biased manner. Consequently, the countermeasures adopted according to them may be inefficient. In the case of bicycle crashes, this bias is most acute and it probably varies across countries, with some of them being more prone to reporting accidents to police than others. Assessing if this bias occurs and the size of it can be of great importance for evaluating the risks associated with bicycling. This study utilized data collected in the COST TU1101 action “Towards safer bicycling through optimization of bicycle helmets and usage”. The data came from an online survey that included questions related to bicyclists' attitudes, behaviour, cycling habits, accidents, and patterns of use of helmets. The survey was filled by 8655 bicyclists from 30 different countries. After applying various exclusion factors, 7015 questionnaires filled by adult cyclists from 17 countries, each with at least 100 valid responses, remained in our sample. The results showed that across all countries, an average of only 10% of all crashes were reported to the police, with a wide range among countries: from a minimum of 0.0% (Israel) and 2.6% (Croatia) to a maximum of a 35.0% (Germany). Some factors associated with the reporting levels were type of crash, type of vehicle involved, and injury severity. No relation was found between the likelihood of reporting and the cyclist's gender, age, educational level, marital status, being a parent, use of helmet, and type of bicycle.

Background: As road complexity increases the requirement for number of road signs also increases, although the amount of road side space does not. One practical strategy to address this is to present multiple road signs on the same gantry (sign co-location). However, there is very little research on the safety implications of this practice. Method: 36 participants (mean age = 42.25 years, SD = 13.99, 18 females) completed three driving simulator scenarios, each scenario had a different sign co-location condition: no co-location, dual co-location and triple co-location. Each scenario presented similar information using direction signs, variable message signs and variable speed limit signs, under. Each drive included standard motorway driving (100km/h speed zone) in free flow traffic and one emergency event where a lead vehicle suddenly braked. The scenario order was counterbalanced and the emergency event vehicle varied. Results: Overall, there was no impact of co-locating signs on general driving performance. No significant difference was observed between conditions for reaction time and minimum headway in response to the emergency event. Participants were able to correctly choose their destination whether the signs were co-located or not. Discussion: For the particular configuration of signs tested there is no evidence that co-location negatively impacts driving performance. However, there may be some implications for travel speed and the manner in which the emergency event is responded to. Future work should confirm the findings on real roads. These findings provided support for sign co-location as a practical and safe option for displaying multiple road signs in a confined area.

Issues addressed - Motorists’ harassment of cyclists is a barrier to cycling. Whether the introduction of a road rule can decrease harassment is unknown. This study examined changes in cyclists’ reporting of harassment pre- to post-introduction of the Queensland trial of the Minimum Passing Distance Road Rule amendment. Methods - Cross-sectional online surveys of cyclists in Queensland, Australia were conducted in 2009 (pre-trial; n=1758) and 2015 (post-trial commencement; n=1997). Cyclists were asked about their experiences of harassment from motorists while cycling. Logistic regression modelling was used to examine differences in the reporting of harassment between these time periods, after adjustments for demographic characteristics and cycling behaviour. Results - At both time periods, the most reported types of harassment were deliberately driving too close (causing fear/anxiety), shouting abuse, and making obscene gestures/sexual harassment. The percentage of cyclists who reported tailgating by motorists increased between 2009 and 2015 (15.1% to 19.5%; p<0.001). The percentage of cyclists reporting other types of harassment did not change significantly. Conclusions - Cyclists in Queensland continue to experience harassment while cycling on the road. The amendment to the minimum passing distance rule in Queensland appears to be having a negative effect on one type of harassment but no significant effects on others. So what? - Minimum passing distances rules may not be improving cyclists’ perceptions of motorists. Additional strategies are required to create a supportive environment for cycling.

The paper presents initial findings from an Austroads funded project NT1782 Ability to Absorb Information through Electronic and Static Signs. The paper aims to investigate how easily messages displayed on co-located signs can be absorbed, and if drivers can absorb messages and take appropriate action without any adverse impact on the safety and efficiency of driving. Co-location of three types of signs under motorway conditions was investigated: direction signs (DS), variable message signs (VMS) and variable speed limits/lane control signs (VSL/LCS). The authors reviewed global wide practices and research evidence on different types of sign co-locations. It was found that dual co-location of VSL/LCS, VMS and/or DS is a practical arrangement which has been widely practised overseas and in Australia. Triple co-location of VSL/LCS, VMS and DS is also practised overseas but is still new to the Australian driving community. The NT1782 project also employed an advanced driving simulator (ADS) to further investigate the possible impacts of sign co-location on drivers’ responses in an emergency situation and there were no obviously adverse impacts have been identified from the ADS study. The authors consolidated all findings and concluded that although there is no clear evidence showing that triple co-location gives rise to riskier behaviour, this proposition should be viewed with caution. Further evaluation of triple co-location in a real-life setting is called for.

Mandatory bicycle helmet laws have been found to increase helmet wearing rates in Australia and internationally. However, much of the research on factors influencing compliance with the Australian helmet laws is dated or focuses on commuters and city areas only. To address this gap, video recordings of bicycle riders were undertaken at 17 sites across Queensland, Australia, representing a mixture of on- and off-road locations, speed limits and regions. Helmet status was able to be determined for 98% of riders observed. The level of compliance with the laws was very high, with 98.3% of the more than 27,000 riders observed wearing helmets. Riders riding on roads were less compliant than those riding on bicycle paths, but no significant differences were observed between the school-holiday and school-term periods. Among the on-road riders, boys were less compliant than girls and overall children were less compliant than adults. Higher compliance levels were found for group riders, road bike riders, lycra-clad riders, during morning hours, and on 50 km/h or lower speed limit roads. While the overall level of compliance was very high, certain subgroups were identified as a possible focus for interventions to further improve the compliance level, for example children (particularly boys) riding mountain bikes away from groups during the afternoon hours on 60 km/h roads.

The two-year trial of the Queensland minimum passing distance (MPD) road rule began on 7 April 2014. The rule requires motor vehicles to provide cyclists a minimum lateral passing distance of one metre when overtaking cyclists in a speed zone of 60 km/h or less, and 1.5 metres when the speed limit is greater than 60 km/h. This document summarises the evaluation of the effectiveness of the new rule in terms of its: 1. practical implementation; 2. impact on road users’ attitudes and perceptions; and 3. road safety benefits. The Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety – Queensland (CARRS-Q) developed the evaluation framework (Haworth, Schramm, Kiata-Holland, Vallmuur, Watson & Debnath; 2014) for the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) and was later commissioned to undertake the evaluation. The evaluation included the following components: • Review of correspondence received by TMR; • Interviews and focus groups with Queensland Police Service (QPS) officers; • Road user survey; • Observational study; and • Crash, injury and infringement data analysis.

This paper presents some results from preliminary analyses of the data of an international online survey of bicycle riders, who reported riding at least once a month. On 4 July 2015, data from 7528 participants from 17 countries was available in the survey, and were subsequently cleaned and checked for consistency. The median distance ridden ranged from 30 km/week in Israel to 150 km/week in Greece (overall median 54 km/week). City/hybrid bicycles were the most common type of bicycle ridden (44%), followed by mountain (20%) and road bikes (15%). Almost half (47%) of the respondents rode “nearly daily”. About a quarter rode daily to work or study (27%). Overall, 40% of respondents reported wearing a helmet ‘always’, varying from 2% in the Netherlands to 80% in Norway, while 25% reported ‘never’ wearing a helmet. Thus, individuals appeared to consistently either use or not use helmets. Helmet wearing rates were generally higher when riding for health/fitness than other purposes and appeared to be little affected by the type of riding location, but some divergences in these patterns were found among countries. Almost 29% of respondents reported being involved in at least one bicycle crash in the last year (ranging from 12% in Israel to 53% in Turkey). Among the most severe crashes for each respondent, about half of the crashes involved falling off a bicycle. Just under 10% of the most severe crashes for each respondent were reported to police. Among the bicycle-motor vehicle crashes, only a third were reported to police. Further analyses will address questions regarding the influence of factors such as demographic characteristics, type of bicycle ridden, and attitudes on both bi-cycle use and helmet wearing rates.

Review conducted as part of a Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads funded project ‘Roundabout design review’. The project examined: - Design guidelines - Factors that affect safety at roundabouts

Many cyclist deaths and serious injuries result from rear-end or sideswipe collisions involving a car or heavy vehicle. As a consequence, minimum passing distance laws (often referred to as ‘one metre rules’) have been introduced in a number of U.S. states along with European countries such as France, Belgium and Spain. A two-year trial of a minimum passing distance rule is underway in Queensland. The international studies show that while the average passing distance is more than one metre, significant proportions of passes occur at less than this distance. Average passing distances are greater with wider lanes, when bicycle lanes are present, for cars rather than vans or trucks, and (possibly) at higher speed limits. Perceived characteristics of the cyclist (other than gender) appear to have little effect on passing distances. The research questions the ability to judge lateral distance and whether nominated distances predict on-road behaviour. Cyclists have strong concerns about drivers passing too close but the extent to which this behaviour reflects deliberate intimidation versus an inability to judge what is a safe passing distance is not clear. There has been no systematic evaluation of the road safety benefits of minimum passing distance laws. These laws have received little police enforcement but it is unclear whether enforcement is necessary for them to be effective.

Roundabouts reduce the frequency and severity of motor vehicle crashes and therefore the number installed has increased dramatically in the last 20 years in many countries. However, the safety impacts of roundabouts for bicycle riders are a source of concern, with many studies reporting lower injury reductions for cyclists than car occupants. This paper summarises the results of a project undertaken to provide guidance on how cyclist safety could be improved at existing roundabouts in Queensland, Australia, where cyclist crashes have been increasing and legislation gives motor vehicles priority over cyclists and pedestrians at roundabouts. The review of international roundabout design guidelines identified two schools of design: tangential roundabouts (common in English-speaking countries, including Australia), which focus on minimising delay to motor vehicles, and radial roundabouts (common in continental Europe), which focus on speed reduction and safety. While it might be expected that radial roundabouts would be safer for cyclists, there have been no studies to confirm this view. Most guidelines expect cyclists to act as vehicle traffic in single-lane, typically low-speed, roundabouts. Some jurisdictions do not permit cyclists to travel on multi-lane roundabouts, and recommend segregated bicycle facilities because of their lowest crash risk for cyclists. Given that most bicycle-vehicle crashes at roundabouts involve an entering vehicle and a circulating cyclist, the greatest challenges appear to be reducing the speed of motor vehicles on the approach/entry to roundabouts and other ways of maximizing the likelihood that cyclists will be seen. Lower entry speeds are likely to underpin the greater safety of compact roundabouts for cyclists and, conversely, the higher than expected crash rates at two-lane roundabouts. European research discourages the use of bike lanes in roundabouts which position cyclists at the edge of the road and contributes to cyclists being l

The use of intelligent transport systems is proliferating across the Australian road network, particularly on major freeways. New technology allows a greater range of signs and messages to be displayed to drivers. While there has been a long history of human factors analyses of signage, no evaluation has been conducted on this novel, sometimes dynamic, signage or potential interactions when co-located. The purpose of this driving simulator study was to investigate drivers’ behavioural changes and comprehension resulting from the co-location of Lane Use Management Systems with static signs and (Enhanced) Variable Message Signs on Queensland motorways. A section of motorway was simulated, and nine scenarios were developed which presented a combination of signage cases across levels of driving task complexity. Two higher-risk road user groups were targeted for this research on an advanced driving simulator: older (65+ years, N=21) and younger (18-22 years, N=20) drivers. Changes in sign co-location and task complexity had small effect on driver comprehension of the signs and vehicle dynamics variables, including difference with the posted speed limit, headway, standard deviation of lane keeping and brake jerks. However, increasing the amount of information provided to drivers at a given location (by co-locating several signs) increased participants’ gaze duration on the signs. With co-location of signs and without added task complexity, a single gaze was over 2s for more than half of the population tested for both groups, and up to 6 seconds for some individuals.

All levels of government continue to advocate increasing the number of people cycling for recreation and transport. However, governments and the general public still have concerns about the implications for the safety of cyclists and other road users. While there is concern about injury for bicycle-pedestrian collisions, for 2008-09 in Australia only 40 pedestrians were hospitalised as a result of a collision with a cyclist (and 33 cyclists from collisions with pedestrians). There is little research that observes changes over time in actual cyclist behaviours and interactions with other road users. This paper presents the results of an observational study of cycling in the Brisbane Central Business District based on data collected using the same methodology in October 2010 and 2012.

The focus of governments on increasing active travel has motivated renewed interest in cycling safety. Bicyclists are up to 20 times more likely to be involved in serious injury crashes than drivers so understanding the relationship among factors in bicyclist crash risk is critically important for identifying effective policy tools, for informing bicycle infrastructure investments, and for identifying high risk bicycling contexts. This study aims to better understand the complex relationships between bicyclist self reported injuries resulting from crashes (e.g. hitting a car) and non-crashes (e.g. spraining an ankle) and perceived risk of cycling as a function of cyclist exposure, rider conspicuity, riding environment, rider risk aversion, and rider ability. Self reported data from 2,500 Queensland cyclists are used to estimate a series of seemingly unrelated regressions to examine the relationships among factors. The major findings suggest that perceived risk does not appear to influence injury rates, nor do injury rates influence perceived risks of cycling. Riders who perceive cycling as risky tend not to be commuters, do not engage in group riding, tend to always wear mandatory helmets and front lights, and lower their perception of risk by increasing days per week of riding and by increasing riding proportion on bicycle paths. Riders who always wear helmets have lower crash injury risk. Increasing the number of days per week riding tends to decrease both crash injury and non crash injury risk (e.g. a sprain). Further work is needed to replicate some of the findings in this study.

Drink driving is a major public health issue and this report examines the experiences of convicted offenders who participated in an established drink driving rehabilitation program Under the Limit (UTL). Course completers were surveyed at least three months after they had finished the 11-week UTL course. The aim of this study was to examine whether the UTL program reduced the level of alcohol consumption either directly as a result of participation in the UTL drink driving program or through increased use of community alcohol program by participants. The research involved a self-report outcome evaluation to determine whether the self-reported levels of alcohol use after the course had changed from the initial alcohol use reported by offenders. The findings are based on the responses of 30 drink-driving offenders who had completed the UTL program (response rate: 20%). While a process evaluation was proposed in the initial application, the low response rate meant that this follow up research was not feasible. The response rate was low for two reasons, it was difficult to: recruit participants who consented to follow up, and subsequently locate and survey those who had consented to involvement.

Motorcycle trauma is a serious road safety issue in Queensland and throughout Australia. In 2009, Queensland Transport (later Transport and Main Roads or TMR) appointed CARRS-Q to provide a three-year program of Road Safety Research Services for Motorcycle Rider Safety. Funding for this research originated from the Motor Accident Insurance Commission. This program of research was undertaken to produce knowledge to assist TMR to improve motorcycle safety by further strengthening the licensing and training system to make learner riders safer by developing a pre-learner package (Deliverable 1 which is the focus of this report), and by evaluating the Q-Ride CAP program to ensure that it is maximally effective and contributes to the best possible training for new riders (Deliverable 2), which is the focus of this report. Deliverable 3 of the program identified potential new licensing components that will reduce the incidence of risky riding and improve higher-order cognitive skills in new riders. While fatality and injury rates for learner car drivers are typically lower than for those with intermediate licences, this pattern is not found for learner motorcycle riders. Learner riders cannot be supervised as effectively as learner car drivers and errors are more likely to result in injury for learner riders than learner drivers. It is therefore imperative to improve safety for learner riders. Deliverable 1 examines the potential for improving the motorcycle learner and licence scheme by introducing a pre-learner motorcycle licensing and training scheme within Queensland. The tasks undertaken for Deliverable 1 were a literature review, analysis of learner motorcyclist crash and licensing data, and the development of a potential pre-learner motorcycle rider program.

This research project examined objective measures of driver behaviour and road users' perceptions on the usefulness and effectiveness of three specific VMS (Variable Message Signs) interventions to improve speeding and headway behaviours. The interventions addressed speeding behaviour alone (intervention 1), headway behaviour alone (intervention 2) and a combination of speeding and headway behaviour (intervention 3). Six VMS were installed along a segment of the Bruce Highway, with a series of three signs for each of the northbound and southbound traffic. Speeds and headway distances were measured with loop detectors installed before and after each VMS. Messages addressing speeding and headway were devised for display on the VMS. A driver could receive a message if they were detected as exceeding the posted speed limit (of 90km/hr) or if the distance to the vehicle in front was less than 2.0s. In addition to the on-road objective measurement of speeding and headway behaviours, the research project elicited self-reported responses to the speeding and headway messages from a sample of drivers via a community-based survey. The survey sought to examine the drivers' beliefs about the effectiveness of the signs and messages, and their views about the role, use, and effectiveness of VMS more generally.

The focus of governments on increasing active travel has motivated renewed interest in cycling safety. Bicyclists are up to 20 times more likely to be involved in serious injury crashes than drivers so understanding the relationship among factors in bicyclist crash risk is critically important for identifying effective policy tools, for informing bicycle infrastructure investments, and for identifying high risk bicycling contexts. This study aims to better understand the complex relationships between bicyclist self reported injuries resulting from crashes (e.g. hitting a car) and non-crashes (e.g. spraining an ankle) and perceived risk of cycling as a function of cyclist exposure, rider conspicuity, riding environment, rider risk aversion, and rider ability. Self reported data from 2,500 Queensland cyclists are used to estimate a series of seemingly unrelated regressions to examine the relationships among factors. The major findings suggest that perceived risk does not appear to influence injury rates, nor do injury rates influence perceived risks of cycling. Riders who perceive cycling as risky tend not to be commuters, do not engage in group riding, tend to always wear mandatory helmets and front lights, and lower their perception of risk by increasing days per week of riding and by increasing riding proportion on bicycle paths. Riders who always wear helmets have lower crash injury risk. Increasing the number of days per week riding tends to decrease both crash injury and non crash injury risk (e.g. a sprain). Further work is needed to replicate some of the findings in this study.

Recent increases in cycling have led to many media articles highlighting concerns about interactions between cyclists and pedestrians on footpaths and off-road paths. Under the Australian Road Rules, adults are not allowed to ride on footpaths unless accompanying a child 12 years of age or younger. However, this rule does not apply in Queensland. This paper reviews international studies that examine the safety of footpath cycling for both cyclists and pedestrians, and relevant Australian crash and injury data. The results of a survey of more than 2,500 Queensland adult cyclists are presented in terms of the frequency of footpath cycling, the characteristics of those cyclists and the characteristics of self-reported footpath crashes. A third of the respondents reported riding on the footpath and, of those, about two-thirds did so reluctantly. Riding on the footpath was more common for utilitarian trips and for new riders, although the average distance ridden on footpaths was greater for experienced riders. About 5% of distance ridden and a similar percentage of self-reported crashes occurred on footpaths. These data are discussed in terms of the Safe Systems principle of separating road users with vastly different levels of kinetic energy. The paper concludes that footpaths are important facilities for both inexperienced and experienced riders and for utilitarian riding, especially in locations riders consider do not provide a safe system for cycling.

The city centre represents a complex environment for cycling with large volumes of pedestrians and motorised vehicles and frequent signalised intersections. Much of the previous literature has focused on cyclist-motor vehicle interactions because of the safety implications for cyclists, but there is increasing concern from pedestrians about the threats they perceive from cyclists. In the absence of objective data, this has the potential to lead to restrictions on cyclist access and behaviour. This presentation reports the development of a method to study the extent of cycling in the city centre and the frequency and nature of interactions between cyclists and pedestrians. Queensland is one of the few Australian jurisdictions that permits adults to cycle on the footpath and this was also of interest. 1992 cyclists were observed at six locations in the Brisbane city centre, during 7-9am, 9-11am, 2-4pm and 4-6pm on four weekdays in October 2010. The majority (85.5%) of cyclists were male, and 21.8% rode on the footpath. Females were more likely to travel on the footpath than males. One or more pedestrians were within 1m for 18.1% of observed cyclists, and one or more pedestrians were within 5m for 39.1% of observed cyclists. There were few conflicts, defined as an occasion where if no one took evasive action a collision would occur, between cyclists and pedestrians or vehicles (1.1% and 0.6% respectively) but they were more common for adolescents and riders not wearing (or not fastening) helmets.

Various state and local government initiatives have been implemented to encourage Australians to ride bicycles. Decreasing the number of trips taken by motor vehicle has benefits for the both the individual and the community, including health, congestion and environmental benefits. This research examined who the new cyclists are, how much and where they ride.

Government promotion of active transport has renewed interest in cycling safety. Research has shown that bicyclists are up to 20 times more likely to be involved in serious injury crashes than drivers. On-road cycling injuries are under-reported in police data, and many non-serious injuries are not recorded in any official database. This study aims to explore the relationships between rider characteristics and environmental factors that influence per kilometre risk of bicycle-related crash and non-crash injuries.

Recent increases in cycling have led to concerns about interactions between cyclists and pedestrians on footpaths and off-road paths. Much of the cycling research suggests that riding on the footpath is more dangerous than on the road. In most Australian jurisdictions, adults are only permitted to cycle on footpaths when accompanying a child. However, this rule does not apply in Queensland. This paper examines the predictors of footpath riding by adults in Queensland

Introduction Government promotion of active transport has renewed interest in cycling safety. Research has shown that bicyclists are up to 20 times more likely to be involved in serious injury crashes than drivers. On-road cycling injuries are under-reported in police data, and many non-serious injuries are not recorded in any official database. This study aims to explore the relationships between rider characteristics and environmental factors that influence per kilometre risk of bicycle-related crash and non-crash injuries. Method A survey of 2,532 Queensland adults who had ridden at least once in the past year was conducted from October 2009 to March 2010, with most responses received online (99.3%). Riders were asked where they rode (footpath, bike path, road etc.), average travel speed, purpose of riding, type of bike ridden, how far and how often they rode in. Measures of rider experience, skill, safety perceptions, safety behaviours, crash involvement and demographic characteristics were also collected. RESULTS Increasing exposure and having more expensive bicycles were shown to reduce the risk per km of crash and non-crash injury rates, and to reduce perceived risk. Never wearing bright coloured clothing related to increased crash risk, use of fluorescent and reflective clothing had no effect on crash risk. Riding in low-speed environments, never using a front light, and riding in low-speed environments were associated with reduced non-crash injury risk. Perceived risk was influenced by exposure, use of conspicuity aids and helmets, riding for utilitarian reasons, and group-riding behaviours. DISCUSSION Perceived risk does not appear to influence injury rates and injury rates do not appear to influence the perceived risk of cycling. Riders who perceive cycling to be risky tend not to be commuters, do not engage in group riding and always wear helmets. Not all measures of conspicuity were associated with risk, with rear lights found to have no relationship to

Characteristics of the road infrastructure affect both the popularity of bicycling and its safety, but comparisons of the safety performance of infrastructure may be confounded by differences in the profiles of cyclists who use them. Data from a survey of 2,532 adult bicycle riders in Queensland, Australia, demonstrated that many riders rode reluctantly in particular locations and that preference for riding location was influenced by degree of experience and riding purpose. Most riders rode most often and furthest per week on urban roads, but approximately one-third of all riders (and more new riders) rode there reluctantly. Almost two-thirds of riders rode on bicycle paths, most by choice, not reluctantly. New riders rode proportionally more on bicycle paths, but continuing riders rode further in absolute terms. Utilitarian riders were more likely to ride on bicycle paths than social and fitness riders and almost all of this riding was by choice. Fitness riders were more reluctant in their use of bicycle paths, but still most of their use was by choice. One-third of the respondents reported riding on the sidewalk (legal in Queensland), with approximately two-thirds doing so reluctantly. The frequency and distance ridden on the sidewalk was less than for urban roads and bicycle paths. Sidewalks and bicycle paths were important facilities for both inexperienced and experienced riders and for utilitarian riding, especially when urban roads were considered a poor choice for cycling.

Several sets of changes have been made to motorcycle licensing in Queensland since 2007, with the aim of improving the safety of novice riders. These include a requirement that a motorcycle learner licence applicant must have held a provisional or open car licence for 12 months, and imposing a 3 year limit for learner licence renewal. Additionally, a requirement to hold an RE (250 cc limited) class licence for a period of 12 months prior to progressing to an R class licence was introduced for Q-RIDE. This paper presents analyses of licensing transaction data that examine the effects of the licensing changes on the duration that the learner licence was held, factors affecting this duration and the extent to which the demographic characteristics of learner licence holders changed. The likely safety implications of the observed changes are discussed.

Recent research on bicycle helmets and concerns about how public bicycle hire schemes will function in the context of compulsory helmet wearing laws have drawn media attention. This monograph presents the results of research commissioned by the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads to review the national and international literature regarding the health outcomes of cycling and bicycle helmets and examine crash and hospital data. It also includes critical examinations of the methodology used by Voukelatos and Rissel (2010), and estimates the likely effects of possible segmented approaches to bicycle helmet wearing legislation. The research concludes that current bicycle helmet wearing rates are halving the number of head injuries experienced by Queensland cyclists. Helmet wearing legislation discouraged people from cycling when it was first introduced but there is little evidence that it continues to do so. Cycling has significant health benefits and should be encouraged in ways that reduce the risk of the most serious injuries. Infrastructure and speed management approaches to improving the safety of cycling should be undertaken as part of a Safe System approach, but protection of the individual by simple and cost-effective methods such as bicycle helmets should also be part of an overall package of measures.

Media articles have promoted the view that cyclists are risktakers who disregard traffic regulations, but little is known about the contribution of cyclist risk-taking behaviours to crashes. This study examines the role of traffic violations in the 6774 police-reported bicycle crashes in Queensland between January 2000 and December 2008. Of the 6328 crashes involving bicycles and motor vehicles, cyclists were deemed to be at fault in 44.4% of the incidents. When motorists were determined to be at-fault, ‘failure to yield’ violations accounted for three of the four most reported contributing factors. In crashes where the cyclist was at fault, attention and inexperience were the most frequent contributing factors. There were 67 collisions between bicycles and pedestrians, with the cyclist at fault in 65.7%. During the data period, 302 single-bicycle crashes were reported. The most frequent contributing factors were avoidance actions to miss another road user and inattention or negligence.

This literature review examines the relationship between traffic lane widths on the safety of road users. It focuses on the impacts of lane widths on motor vehicle behaviour and cyclists’ safety. The review commenced with a search of available databases. Peer reviewed articles and road authority reports were reviewed, as well as current engineering guidelines. Research shows that traffic lane width influences drivers’ perceived difficulty of the task, risk perception and possibly speed choices. Total roadway width, and the presence of onroad cycling facilities, influence cyclists’ positioning on the road. Lateral displacement between bicycles and vehicles is smallest when a marked bicycle facility is present. Reduced motor vehicle speeds can significantly improve the safety of vulnerable road users, particularly pedestrians and cyclists. It has been shown that if road lane widths on urban roads were reduced, through various mechanisms, it could result in a safety environment for all road users.