The Lancet
medical journal
July 11, 1896

The Dangers of Cycling

Cycling which was yesterday the fad of the few is to-day the pastime of the many; it has brought wealth to the way-side town and village, has given a new industry to the country, and by taking the place of more expensive forms of locomotion has facilitated in various ways the carrying on of trade. But unfortunately this progress which has taken place well within a quarter of a century has been attended with the sacrifice of many lives and with numberless casualities, many of which have been very severe. With the advent of the motor cycle it is more than probably that the number of casualities from cycling will increase, in which case legislation will be called for. We should, however, be sorry to see so popular a pastime as cycling trammelled by legislative rules and hope that the good sense of cyclists will prevent anything of the kind if the dangers are pointed out and the remedies which they can themselves apply are suggested.

It is a noteworthy fact that in nearly every case where an accident has occured the cyclist has been riding for pleasure, and it is still further noteworthy that by far the larger percentage of accidents are attributable to recklessness or want of knowledge and skill in manipulating the machine. A prolific source of accident and one which seems to present an every-recurring source of temptation to many cyclists to see how speedily they can sacrifice their lives is hilly ground. The moment the brow of a hill is reached the reckless cyclist seems impelled to take his feet from the pedals and to allow the machine to descend with all the rapidity which weight, gravity, and the gathering force give it. To the novice this is especially attractive, inasmuch as it gives him an opportunity of resting his tired muscles. Providing the rider has a straight and clear road it is just possible that no accident may occur, but the story of casualties from this cause is invariably the same; the cyclist loses control over his machine and collides with some object, be it cart, hedge, or wall, with the resulting effect of death or severe injury. A good brake affixed to the back wheel of the machine would have the effect of considerably reducing the number of accidents from this cause, but, unfortunately, there is an idea that the addition of a brake adds an inconvenient weight to the machine. It is true that there is still room for improvement in the matter of brakes, but there is a pneumatic contrivance on the market which is both safe and effective, it being attached to the back wheel and being very light the excuse of inconvenient weight cannot be urged. Another frequent cause of accident is the practice of "scorching." For the benefit of the uninitiated we may define the term as an impulse over-ruling the cyclist's reason compelling him to overtake any and every moving object which may be in front of him. It is somewhat analogous to the schoolboy's love of overtaking those walking before him, and it shows similar lack of mental control. Oblivious of everything but the one object of overtaking that which is immediately in front of him, he rushes madly on and, if fortunate enough to escape injury to himself, is only too likely to cause serious harm, if not death, to the pedestrian who may be unfortunate enough to be in his way. The ambition for record breaking and the desire for making a "century run"--i.e., the covering of a hundred miles in one day--are greatly responsible for the practice of "scorching" and they should be strongly denounced by any medical man who has an opportunity of advising in the matter. These two causes of accident, which we are sorry to say cannot be attributed to the male sex alone, occur for the most part outside large towns, where reckless riding can be indulged in with some amount of impunity as far as the law is concerned. When we come to consider the accidents which occur in the busy towns we have to chronicle carelessness, incompetence, and a lamentable want of knowledge as to the rules of the road. Quite a number of these accidents occur to women, many of whom are physically unfit to cope with the crowded traffic. Wedged in between a number of vehicles, and lacking the necessary nerve to extricate themselves, they waver, and either run into a horse and cause it to plunge or themselves fall beneath the wheels of a vehicle. The accidents which occur to the male sex may sometimes be attributable to the same cause, but more frequently they are the result of a reckless disregard of danger and a desire to pass by the vehicle in front. This causes the horse to shy and perhaps to upset the cyclist. Riding too close behind a vehicle is another cause of accident. The cart, or whatever it may be, suddenly pulls up, the cyclist rushes into it and is thrown, and another vehicle passes over him. Want of knowledge or wilful disregard of the rules of the road, too, has been the cause of several deaths and severe injuries. It is not, however, always the fault of the cyclist that accidents happen in our crowded thoroughfares. The intolerance of cabmen, the reckless driving of butchers' traps and milk carts and light vants carrying provisions are too well known to need comment. Cabmen, too, often delight in causing much inconvenience and annoyance to cyclists as they possibly can do, and we have been witness of a cabman deliberately crossing to the wrong side of the road in front of a cyclist for no other purpose than the wanton one of causing the latter to dis-mount. Drivers of light private vehicles again frequently show the utmost contempt for the cyclist whom they seem to think has no right whatever to the use of the road. This feeling on the part of drivers often shows itself against  pedestrians and it cannot be too frequently pointed out that the road is not the exclusive property of the drivers of horses and carts. Faulty machines are a source of accident which manufacurers should be made responsible for. Several accidents have occured lately from this cause, and we greatly fear that the increasing demand on the part of the public for machines will not tend to lessen this cause unless manufacturers are made liable. Two serious sources of danger are the use of the crowded roads by learners and the hiring  out of machines to novices. A busy road would seem to be the last place a sensible person would select for learning to ride a bicycle, yet three deaths have taken place from this cause within the past few weeks. The hiring out of bicycles to children and roughs bent on what they call a "spree" should be checked by law. It should be quite possible to license those who let out cycles for hire, and such persons should be made responsible if an accident occurs through the letting out of a machine to an incompetent person.
The cases which we have mentioned are not hypothetical, but have been drawn from a list of recent accidents, and we have instanced them with the object of showing that the accidents connected with cycling are for the most part preventable. Our contemporaries who are devoted to the interests of "wheeling" have, we know, already done good service in this respect, but we venture to assert that if they would impress even more strenuously upon the cycling public the importance of strictly attending to some such simple rules as the following, much good would ensue. These rules are not intended to be exhaustive nor are they for the expert cyclist, altough even the experienced rider should not ignore them.
Thoroughly examine your machine before starting on a journey.
Do not ride without a brake, which should be attached to the back wheel if possible.
Beware of tram lines especially when they are wet.
Avoid turning sharply on a wet or "greasy" road.
Pass horses at a slow speed.
Never take the feet off the pedals when riding down hills.
Do not ride with the hands off the handles especially in crowded thoroughfares.
Ride carefully when passing side streets or the carriage entrances to houses.
Before attempting to pass another vehicle ring the bell when at least twenty yards distant. This will give the rider time to see what the intentions of the driver of the vehicle in front are, and will enable the cyclist to take precautionary measures in time should such be necessary.
When riding in parties vehicles should be passed in single file.
Warning by the bell should be given in as gentle a manner as possible. The sudden ringing of a loud gong is apt to cause a pedestrian to lose his presence of mind and run into the very danger it was the intention of the cyclist he should avoid.
When riding behind vehicles in a crowded thoroughfare be prepared to dismount at a moment's notice if necessary.
Keep on the proper side of the road.[1]
Ladies should not attempt to ride in the public thoroughfares until they have absolute control over and confidence in their machine. They should keep as near as possible to the kerb and ride slowly.
Those who wear a skirt should see that it is not too long. It should be lined in front with some glazed material in order to prevent friction, and all loose drapery which is likely to be caught in the wind and perhaps caught in the machine should be avoided.
In addition we would suggest that persons who let out cycles for hire should be under the control of the police. It should be a punishable offence to let out machines not in proper order and no child or other incompetent person should be allowed to hire a machine.
It should be possible for the police to prevent novices learning to ride in the public thoroughfares.
Railway companies should issue cheap tickets for cyclists and their machines in order that riders might be enabled to commence their journey as far as possible away from crowded thoroughfares.
[1] This rule must be applied with intelligence. There are cases when a deviation from the strict rule will prevent an accident.