CYCLISTS INVOLVED IN ROAD CRASHES IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA

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1 FACT SHEET CYCLISTS INVOLVED IN ROAD CRASHES IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA August 2014 The following data represents police reported incidents of fatal, and minor casualties. Police data does not show the location of the injury sustained (i.e. head, neck, thorax or limb) but rather the severity of the injuries, based upon whether a hospital stay is required. Table 1 Number of cyclist fatalities per year for the period Fatalities Total 34 A total of 34 cyclists have been killed on South Australian roads since In the last 5 years there have been on average 4 cyclist deaths per year. For the 2009 to 2013 period, cyclist fatalities accounted for three per cent of the total road deaths in South Australia and seven per cent of the total injuries.

2 Casualty trends The number of cyclist injuries reported to the police has varied over the last 10 years, from a low of 47 casualties reported in 2007 to 82 reported in Over the last five years an average of 69 injuries were reported per year. This is slightly up on the previous 10 year average of 65 injuries. Figure 2 Cyclists with injuries reported to police, South Australia, Number of cyclist injuries As can be seen in Figure 3 the number of cyclists with minor injuries reported to police has risen in the last few years. However, this increase has occurred at a lower rate than the increase in bicycle traffic over the same time period. Figure 3 Cyclists with minor injuries reported to police, South Australia, Number of cyclist minor injuries

3 Figure 4 shows cycling casualties, including fatalities, injuries and minor injuries over the longer term. Figure 4 Longer term cyclist casualties (includes fatalities, injuries and minor injuries), South Australia, Number of cyclist casualties Number of cyclists in Adelaide CBD The number of people entering the Adelaide CBD by bicycle is monitored by annual cordon counts each October. Weekday bicycle traffic entering and leaving Adelaide CBD increased by 29% in 2013 over 2009, continuing a recent trend of growth in cycling (78% growth in traffic to/from CBD from ). 5 year trend For the 5-year period , an average of 553 casualties were reported to SA police each year. Of these: 4 were fatalities 69 were ly injured 480 received minor injuries 79% were male 92% were in metropolitan Adelaide 2% were not wearing helmets 3

4 Intersections / midblock There were 352 crashes where a cyclist was killed or ly injured between 2009 and 2013, 52% occurred at intersections and 48% occurred at a midblock section of the road. Table 1 Crashes resulting in a fatal or injury of a cyclist by intersection type, South Australia Serious Fatal Total INTERSECTION Interchange Cross road Y-junction T-junction Multiple TOTAL Intersection MIDBLOCK Rail Crossing - midblock Divided Road Not Divided Road Other TOTAL Midblock % of crashes resulting in a fatal or injury of a cyclist occurred at uncontrolled intersections. On average, in fatal and injury crashes involving another vehicle the cyclist was responsible in 9% of cases. Speed limit/ roads Figure 5 shows a breakdown of crashes where a cyclist was killed or ly injured by the speed limit of the road they were travelling on. It is evident that most occur on roads with a speed limit of 60 km/hr or less; this is likely to be due to more bicycle traffic in these areas. 4

5 Figure 5 Percentage of crashes resulting in a fatal or injury of a cyclist by speed limit of road, South Australia, % 46% Percent of fatal and crashes 40% 0% 33% 13% 7% 1% Speed Limit Km/hr Time of crash The majority of crashes resulting in the injury or death of a cyclist occur at peak times of the day. Almost half of these crashes occur during either 6 9 am or 3 6 pm. Figure 6 Percentage of crashes resulting in a fatal or injury of a cyclist by time of crash, South Australia, % 27% 2 22% 23% Percent of fatal and injury crashes 1 10% 11% 11% 1% 2% 4% 0% Time of Crash 5

6 Helmets Between 2009 and 2013, 6% of all cyclist casualties on South Australian roads were not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash. A 2012 survey of cyclists entering the City of Adelaide between the hours of 7am and 10am, conducted by the Adelaide City Council and the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure revealed that 2950 out of 2955 cyclists wore helmets - that is a 99.8% compliance rate to Australian Road Rule 256 Bicycle Helmets. Age of cyclists Figure 7 Age distribution of cyclists fatality and ly injured, South Australia, % 2 2 Percent of fatal and injuries 1 10% 7% 16% 1 10% 0% Age of rider Figure 7 represents the breakdown of casualties by age. The 5-15 year age group represents 7% of the cyclist casualties. Comparatively this age group (5-15yrs) represents 4% the total casualties sustained on the roads. No casualties of cyclists under the age of 5 were reported in the last 5 years. 6

7 Definitions of police reported casualty types: Casualty Crash - A crash where at least one fatality, injury or minor injury occurs. Casualty A fatality, injury or minor injury. Fatal Crash - A crash for which there is at least one fatality. Fatality - A person who dies within 30 days of a crash as a result of injuries sustained in that crash. Serious Casualty Crash A crash where at least one fatality or injury occurs Serious Casualty A fatality or injury Serious Injury Crash - A non-fatal crash in which at least one person is ly injured. Serious Injury - A person who sustains injuries and is admitted to hospital as a result of a road crash and who does not die as a result of those injuries within 30 days of the crash. Minor Injury Crash - A crash for at least one person sustains injury but no person is admitted to hospital or dies within 30 days of the crash. Minor Injury A person who sustains injuries requiring medical treatment, either by a doctor or in a hospital, as a result of a road crash and who does not die as a result of those injuries with 30 days of the crash. Property Damage Only Crash A crash resulting in property damage in excess of the prescribed amount in which no person is injured or dies within 30 days of the crash. Data sources The data presented in this reports was obtained from the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure Road Crash Database. The information was compiled from police reported road casualty crashes only. Figures relating to the current year are preliminary and are subject to revision. Enquiries For further information about data in this report, contact: Safer People, Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure GPO Box 1533 Adelaide SA DPTI.enquiriesadministrator@sa.gov.au Internet : 7