In the framework of questions like climate protection, healthy lifestyles and more livable cities it is important to increase cycle use and replace motorized traffic. Safe cycling is one of the preconditions for the growth of cycle use, especially considering the more vulnerable user groups. But how important is safety in relation to other factors influencing bicycle friendliness like comfort of the cycle path and bike parking, accessibility or communication? And how is the relation between 'objective safety' - represented by the number of recorded accidents - and 'subjective safety' as the perceived safety feeling ofthe bike users? [From: Introduction]

Cycling contributes to public health because it requires physical effort [1] and offers economic and environmental advantages over motorized transport [2]. However, 41,000 cyclists die every year in traffic crashes, 3% of the total worldwide [3]. Most fatal bicycle crashes are collisions with motor vehicles. Severe injuries among cyclists, however, are mostly due to single bicycle crashes and their numbers are increasing [4, 5]. An international review showed that the share of hospitalised casualties due to single-bicycle crashes varied from 3% to 41 % of the total number of hospitalised casualties [ 6]. ... The aim of the present study is to investigate the relationship between cycle track width and lateral position. We conducted an experiment in which the cycle track width was manipulated to determine its effect on lateral position. The results have been compared with previous findings from literature. [From: Introduction]

This paper sets out to identify skills required by cyclists to navigate safely through an urban environment in Switzerland. We set out to identify situations that might result in accidents and require specific competences. Three study studies were conducted First, workshops with experts were conducted to identify required cyclists' skills. Second, accident statistics were analysed to determine in which type of situations accidents occur. Finally, a survey was conducted among Swiss cyclists to assess which skills were present and which skills were lacking. The remainder of this extended abstract describes the three studies in some detail and continues with an outlook for the final paper. [from Introduction]

Cycling as a mode of transportation has been recording an upward trend in both the U.S. and Europe. Unfortunately, the safety of cyclists has been a point of growing concern. Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) show that the crashes that occur during the events of motorists overtaking cyclists was one of the leading categories involving cyclists in fatal crashes. In support of the efforts to understand the driving behavior of drivers of motorized vehicles while overtaking cyclists, this research project is aimed at developing an algorithm to identify the overtaking events. Most existing quantitative studies on cycling safety leverage instrumented bicycles or vehicles with sensors for extracting naturalistic driving trajectories. Whereas we use data from a recent research that provides naturalistic driving trajectories of road users collected at select intersections in urban areas in Germany using drones equipped with cameras. Using these videos with a data frequency of 25 Hz, the authors of this study have output inD dataset. The inD dataset contains trajectories of road users that are captured in form of coordinates on a two-dimensional plane obtained from the ariel or bird's eye view of the road. Additionally, the data also captures velocity, acceleration, heading angles, dimensions of driver's vehicle etc. Overtaking can be thought of as four phases of approaching, steering away, passing, and returning. Using the inD dataset, we have developed an algorithm to identify events when a driver of motor vehicle overtakes a cyclist. This work fits into our broader goal to contribute to the body of knowledge for improving road safety of cyclists. The work is expected to provide inputs to governmental/ traffic authorities in aspects such as design of intersections and design of bicycle lanes by providing insights into overtaking events. [from Indroduction]

Children between the age of 10 to 14 increasingl.y use their bik.e as a means of transport. Unfortunately, they still show deficits in competencies needed for safe traffic participation ( e.g. erratic attention or self-awareness ). This is reflected in an increase in the risk of accidents involving bicylces for 10-to 14-year-olds: 56.8% of 10- to 14-year-old children who have bad road traffic accidents in 2020, had bicycle accidents. In Germany, there are various programs to improve bicycle safety for children. In contrast to the ,,Fahrradführerschein' (bicycle driving license which usually takes place in fourth grade), programs for 10 to 14 year-olds are less standardized and various offers exist. There has been no evaluation on the quality of these programs yet. Therefore, we developed an evaluation standard for programs that aim to improve cycling safety for 10-to 14- year-olds. To do so, a catalogue of criteria was developed which helps describe and evaluate cycling projects for children in this age group. We then evaluated existing projects and collected them in a web-based database. Our aim is to provide a gu.ideline to evaluating cycling safety programs for 10-to 14-year-olds and to offer an overview about various existing programs.

The shift towards automation and safer vehicles will increasingly involve use of technological advancements such as Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). Nevertheless, these technologies need to meet users’ perceived needs to be effectively implemented and purchased. Based on an updated version of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), this study analyses the main determinants of drivers’ intention to use an ADAS aimed at detecting cyclist and preventing potential collision with them through an auto-braking system. Even if the relevance of perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and trust on the acceptance of a new system has been already discussed in literature, we considered the role of an external variable such as attitudes towards cyclists in the prediction of an ADAS aimed to improve the safety of cyclists. We administered a questionnaire measuring negative attitudes towards cyclists, trust, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and the behavioural intention to use the system to 480 Italian drivers. Path analysis using Bayesian estimation showed that perceived usefulness, trust in the system, and negative attitudes towards cyclists have a direct effect on the intention to use the ADAS. Considering the role of attitudes towards other road users in the intention to use new ADAS aimed to improve their safety could foster the user’s acceptance, especially for those people who express a negative representation of cyclists and are even more unlikely to accept the technology.

In Europe, the use of electric bicycles is rapidly increasing. This trend raises important safety concerns: Is their use compatible with existing infrastructure and regulations? Do they present novel safety issues? How do they impact other traffic? This study sought to address these concerns, using instrumented electric bicycles to monitor e-cyclists’ behavior in a naturalistic fashion. Data was collected from 12 bicyclists, each of whom rode an instrumented bicycle for two weeks. In total, 1500 km worth of data were collected, including 88 critical events (crashes and near-crashes). Analysis of these critical events identified pedestrians, light vehicles and other bicycles as main threats to a safe ride. Other factors also contributed to crash causation, such as being in proximity to a crossing or encountering a vehicle parked in the bicycle lane. A comparison between electric and traditional bicycles was enabled by the availability of data from a previous study a year earlier, which collected naturalistic cycling data from traditional bicycles using the same instrumentation as in this study. Electric bicycles were found to be ridden faster, on average, than traditional bicycles, in addition to interacting differently with other road users. The results presented in this study also suggest that countermeasures to bicycle crashes should be different for electric and traditional bicycles. Finally, increasing electric bicycle conspicuity appears to be the easiest, most obvious way to increase their safety.

Physical inactivity increases the risk of multiple diseases with extensive personal and societal effects [1]. For instance, the annual economic cost of physical inactivity is estimated to be more than 80 billion euros in the European Union (EU) [2]. One measure to increase physical activity is the promotion of active transport modes, such as cycling. Finland is aiming to increase the mode share of active transport modes to 35-38% by 2030 [3]. In tbe most recent national travel survey 8% of daily trips were made by bicycle and 22% of daily trips involved walking [ 4]. A shift from cars to more sustainable transport modes is desirable, however more work is needed to promote cycling safety, with cyclists over-represented in fatal (11%) and serious injuries (32%) when compared to mode share [5]. Amongst cyclist crashes in Finland, single-bicycle crashes (SBCs), where other road users are not collided with, represent more than half of non-fatal injuries [6-7] and 46% of fatal injuries [8--9]. This proportion of non-fatal injuries is similar to findings from other jurisdictions [6]. However, the rate of fatal injuries in SBCs is substantially higher in Finland compared to the average rate in Europe [10], highlighting the importance of understanding SBCs in a Finnish context. Analyses of SBCs are usually more challenging than crashes between bicycles and motor vehicles because SBCs are typically underreported in police-reported crash data [11]. However, in Finland, road crash investigation teams investigate almost all fatal road crashes, including SBCs. This captures high-quality information on SBCs including their contributory and background risk factors, as well as safety recommendations. Identifying the contributory factors that enable the occurrence of crashes and implementing actions to prevent these crashes can help promote cycling safety [ 12]. Such analyses and actions are particularly needed in Finland, where there are targets to increase the mode share of cycling. Given the robust data available through the in-depth investigations undertaken in Finland, this study aims to increase knowledge on SBCs and their safety recommendations by analysing data on fatal cycling crashes in Finland. The study compares the key characteristics, risk factors and safety recommendations regarding SBCs and other cyclist crashes. Although the data for this study is sourced from Finland, the findings are useful in other countries with similar bicycle infrastructure and weather conditions. [From: Introduction]

Unlike motor-vehicle transport, the implementation of lnformation and Communications Technologies (ICT) and Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (C-ITS) in cycling has not been comprehensively investigated [1]. Cycling offers several benefits both to society and the environment and is one of the most sustainable and green transportation modes [2]. Many people worldwide have been switching to bicycles during the last decades, and this has increased even more due to the Covid pandemic [3]. Furthermore, the number of people who ride an e-bike is also rising [ 4]. Thus, the number of cyclists is increasing and, in turn, the number of cycling accidents is increasing too. For instance, in the Netherlands, one of the most cycling-friendly countries, 31 % of all road fatalities in 2019 were cyclists (203 fatalities), while in 2020, it was 37% (229 fatalities). One-third of these fatalities were e-bike users [5]. Despite the constantly evolving landscape of cycling and electric bike adoption, applications of new technologies in bicycles are still immature. In recent years, academic research on new technologies related to cyclists' comfort and safety is growing [6, 7, 8]. Furthermore, many studies focus on technologies affecting cyclists' road safety; however, it is unclear what type of technologies are implemented for bicycles. To the best of the authors' knowledge, a comprehensive review of such studies is lacking. Additionally, a clear definition of a 'smart bike'- a concept gaining popularity nowadays, is missing in the literature. To address this gap, the objective of this paper is two fold: 1) to review the state-of-the-art technologies implemented in bicycles to improve cyclists' safety, and 2) to propose an original classification for the levels of smartness of newly emerging 'smart bikes'.

Mobility has a vital impact on the quality of life in a city. Yet, traditional modes of car-centric transportation models generate large externalities that must be tackled by cities - such as congestion, noise and air pollution. The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg in Germany is striving for a mobility transition, making mobility more sustainable and environmentally friendly. The city wants to change the mobility behaviour by strengthening the means of transport that are causing less impact on the environment and climate. By 2030, the goal is to increase the share of cycling, walking and public transport to a total of 80 per cent of all routes travelled. Cycling, which is especially cost- and space-efficient, plays a crucial role here. More specifically, the share of all joumeys made by bike should be increased by 25-30 per cent within this decade. Within the framework of Hamburg's strategy of lntelligent Transport Systems (ITS), the city fosters, develops and conducts ITS-projects that focus, amongst others, on cycling. In order to increase the proportion of cycling, it is essential to promote its attractiveness. A cycling infrastructure that ensures smooth and easy cycling within the city is vital for a competitive alternative to motorised private transport. Furthermore, people enjoy cycling when they feel comfortable and safe [e.g. 3]. The ITS-project PrioBilce-HH follows this approach and addresses both topics: cycling comfort and safety. This abstract focuses on the aspect of safety.