Bicycle Helmet Debate in Copenhagen

What do you get when you cross a city on an urban bicycling mission with a well-dressed population?

The birth place of Cycle Chic.

Copenhagen is where Cycle Chic was invented, for the sole reason it could not have been anywhere else.

Being the best bicycle city in the world is Copenhagen City Council’s mission and the Copenhageners, unlike the Dutch who already have the world’s best bicycle city title, have a serious passion for fashion.

The chic factor is also helped by the striking good looks of a nation of Vikings.

In true Vikings style there is a battle raging in Copenhagen over none other than a helmet. Not the horned version worn by their great grandfathers, but a modern mutation styled for the bicycle.

And the battle is over what and who is causing a national decline in bicycling rates.

In the city of Copenhagen bicycling has remained steady, but over the last ten years Denmark has experienced a decline in cycling, not a good look for a city on a mission to be the world’s best bicycle nation.

The decline coinsides with the promotion of helmets in Denmark which were previously unheard of in this fashion-conscious, and bicycle-loving nation.

There seems no clear answer, with all sides of the debate either claiming there has been no decline, or that there are too many factors involved to know why.

One thing is for sure, helmet promotion was not brought in for the reason that cycling in Copenhagen is dangerous enough to require a helmet.

In fact, the opposite is the case with bicycling being safer now than ever before due to Copenhagen’s ever expanding bicycle infrastructure: wider bicycle lanes, some as wide as a full car lane; whole train carriages reserved for passengers with bicycles; traffic lights that preference bicycles; balancing bars at lights so bicycle commuters need not dismount; and much more.

Despite all this the perception that bicycling has become less safe is increasing, which seems to be the reason why an ever increasing number of Copenhageners are wearing helmets.

The question still remains.

Why when a city is expanding bicycle infrastructure and giving bicycles more space on the road would people suddenly, after a 100 year history of bicycling helmet free, start thinking it unsafe and wear helmets?

The answer is they wouldn’t, and they didn’t until the advertising of helmets created the concern.  Concern not for themselves, concern for their children.

Copenhagen’s helmet lobby has worked hard to get a foot in, and as with all advertising they have found out how to push the right buttons and their advertising campaigns have focused on the nervous parent.

Slogans like “Keep the little ones safe in traffic”, not only deliberately target every parent’s eternal fear for their child’s safety, but worse, being seen to be a bad parent.

It is also a complete distortion of reality in a city where the bicycle lanes are so wide and often completely separated from the car traffic that one never need ride with kids in traffic at all.

It has however, worked wonders. Ask Copenhageners why they wear helmets and “Because my kids do”, or “Because I have kids” came in the top answers.

Ask people why they don’t wear helmets and “Because I feel safe” and “I’ve never had an accident” are the main responses.

Not a seemingly unreasonable situation. Keeping children safe in traffic is a major concern for any parent, but worrying when the research shows that the wearing of helmets has the reverse effect.

The wearing of helmets completely changes the dynamics between bicycle and car commuters, causing both groups to manage their vehicles with less care and tolerance, and increases car vs. bicycle conflicts.

Car drivers no longer view bicycle riders as vulnerable road users like they do pedestrians, but rather as armed competitors for road space.

Bicycle commuters also take on a bullet-proof mentality and ride with less care around their fellow bicycle riders and perform risky manoeuvres in traffic.

Luckily for Copenhagen’s health and safety authorities the other 80% of Copenhagen’s bicycling citizens continue to ride helmet free and will keep the world’s most ambitious bicycle city on track to becoming the best.