A World Health Organization (WHO) report from 1975 showed a high fatality risk for school children bicycling in Denmark, four times higher than in Sweden. A comparative study was therefore carried out in Linköping and in Odense, consisting of 6 sub-investigations: (1) The technical condition of the bicycles, which was best in Odense; (2) The attitude of the parents to their children's risk as bicyclists. The Swedish parents were more restrictive than the Danish parents; (3) The safety standards of the roads according to the Swedish "TRAAD" system. This was generally better in Odense but not for roads used by children for cycling; (4) The children's behaviour as bicyclists in the traffic judged from video films. This part could not be evaluated in a comparative way; (5) The bicycle activity of the children, their routes and the purposes of the trips; and (6) The "health risk" was compared based on identical casualty room figures. The apparent diffference in activity risk therefor disappears when these factors are taken into consideration.
Abstract