An assessment of the pedal cycle accident problem in South Africa.

The fatality rate for pedal cyclists in both South Africa and Rhodesia in terms of fatalities per cycle in use is approximately 20 times that in the U.S.A. The greatest proportion of pedal cyclist fatalities involved black and coloured adult males, and of these a large proportion occur in rural areas at times of poor visibility. It is concluded that because of the relative frequency of pedal cycle accidents, accident location improvement would not be a cost effective cycle accident countermeasure, but that means of improving cyclist and driver behaviour, and improving cycle and cyclist conspicuity warrant investigation.