Deadliest states for bicyclists

It's Florida, based on the number of fatalities per 1 million population, according to figures in a 2004 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration bicyclist fatality report.

One hundred and twenty-two cyclists died in Florida traffic accidents in 2004, marking a rate of 7.01 deaths per 1 million population. Closely behind were Nevada (6.0), Hawaii (5.54), the District of Columbia (5.42), and South Carolina (5.24).

I contacted Laura Hallam, executive director of the Florida Bicycle Association, to find out about this statistic. She responded:

“FBA has been working feverishly since 1997 on this problem. The Florida DOT has provided funding to assist in our efforts to lower fatalities and injuries from bicycle crashes. Our ped stats are even worse. Could be attributed to Florida's year round mild climate and 17,000,000 population. Regardless, being #1 is not a statistic to be proud of in this case.”

What's the safest? Rhode Island and Wyoming reported 0 bicycling fatalities in traffic accidents.

Florida also led the nation in the statewide number of bicycle fatalities (122), followed by California (110) and Texas (49).

Nationwide the cold, hard truth is that 725 bicyclists were killed in traffic accidents in 2004 and an additional 41,000 were injured.

That's nearly 100 more than in 2003, but 10 percent less than the 802 cyclists killed in traffic accidents 10 years earlier in 1994.

Bicycle fatalities occurred most frequently in urban areas (66 percent); between 5 and 9 p.m. (30 percent); and during the months of June, July and August (35 percent). Thirty-three percent of accidents occurred at intersections, the 2004 report says.

Other trends in the NHTSA report:

Cyclists aged 25 and older have made up an increasing proportion of all cyclist deaths since 1994. However, the rate of cycling deaths for ages 5 to 15 was 3.1 per million population, 24 percent higher than all cyclists;

Alcohol continues to be a factor. In 28 percent of the fatalities, either the motorist or cyclist had a .08 or higher blood alcohol content;

87 percent of cyclists killed in traffic accidents were male.

As we all know, bicycle fatalities remained a seriour problem in 2005, although statistics aren't available. In New York City, the Village Voice reports 21 cyclists died in traffic accidents in 2005; 150 rode through the city's streets to memorialize them last Sunday.