Bike Sharing Program Encourages Helmet Use

A number of bike share programs are now in place across the country, and while they have encouraged bicycling in these cities, California bicycle safety lawyers have been very worried about the fact that many of the persons who rent bicycles through these sharing programs, fail to wear helmets. In Boston, a new bike sharing program tackles this problem.

The bike rental program in Boston is modeled on similar programs that have been launched across the country since the first one in Washington DC in 2008. There are currently 34 such short-term bike rental programs across the country in operation. That is not even including the countless such programs that are currently in place on university campuses around the country. The 34 bike rental programs currently in operation in the United States is just a small fraction of the 535 such programs that are currently being implemented around the world.

There is no denying the fact that these bike rental programs are the way of the future, and as cities get more congested and people look for easier ways of getting around, bike rental programs are only likely to increase in popularity.

However, statistics find that many persons who rent bicycles from bike share programs fail to wear helmets. According to the data, approximately 4 out of 5 persons who rent bicycles from bike share programs, do not wear helmets. According to statistics by the Harvard-affiliated Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre, most bicyclists in Washington and Boston who rent or borrow bike share bicycles, do not wear helmets. That increases the likelihood that they will be injured in an accident by as much as 88%.

The Boston program allows bicyclists to rent cheap helmets, while they are renting their bikes through a convenient Helmet Hub. A 24-hour rental for a helmet costs just two dollars under the program.