Cycling is good for the body, soul and traffic congestion

CYCLING is not a risky activity. On the contrary, it is relatively safe and extremely healthy. The assertion that “cycling still means taking your life in your hands and is really not an option for most”, in a recent article on Dublin’s new traffic plan, is both factually incorrect and dangerously misleading.

Studies have shown that the risk of being involved in serious road accident is the same, or lower, for cyclists as for those travelling in private cars, and many times lower than those involved in genuinely risky activities, such as motorcycling.

As well as this, cycling involves a much lower risk than alternative forms of transport, for other reasons. Cyclists are exposed to much lower levels of pollution than those in cars or buses.