Kirksville Bike Safety

Bike Safety in Kirksville

      According to the article Wheels of Progress since 2001 the national use of bicycles has gone up 39%. Bike safety is becoming a bigger issue in cities across the country due to the steady increase in the number of bicycle riders. This increase in two-wheeled transportation has many contributing factors including the cost of owning a car, the latest hipster trend, and the weather. This biking trend is not only good for the environment, because it reduces the amount of pollution communities’ produce, but also a great source of physical exercise. Because this is a growing hobby, users do not realize that communities have bicycle laws that are not only for the safety of bikers but also for the community as a whole.

      Some cities have helmet laws requiring riders to wear helmets when they ride, but the city of Kirksville does not currently have a law like this. Starting November 2012 the Kirksville police department began a long-term bike safety awareness campaign.  The program has already made significant changes to the city by eliminating bikes from the sidewalks in the downtown square. The next portion of the program is bicycle safety education. The findings of a CDC report on pedal-cycle injuries among children concluded that “measures to improve bicycle safety often focus on teaching helmet use and safety bicycling techniques to children aged >5 years, the finding in this report demonstrated that potentially preventable injuries occur among school aged children”.  This explains why the program will include members of the Kirksville police department giving bike safety presentations at the school. Officers also plan to distribute brochures about bike safety tips to members of the community. They do hope to educate the bike riders at Truman about the rules and regulations regarding bicycles.

      Bike safety is important for communities all over the United States. The increase in cyclists has many positive environmental and economical attributes but also leads to an increase in bike related injuries. Work is being done in the Kirksville community to lower the statistics that have to do with biking injuries. KDP has begun implementing a bike safety campaign that includes talking to school aged children about the importance of bicycle safety. “Reducing injury risks for child pedestrians and cyclist would be an important part of any strategy to promote walking and cycling, and might also reduce social class gradients in child injury mortality” (Sonkin, Edwards, Roberts, & Green, 2006). The city of Kirksville is in need of a bike safety program to prevent common biking injuries. Through education and reinforced rules and regulations bike safety will be a significant success for the city.

Adler, B. (2011, October 17). Wheels of Progress. The Nation, 15, 22-24.

CDC. (2006). Pedal-Cycle Injuries Among Children Aged <6 2002-2004.="" i="" wisconsin="" years-=""> Health and Human Services. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Diease Control and Prevention.

Houten, R. V., Houten, J. V., & Malenfant, J. L. (2007, Summer). Impact of a Comprehensive Safety Program on Bicycle Helmet Use Among Middle-School Children. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis , 239-241.

Sonkin, B., Edwards, P., Roberts, I., & Green, J. (2006). Walking, cycling and transport saftey: an analysis of child road deaths. The Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine , 99, 402.

Yokum, C. (2012, November 7). KPD Starts Bike Safety Campaign. Retrieved January 28, 2013, from Truman State University Index: http://tmn.truman.edu/theindex/2012/11/07/kpd-starts-bike-safety-campaign/

-Chrissy Smith