In the short video, one of Nantes' most important cycling routes, Quai de la Fosse, can be viewed in quick succession on a winter morning. Many cyclists crossed, most of them indeed wear fluorescent reflective clothing (vests, helmets or other yellow accessories).
While the yellow vest is supposed to increase your visibility with other road users, but what hinders us is its negative image, a bit like the helmet, which sends a connotation of dangerousness to a public of uninitiated, and could discourage the most reluctant to get into urban cycling.
You'll say, "Yes, ok, but I'm already riding a bike, I'm not going to put myself in danger, just to tell others to do it." Surely you will be right. But does this yellow vest make you safe? In this regard, several studies contradict each other.
A Danish study carried out a full-scale study on a fairly large panel of urban cyclists (7000). One half agreed to wear a yellow vest on each of their trips. The other half was a so-called control group and therefore did not wear one.
Every 1st of the month, all these cyclists received a questionnaire asking them to report any incidents, incivilities, close pass (the car that collapsed) or even accidents that they would have been the victim the previous month. Here, the results obtained are in favor of the high-visibility vest, which, according to the conclusion, reduces by 55% the risk of accidents with a motorized vehicle.
Another study, the British one, was conducted jointly by the University of Bath and that of Brunel in London. Dr. Garrard, from the University of Bath, used an ultrasonic distance sensor to record how far each vehicle passed during his daily commute to Berkshire and London.
Each day, he chose one of these seven outfits randomly, ranging from tight lycra cyclist clothes (a sign of an experienced cyclist) to a high-visibility vest with "novice cyclist" printed on the back (signaling a low experience).
Result: no matter the holding carried, the scientist systematically noted between 1 and 2% of motorists dangerous behavior towards him. "This means that the solution to prevent cyclists from being injured when passing a vehicle is not to be found in the cyclist, we cannot make cycling safer by telling cyclists what to wear. We should instead create safer spaces for cycling - by building high-quality, separate bike lanes, encouraging smoother routes with quieter traffic, or raising awareness among drivers. " indicates the study in conclusion.
Dr. Ian Walker, of Brunel University, had already looked into the subject of cyclist safety in 2006 and concluded that a motorist would be more likely to brush a cyclist in passing if a cyclist is a man and he is wearing a helmet.
Yet another study, always English, indicates that the yellow vest sew on reflective tape could also induce a false sense of security, both from the motorist and from the cyclist, who can adopt a more "exposed" behavior and therefore, on the contrary, to decrease it, it could increase the risk.
AESTHETIC BIKE: THE SEDUCTION
Two results of very different studies, one obtained on a very large panel of cyclists, in a pro-bike country (Denmark), the other on a single cyclist and in a country still very automotive-oriented (United Kingdom).
So it is difficult to deny the interest and effectiveness of high-visibility clothing, but, as a conclusion, I would say that promoting the bike solution is also - to borrow an expression of the sympathetic Pierre Chasseray - to be in seduction.
And force is to confess that to put a non-cyclist in the saddle, the fluorescent yellow is not what we made more glamorous in the matter. It is also necessary to pass the message of a certain aestheticism by bike. If you take the helmet (which is not imposed on you), this safety accessory has also become a fashion accessory. And the manufacturers compete in shapes and colors to seduce the urban cyclist.
That being said, in Scandinavian countries, urban cyclists do not need a yellow vest or helmet:Do not forget that our safety will also come in numbers and the more we will be in urban areas, the lower the risk will be, because motorized users will become accustomed to our presence and adopt safer behaviors - "the more it There are cyclists, the fewer accidents. " This is not the time to discourage those who would like to get started!
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