■Bicycle-bicycle accidents(1) Cyclists must come to a stop at intersections with stop signs. They should also ride slowly throughintersections with poor visibility, even in the absence of a stop sign, or come to a complete stop tocheck to make sure that it is safe.
(2) Morning is a time period when everyone is in a rush. When people are in a rush they fail toadequately check to confirm safety, which means they are more liable to cause accidents. Makean effort to leave home a little earlier and dedicate yourself to a pressure-free riding.
(Masahide Honda)

Follow thefive principles
for safe bicycleuse!

1. Ride on roadways as a general rule, and only on
sidewalks as an exception
2. On roadways, ride on the left side
3. On sidewalks, pedestrians have priority so rideslowly close to the roadway
4. Follow the safety rules● Drunk riding, riding with two people,
and riding side-by-side are prohibited● Use a light at nighttime● At intersections, abide by the traffic signals,
come to a complete stop and confirm safety
5. Children must wear helmets〒101-0064 東京都千代田区猿楽町2-7-8 住友水道橋ビル8階
TEL 03-5577-3977(代表) FAX 03-5577-3980

FAX 03-5577-3980

ITARDA INFORMATION no.112●E メール koho@itarda.or.jp

つくば 交通事故調査事務所~To ensure that your precious child is not the perpetrator of a traﬃc accident~

Age group 13-18 areoften the perpetratorsof traﬃc accidents
while riding bicycles!

35

No.112

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9 or under 10 ‒ 12

13 ‒ 15 16 ‒ 18

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25 ‒ 4445 ‒ 64 65 or over

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2 Trends in the number of bicycle accidents ・
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公益財団法人 交通事故総合分析センター●ウェブサイト http://www.itarda.or.jp/

Accidents perpetrated by cyclists

No. of cyclist-perpetrators per 100,000 of the population by age group (2014)

http://www.npa.go.jp/koutsuu/kikaku/bicycle/index.htm

TEL 03-5577-3973

lSpeciafeature* Population as of October 1, 2014 from statistical data of the Ministry of Internal Aﬀairs and Communications* For the number of perpetrators, the number of cyclists who caused accidents in which the other party was a casualty
was tabulated.

Reference: Please see the homepage of the National Police Agency for the structure of the Cyclist Retraining Course.
National Police Agency homepage. Ensure safe and comfortable traffic / Safely riding bicycles by following the rules: Bicycles are classified as vehicles.

渉外事業課

交通事故分析レポート No.112

0Bicycles are classiﬁed as vehicles. Cyclists must follow traﬃc rules and ride bicycles safely.

イタルダインフォメーションに関するお問い合せ先ITARDA INFORMATION

No. of cyclist-perpetrators
per 100,000 of the population■Bicycle-pedestrian accidents(1) Pedestrians have priority on sidewalks. When cyclists have no choice but to ride on sidewalks,
they must be attentive to pedestrians, and must ride slowly near roadways. Also, cyclists must
avoid riding in a manner that would cause pedestrians to jump back, such as by ringing a bell or
passing close beside them.
(2) Using a light improves rider’s visibility to pedestrians. Take care to use your light in order to bevisible when it starts to get dark. Furthermore, when selecting a children’s bicycle, select one with
an automatic light feature to prevent the children from forgetting to turn on their light.

ITARDA INFORMATION

Bicycles do not require a driver’s license, and can even be used by children who do not know thetraffic rules. But these children frequently end up perpetrating accidents. To ensure that children do
not perpetrate accidents, it will be important to promote traffic safety education for cyclists as part oftheir school education, while also providing them with instruction that reiterates this at home. Given
the fact that 13 – 18 year old cyclists in particular tend to perpetrate accidents, it is important to work
to thoroughly inform them of traffic rules, such as by providing bicycle safety education aligned withthe timing in which they advance in school.
For bicycle-pedestrian accidents, violations by pedestrians are rare, and pedestrians are madecasualties as a result of one-sided carelessness on the part of the cyclist. Conversely, withbicycle-bicycle accidents, more than 60% of secondary party cyclists were guilty of some sort ofviolation, and both cyclists bear responsibility for the accident. However, in cases where the otherparty becomes a casualty due to the accident, then the rider must bear the commensurate
responsibility for this. Young cyclists and their parents must pay attention to the following points toensure that they do not perpetrate accidents.

交通事故分析レポート

7 Conclusion

イタルダ インフォメーション

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7 Conclusion・

Accidents perpetrated by cyclists~ To ensure that your precious child is not the perpetrator of a traffic accident ~ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

1 Introduction

3 Are cyclists victims or perpetrators?

In 2014, 112,134 people were involved in an accident while riding their bicycle (total for both primary andsecondary parties), and roughly 65% of these people committed some sort of traffic violation that served as thecause of the accident. Bicycles are classified as vehicles in the sense that they must be ridden in accordance withtraffic regulations such as the Road Traffic Law and other related laws and regulations. But you often catch sight ofbicycles being ridden dangerously without the rider upholding traffic rules and the like. The Cyclist Retraining
Course *1) was initiated in June 2015, and efforts geared towards improving compliance with traffic rules andetiquette among bicycle users are being strengthened.
Many of the people who have accidents while riding their bicycle become casualties. Therefore there is a strong
impression that cyclists are vulnerable road users (victims). However, there are also cases where the other parties
involved in the accident caused by traffic violations by cyclists become casualties, particularly in the case of
accidents that occur with pedestrians and between cyclists, with a strong tendency for the cyclist to be theperpetrator. In actuality, there have been court decisions handed down in cases where elementary school students
riding their bicycles collided with pedestrians and were deemed to have inflicted injuries that left the other person
severely disabled, such that their parents were ordered to pay enormous sums amounting to several tens of
millions of yen (hundreds of thousands of dollars) in compensation, as would have been in the case of any othervehicle accidents.
Therefore, in this issue of ITARDA Information we will analyze “bicycle-pedestrian accidents” and “bicycle-bicycle
accidents” in which cyclists tend to be the perpetrators, and will introduce the characteristics of these accidents.
*1) The Cyclist Retraining Course is a course that mandates that cyclists who are 14 years or older and have repeatedly engaged in certain dangerous acts, suchas ignoring traffic signals while riding their bicycle on two or more occasions within three years, must attend safety classes for cyclists.

2 Trends in the number of bicycle accidents

2013

2014

Rate ofNo.
decreasedecreased(%)

Versus four-wheeledvehicle152,302 144,519 141,357 134,308 130,754 127,422 121,006 111,414 102,118

92,19260,11039.5

Versus two-wheeledvehicle12,70911,34011,642

10,639

9,975

9,498

9,134

7,854

7,023

6,071

6,638

52.2

Bicycle-bicycle

4,039

4,055

4,184

4,348

3,919

3,799

3,616

3,260

3,037

2,865

1,174

29.1

Bicycle-pedestrian

2,617

2,783

2,869

2,959

2,946

2,770

2,806

2,625

2,605

2,551

66

2.5

Single bicycle

5,926

5,770

5,484

5,015

4,371

3,747

3,179

2,816

2,499

2,212

3,714

62.7

Other

6,400

6,002

5,633

5,393

4,520

4,445

4,317

4,079

3,758

3,378

3,022

47.2

No. of bicycle accidents 183,993 174,469 171,169 162,662 156,485 151,681 144,058 132,048 121,040

109,269

74,724

40.6

No. of cyclists involved

112,134

75,898

40.4

2011

2012

188,032 178,524 175,353 167,010 160,404 155,480 147,674 135,308 124,077* Tabulates accidents in which a cyclist is the primary or secondary party involved in an accident.
* The number decreased and the rate of decrease were found as a result of comparing figures from 2005 and 2014.

ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

100％

10.3

Uninjured
2.8

90％

80％

80％

70％

70％

60％
50％

87.5

79.5

84.6

94.5
92.0

88.2

99.9

94.8

79.3

85.3

60％
50％

40％

40％

30％

30％

20％
7.4

Fatality
0.5

Bicycle4.8

Serious
injury0.7

Other party

7.2

Fatality
0.5

BicycleSlightinjury0.1

4-W vehicle

Versus 4-W vehicle

6.4

SlightinjuryFatality
13.1
2.3
0.2

Bicycle2-W vehicle

Versus 2-W vehicle

Serious17.5 injury
2.9
Primary
party

10.3

Serious
injury0.9

Secondaryparty

Bicycle-bicycle

Uninjured
Slight injury
Serious injury
Fatality20％
4.3

Fatality
0.1 11.8

BicyclePedestrian

10％0％Bicycle-pedestrian* Cases where it has not been proven that the injury to a party was caused by a hit-and-run or the like were excluded.

Fig. 1. Rate for the degree of injury severity of cyclist and other road users involvedin an accident by accident type (total from 2010 – 2014)

4 Age groups that tend to cause bicycle-pedestrian
and bicycle-bicycle accidents
Fig. 2 shows the number of cyclists that caused
bicycle-pedestrian accidents and bicycle-bicycle
accidents per 100,000 of the population (onlyprimary parties for bicycle-bicycle accidents) by
age group. For both bicycle-pedestrian accidents
and bicycle-bicycle accidents, the number ofchildren in the higher grades at elementary
school (ages 10 – 12), of which there are many
bicycle users, begins to rise, with the number
increasing as the children advance onto thehigher grades in middle school (ages 13 – 15) andhigh school (ages 16 – 18). This is believed to be
due to the fact that the frequency with which they
use their bicycles to commute to school increases
as they advance into the higher grades, andbecause they have more opportunity to use theirbicycles as they cannot choose other means oftransportation, such as a car or motorcycle, theway an adult could.

25

No. of cyclist-perpetrators
per 100,000 of the population

2005

2010

5.2

Uninjured
0.3〜13 – 18 year old cyclists tend to perpetrate accidents〜Classiﬁcation byother party

2009

90％

Uninjured
4.6

Bicycle accidents overall

Table 1. Trends in the no. of bicycle accidents
2008

100％

0％

As shown in Table 1, the number of bicycle accidents continues to decrease year by year, and has fallen byapproximately 75,000 cases (40.6%) relative to 2005. However, the rate of decline for bicycle-pedestrian accidents
is 2.5% and that for bicycle-bicycle accidents is 29.1%, which are both low compared with bicycle accidents on thewhole. This means that the accidents perpetrated by cyclists have not fallen all that much. Bicycles are convenient
vehicles for which you do not need a driver’s license. However, bicycle users must be self-aware of the fact thatthey are dangerous vehicles that have the potential to inflict harm on people just like any other vehicle, and theirawareness of traffic safety must be increased.

2007

Fig. 1 shows the rate for degree of injury severity to the parties involved in an accident for each type of other party. The
parties were divided up into primary and secondary parties according to the relative gravity of the negligence, and here
we classified people who became casualties as victims and those causing the casualties as perpetrators. For bicycle
accidents as a whole, the cyclist became a casualty in about 95% of the cases (except for secondary parties inbicycle-bicycle accidents), whereas the other party became a casualty in roughly 5% of the cases. By just looking at
this you could possibly be led to think that cyclists are often involved in accidents as victims. However, when you lookat only bicycle-bicycle accidents and bicycle-pedestrian accidents, you can see that primary party cyclists rarely
become casualties, and the rate with which the other party involved in the accident (secondary parties inbicycle-bicycle accidents, pedestrians) become casualties, increases. Consequently, while cyclists are victims against
four-wheeled vehicles and two-wheeled vehicles, they could be the perpetrators against other cyclists and pedestrians.

10％〜Small rate of decrease in accidents perpetrated by cyclists 〜

2006〜They tend to be perpetrators in bicycle-pedestrian accidents〜

Rate for the degreeof injury severitylSpeciafeatureBicycle-bicycle accidents

20

Bicycle-pedestrian accidents

15
10
5
0

9 or 10 ‒ 12 13 ‒ 15 16 ‒ 18 19 ‒ 24 25 ‒ 44 45 ‒ 64 65 or
under
over

Age groups* Population as of October 1 of each year from statistical data of the Ministry ofInternal Affairs and Communications was used.
* For the number of cyclists, primary and secondary parties for bicycle-pedestrian
accidents and primary parties for bicycle-bicycle accidents were tabulated.

Fig. 2. No. of cyclist-perpetrators per 100,000 of the population
by age of cyclist (total from 2010 – 2014)
ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

Accidents perpetrated by cyclists~ To ensure that your precious child is not the perpetrator of a traffic accident ~ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

1 Introduction

3 Are cyclists victims or perpetrators?

In 2014, 112,134 people were involved in an accident while riding their bicycle (total for both primary andsecondary parties), and roughly 65% of these people committed some sort of traffic violation that served as thecause of the accident. Bicycles are classified as vehicles in the sense that they must be ridden in accordance withtraffic regulations such as the Road Traffic Law and other related laws and regulations. But you often catch sight ofbicycles being ridden dangerously without the rider upholding traffic rules and the like. The Cyclist Retraining
Course *1) was initiated in June 2015, and efforts geared towards improving compliance with traffic rules andetiquette among bicycle users are being strengthened.
Many of the people who have accidents while riding their bicycle become casualties. Therefore there is a strong
impression that cyclists are vulnerable road users (victims). However, there are also cases where the other parties
involved in the accident caused by traffic violations by cyclists become casualties, particularly in the case of
accidents that occur with pedestrians and between cyclists, with a strong tendency for the cyclist to be theperpetrator. In actuality, there have been court decisions handed down in cases where elementary school students
riding their bicycles collided with pedestrians and were deemed to have inflicted injuries that left the other person
severely disabled, such that their parents were ordered to pay enormous sums amounting to several tens of
millions of yen (hundreds of thousands of dollars) in compensation, as would have been in the case of any othervehicle accidents.
Therefore, in this issue of ITARDA Information we will analyze “bicycle-pedestrian accidents” and “bicycle-bicycle
accidents” in which cyclists tend to be the perpetrators, and will introduce the characteristics of these accidents.
*1) The Cyclist Retraining Course is a course that mandates that cyclists who are 14 years or older and have repeatedly engaged in certain dangerous acts, suchas ignoring traffic signals while riding their bicycle on two or more occasions within three years, must attend safety classes for cyclists.

2 Trends in the number of bicycle accidents

2013

2014

Rate ofNo.
decreasedecreased(%)

Versus four-wheeledvehicle152,302 144,519 141,357 134,308 130,754 127,422 121,006 111,414 102,118

92,19260,11039.5

Versus two-wheeledvehicle12,70911,34011,642

10,639

9,975

9,498

9,134

7,854

7,023

6,071

6,638

52.2

Bicycle-bicycle

4,039

4,055

4,184

4,348

3,919

3,799

3,616

3,260

3,037

2,865

1,174

29.1

Bicycle-pedestrian

2,617

2,783

2,869

2,959

2,946

2,770

2,806

2,625

2,605

2,551

66

2.5

Single bicycle

5,926

5,770

5,484

5,015

4,371

3,747

3,179

2,816

2,499

2,212

3,714

62.7

Other

6,400

6,002

5,633

5,393

4,520

4,445

4,317

4,079

3,758

3,378

3,022

47.2

No. of bicycle accidents 183,993 174,469 171,169 162,662 156,485 151,681 144,058 132,048 121,040

109,269

74,724

40.6

No. of cyclists involved

112,134

75,898

40.4

2011

2012

188,032 178,524 175,353 167,010 160,404 155,480 147,674 135,308 124,077* Tabulates accidents in which a cyclist is the primary or secondary party involved in an accident.
* The number decreased and the rate of decrease were found as a result of comparing figures from 2005 and 2014.

ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

100％

10.3

Uninjured
2.8

90％

80％

80％

70％

70％

60％
50％

87.5

79.5

84.6

94.5
92.0

88.2

99.9

94.8

79.3

85.3

60％
50％

40％

40％

30％

30％

20％
7.4

Fatality
0.5

Bicycle4.8

Serious
injury0.7

Other party

7.2

Fatality
0.5

BicycleSlightinjury0.1

4-W vehicle

Versus 4-W vehicle

6.4

SlightinjuryFatality
13.1
2.3
0.2

Bicycle2-W vehicle

Versus 2-W vehicle

Serious17.5 injury
2.9
Primary
party

10.3

Serious
injury0.9

Secondaryparty

Bicycle-bicycle

Uninjured
Slight injury
Serious injury
Fatality20％
4.3

Fatality
0.1 11.8

BicyclePedestrian

10％0％Bicycle-pedestrian* Cases where it has not been proven that the injury to a party was caused by a hit-and-run or the like were excluded.

Fig. 1. Rate for the degree of injury severity of cyclist and other road users involvedin an accident by accident type (total from 2010 – 2014)

4 Age groups that tend to cause bicycle-pedestrian
and bicycle-bicycle accidents
Fig. 2 shows the number of cyclists that caused
bicycle-pedestrian accidents and bicycle-bicycle
accidents per 100,000 of the population (onlyprimary parties for bicycle-bicycle accidents) by
age group. For both bicycle-pedestrian accidents
and bicycle-bicycle accidents, the number ofchildren in the higher grades at elementary
school (ages 10 – 12), of which there are many
bicycle users, begins to rise, with the number
increasing as the children advance onto thehigher grades in middle school (ages 13 – 15) andhigh school (ages 16 – 18). This is believed to be
due to the fact that the frequency with which they
use their bicycles to commute to school increases
as they advance into the higher grades, andbecause they have more opportunity to use theirbicycles as they cannot choose other means oftransportation, such as a car or motorcycle, theway an adult could.

25

No. of cyclist-perpetrators
per 100,000 of the population

2005

2010

5.2

Uninjured
0.3〜13 – 18 year old cyclists tend to perpetrate accidents〜Classiﬁcation byother party

2009

90％

Uninjured
4.6

Bicycle accidents overall

Table 1. Trends in the no. of bicycle accidents
2008

100％

0％

As shown in Table 1, the number of bicycle accidents continues to decrease year by year, and has fallen byapproximately 75,000 cases (40.6%) relative to 2005. However, the rate of decline for bicycle-pedestrian accidents
is 2.5% and that for bicycle-bicycle accidents is 29.1%, which are both low compared with bicycle accidents on thewhole. This means that the accidents perpetrated by cyclists have not fallen all that much. Bicycles are convenient
vehicles for which you do not need a driver’s license. However, bicycle users must be self-aware of the fact thatthey are dangerous vehicles that have the potential to inflict harm on people just like any other vehicle, and theirawareness of traffic safety must be increased.

2007

Fig. 1 shows the rate for degree of injury severity to the parties involved in an accident for each type of other party. The
parties were divided up into primary and secondary parties according to the relative gravity of the negligence, and here
we classified people who became casualties as victims and those causing the casualties as perpetrators. For bicycle
accidents as a whole, the cyclist became a casualty in about 95% of the cases (except for secondary parties inbicycle-bicycle accidents), whereas the other party became a casualty in roughly 5% of the cases. By just looking at
this you could possibly be led to think that cyclists are often involved in accidents as victims. However, when you lookat only bicycle-bicycle accidents and bicycle-pedestrian accidents, you can see that primary party cyclists rarely
become casualties, and the rate with which the other party involved in the accident (secondary parties inbicycle-bicycle accidents, pedestrians) become casualties, increases. Consequently, while cyclists are victims against
four-wheeled vehicles and two-wheeled vehicles, they could be the perpetrators against other cyclists and pedestrians.

10％〜Small rate of decrease in accidents perpetrated by cyclists 〜

2006〜They tend to be perpetrators in bicycle-pedestrian accidents〜

Rate for the degreeof injury severitylSpeciafeatureBicycle-bicycle accidents

20

Bicycle-pedestrian accidents

15
10
5
0

9 or 10 ‒ 12 13 ‒ 15 16 ‒ 18 19 ‒ 24 25 ‒ 44 45 ‒ 64 65 or
under
over

Age groups* Population as of October 1 of each year from statistical data of the Ministry ofInternal Affairs and Communications was used.
* For the number of cyclists, primary and secondary parties for bicycle-pedestrian
accidents and primary parties for bicycle-bicycle accidents were tabulated.

Fig. 2. No. of cyclist-perpetrators per 100,000 of the population
by age of cyclist (total from 2010 – 2014)
ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

lSpeciafeatureAccidents perpetrated by cyclists~ To ensure that your precious child is not the perpetrator of a traffic accident ~ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

5 Characteristics of bicycle-pedestrian accidents■ Human factor in accidents■ Time periods with lots of accidents

When you look at the human factor of cyclists in accidents you see that inattention to what is ahead and failure to confirm
safety occupy a large share for each type. In particular, roughly half of 13 – 18 year olds fail to pay attention to what is ahead
while riding towards oncoming pedestrians or overtaking pedestrians, and it was revealed that many cyclists fail to keep aclose eye on what is ahead. Further, while riding towards oncoming pedestrians or overtaking pedestrians, the rate for failure
to observe surrounding traffic movement is high compared with other bicycle-pedestrian accidents (Fig. 6). Given that thepedestrians may sometimes come to a sudden standstill or turn around, cyclists must keep a close eye on movement of thepedestrians around them and leave enough space in between when passing the latter on sidewalks and the like. Conversely,
approximately 90% of the pedestrians who get into accidents where a cyclist is riding towards oncoming pedestrians orovertaking them are not guilty of any violation, and in other bicycle-pedestrian accidents as well approximately 70% of thepeople were not guilty of any violation (Fig. 7).

20％

100％

12 or under15％

13 ‒ 18
19 ‒ 2410％

25 ‒ 64
65 or over

5％

0％

0:00

1:00

2:00

3:00

4:00

5:00

6:00

7:00

8:00

10:00
12:00
14:00
16:00
18:00
20:00
22:00
9:00
11:00
13:00
15:00
17:00
19:00
21:00
23:00

Fig. 3. Rates for time periods in which bicycle-pedestrian accidents occur (total from 2010 – 2014)■ In what sorts of situations do accidents occur?

〜Roughly 40% of bicycle-pedestrian accidents occur on sidewalks〜

80％
70％

17.1

20.4

60％
50％

6.0
6.1

40％

7.8
22.9

100％
Other
At intersections
Roadways(without sidewalks)

16.9

Roadways(with sidewalks)

9.6

Side strips

4.0

Sidewalks

30％
20％

44.1

38.8

10％
0％

Composition rateof bicycle-pedestrian accidents

Composition rateof locations where accidents occur

90％

6.3

90％
80％

* Age group expresses the age group of the cyclist.

Fig. 4. Bicycle-pedestrian accidents
by age of cyclist and location(total from 2010 – 2014)
ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

33.7

70％
60％
50％
40％

9.0
4.7
1.8
5.9
18.5

30％
20％
10％

13 ‒ 18
Other age groups（n=2,992） （n=10,365）

33.4

0％

3.6
22.9

90％
80％
70％
60％

12.1
5.3
2.8
10.4
14.7
1.9
18.9

Other
Crossing other than ata pedestrian crossing(Non-intersection, etc.)(Intersection)
Crossing at a pedestriancrossing(Non-intersection, etc.)(Intersection)
Riding towards
oncoming pedestrians /overtaking pedestrians(Non-intersection, etc.)(Side strip)(Sidewalk)13 ‒ 18
Other age groups（n=2,992） （n=10,365）* Age group expresses the age group of the cyclist.

Fig. 5. Bicycle-pedestrian accidents
by age of cyclist and type of accident(total from 2010 – 2014)

Other

15.2

13.9
26.1

17.2

Failure ofprediction

23.5

45.3

49.5

40％
30％

54.9

20％

39.5

10％
13 ‒ 18

Operating
error
Traﬃc
environment

21.5

50％

0％

Figs. 4 and 5 show the locations where bicycle-pedestrian accidents occur and the types of accidents. Roughly
40% of the accidents occur on sidewalks, where cyclists failed to uphold the overriding principle that pedestrians
have priority on sidewalks. When you look at a breakdown of the accidents, many of the accidents involved
collisions with pedestrians walking towards the cyclist from front (riding towards pedestrians) or with pedestrians
walking in front of the cyclist (riding to overtake pedestrians). These are believed to be caused by the cyclist failingto keep a close eye on what is happening up ahead, or not leaving enough space between them when passing.
Cyclists bear a greater responsibility when it comes to accidents on sidewalks. It is important to provide thoroughinstruction on how to ride on sidewalks and the like to bicycle users between the ages of 13 – 18, who have many
accidents on sidewalks.
100％

Composition rate of human factors

Composition rate

Age group of cyclists

Other agegroups30.7

13 ‒ 18

23.7

Failure toobservesurrounding
traﬃcmovement
Failure to
conﬁrm safety
Inattention
to what is
ahead

Other agegroups100％（n=1,349） （n=3,687）（n=1,643） （n=6,678）
While riding towards
oncoming pedestrians
or overtaking pedestrians

Other bicyclepedestrian accidents

Fig. 6. Bicycle-pedestrian accidents by human factor(total from 2010 – 2014)

No violation

90％

Other violation

80％

Dashing out

70％
60％
50％

71.9
88.4

Crossing violationTraﬃc lane violation

40％
30％
20％
10％
0％

While riding
Other bicycletowards oncoming
pedestrianpedestrians or
accidents
overtaking pedestrians（n=5,036）（n=8,321）

Fig. 7. Bicycle-pedestrian accidents
by pedestrian violation (total from 2010 – 2014)■ Effects of using a light 〜Using a light makes it easier for oncoming pedestrians to see cyclists〜
Bicycle lights are not just effective for allowing riders to1000
Roughly 1.6
confirm the conditions around them, but also for alerting other
When riding
-fold
900
towards
people to the presence of a bicycle. Therefore, here we
oncoming
analyze whether having a bicycle light situated in a positionpedestrians
800
that pedestrians can see makes any sort of difference in the
Roughly 2.2
When riding
700
-fold
to overtake
760
number of accidents.
pedestrians
Fig. 8 shows the number of accidents while riding towards
600
oncoming pedestrians or overtaking pedestrians at night by500
whether or not the cyclist was using a light. When not using a532
light, there were roughly 2.2-times more accidents while riding
400
towards oncoming pedestrians than when riding to overtake
300
pedestrians. If there was no effect of increased visibility when
471
using a light, the accidents from riding towards oncoming
200
240
pedestrians when using a light should be about 2.2-times
100
greater, than when riding to overtake pedestrians in the same
way as when no light is used. But there were only 1.6-times
0
more accidents when riding towards oncoming pedestrians
No light
Lightwhen a light was used. In other words, using a light on a * The “No light” category also includes cases where no lights havebeen installed on the bicycle.
bicycle makes it easier to alert oncoming pedestrians to thepresence of the bicycle, so therefore it helps in reducing the
Fig. 8. No. of accidents when riding
occurrence of accidents when riding towards oncoming
towards oncoming pedestrians and overtaking
pedestrians.
pedestrians at night by use/non-use of light(total from 2010 – 2014)
No. of accidents〜Bicycle-pedestrian accidents occur more often in the mornings and evenings〜

Fig. 3 shows the rate for each time period in which bicycle-pedestrian accidents occur by age group of the cyclist.
Generally speaking, they peak in the mornings and evenings, revealing that the majority occur in time periods whenpeople are commuting to and from work and school. This is believed to be because many bicycles and pedestrians
are in transit during this time period, and it is also thought to be impacted by the fact that in the evenings one’s
surroundings become dark and it becomes difficult to detect pedestrians. Moreover, there are many accidents after
the time when people 12 years old or under return home (16:00 - 18:00), or from 10:00 – 12:00 for people 65 years
old or over, with the results reflecting the lifestyle pattern of each age group.

Composition rate of pedestrian violations〜There is a high share of inattention to what is ahead and failure to confirm safety among cyclists〜

ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

lSpeciafeatureAccidents perpetrated by cyclists~ To ensure that your precious child is not the perpetrator of a traffic accident ~ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

5 Characteristics of bicycle-pedestrian accidents■ Human factor in accidents■ Time periods with lots of accidents

When you look at the human factor of cyclists in accidents you see that inattention to what is ahead and failure to confirm
safety occupy a large share for each type. In particular, roughly half of 13 – 18 year olds fail to pay attention to what is ahead
while riding towards oncoming pedestrians or overtaking pedestrians, and it was revealed that many cyclists fail to keep aclose eye on what is ahead. Further, while riding towards oncoming pedestrians or overtaking pedestrians, the rate for failure
to observe surrounding traffic movement is high compared with other bicycle-pedestrian accidents (Fig. 6). Given that thepedestrians may sometimes come to a sudden standstill or turn around, cyclists must keep a close eye on movement of thepedestrians around them and leave enough space in between when passing the latter on sidewalks and the like. Conversely,
approximately 90% of the pedestrians who get into accidents where a cyclist is riding towards oncoming pedestrians orovertaking them are not guilty of any violation, and in other bicycle-pedestrian accidents as well approximately 70% of thepeople were not guilty of any violation (Fig. 7).

20％

100％

12 or under15％

13 ‒ 18
19 ‒ 2410％

25 ‒ 64
65 or over

5％

0％

0:00

1:00

2:00

3:00

4:00

5:00

6:00

7:00

8:00

10:00
12:00
14:00
16:00
18:00
20:00
22:00
9:00
11:00
13:00
15:00
17:00
19:00
21:00
23:00

Fig. 3. Rates for time periods in which bicycle-pedestrian accidents occur (total from 2010 – 2014)■ In what sorts of situations do accidents occur?

〜Roughly 40% of bicycle-pedestrian accidents occur on sidewalks〜

80％
70％

17.1

20.4

60％
50％

6.0
6.1

40％

7.8
22.9

100％
Other
At intersections
Roadways(without sidewalks)

16.9

Roadways(with sidewalks)

9.6

Side strips

4.0

Sidewalks

30％
20％

44.1

38.8

10％
0％

Composition rateof bicycle-pedestrian accidents

Composition rateof locations where accidents occur

90％

6.3

90％
80％

* Age group expresses the age group of the cyclist.

Fig. 4. Bicycle-pedestrian accidents
by age of cyclist and location(total from 2010 – 2014)
ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

33.7

70％
60％
50％
40％

9.0
4.7
1.8
5.9
18.5

30％
20％
10％

13 ‒ 18
Other age groups（n=2,992） （n=10,365）

33.4

0％

3.6
22.9

90％
80％
70％
60％

12.1
5.3
2.8
10.4
14.7
1.9
18.9

Other
Crossing other than ata pedestrian crossing(Non-intersection, etc.)(Intersection)
Crossing at a pedestriancrossing(Non-intersection, etc.)(Intersection)
Riding towards
oncoming pedestrians /overtaking pedestrians(Non-intersection, etc.)(Side strip)(Sidewalk)13 ‒ 18
Other age groups（n=2,992） （n=10,365）* Age group expresses the age group of the cyclist.

Fig. 5. Bicycle-pedestrian accidents
by age of cyclist and type of accident(total from 2010 – 2014)

Other

15.2

13.9
26.1

17.2

Failure ofprediction

23.5

45.3

49.5

40％
30％

54.9

20％

39.5

10％
13 ‒ 18

Operating
error
Traﬃc
environment

21.5

50％

0％

Figs. 4 and 5 show the locations where bicycle-pedestrian accidents occur and the types of accidents. Roughly
40% of the accidents occur on sidewalks, where cyclists failed to uphold the overriding principle that pedestrians
have priority on sidewalks. When you look at a breakdown of the accidents, many of the accidents involved
collisions with pedestrians walking towards the cyclist from front (riding towards pedestrians) or with pedestrians
walking in front of the cyclist (riding to overtake pedestrians). These are believed to be caused by the cyclist failingto keep a close eye on what is happening up ahead, or not leaving enough space between them when passing.
Cyclists bear a greater responsibility when it comes to accidents on sidewalks. It is important to provide thoroughinstruction on how to ride on sidewalks and the like to bicycle users between the ages of 13 – 18, who have many
accidents on sidewalks.
100％

Composition rate of human factors

Composition rate

Age group of cyclists

Other agegroups30.7

13 ‒ 18

23.7

Failure toobservesurrounding
traﬃcmovement
Failure to
conﬁrm safety
Inattention
to what is
ahead

Other agegroups100％（n=1,349） （n=3,687）（n=1,643） （n=6,678）
While riding towards
oncoming pedestrians
or overtaking pedestrians

Other bicyclepedestrian accidents

Fig. 6. Bicycle-pedestrian accidents by human factor(total from 2010 – 2014)

No violation

90％

Other violation

80％

Dashing out

70％
60％
50％

71.9
88.4

Crossing violationTraﬃc lane violation

40％
30％
20％
10％
0％

While riding
Other bicycletowards oncoming
pedestrianpedestrians or
accidents
overtaking pedestrians（n=5,036）（n=8,321）

Fig. 7. Bicycle-pedestrian accidents
by pedestrian violation (total from 2010 – 2014)■ Effects of using a light 〜Using a light makes it easier for oncoming pedestrians to see cyclists〜
Bicycle lights are not just effective for allowing riders to1000
Roughly 1.6
confirm the conditions around them, but also for alerting other
When riding
-fold
900
towards
people to the presence of a bicycle. Therefore, here we
oncoming
analyze whether having a bicycle light situated in a positionpedestrians
800
that pedestrians can see makes any sort of difference in the
Roughly 2.2
When riding
700
-fold
to overtake
760
number of accidents.
pedestrians
Fig. 8 shows the number of accidents while riding towards
600
oncoming pedestrians or overtaking pedestrians at night by500
whether or not the cyclist was using a light. When not using a532
light, there were roughly 2.2-times more accidents while riding
400
towards oncoming pedestrians than when riding to overtake
300
pedestrians. If there was no effect of increased visibility when
471
using a light, the accidents from riding towards oncoming
200
240
pedestrians when using a light should be about 2.2-times
100
greater, than when riding to overtake pedestrians in the same
way as when no light is used. But there were only 1.6-times
0
more accidents when riding towards oncoming pedestrians
No light
Lightwhen a light was used. In other words, using a light on a * The “No light” category also includes cases where no lights havebeen installed on the bicycle.
bicycle makes it easier to alert oncoming pedestrians to thepresence of the bicycle, so therefore it helps in reducing the
Fig. 8. No. of accidents when riding
occurrence of accidents when riding towards oncoming
towards oncoming pedestrians and overtaking
pedestrians.
pedestrians at night by use/non-use of light(total from 2010 – 2014)
No. of accidents〜Bicycle-pedestrian accidents occur more often in the mornings and evenings〜

Fig. 3 shows the rate for each time period in which bicycle-pedestrian accidents occur by age group of the cyclist.
Generally speaking, they peak in the mornings and evenings, revealing that the majority occur in time periods whenpeople are commuting to and from work and school. This is believed to be because many bicycles and pedestrians
are in transit during this time period, and it is also thought to be impacted by the fact that in the evenings one’s
surroundings become dark and it becomes difficult to detect pedestrians. Moreover, there are many accidents after
the time when people 12 years old or under return home (16:00 - 18:00), or from 10:00 – 12:00 for people 65 years
old or over, with the results reflecting the lifestyle pattern of each age group.

Composition rate of pedestrian violations〜There is a high share of inattention to what is ahead and failure to confirm safety among cyclists〜

ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

Accidents perpetrated by cyclists~ To ensure that your precious child is not the perpetrator of a traffic accident ~ITARDA INFORMATION no.112■ Where do accidents occur?

6 Characteristics of bicycle-bicycle accidents〜Pay attention to crossing collisions at intersections with narrow roads〜■ Time periods with lots of accidents〜Particular attention is required during the time period when people are going to school / work〜

Fig. 9 shows the rate of bicycle-bicycle accidents by the time period in which they occur by the age group of the
primary party. Bicycle-bicycle accidents start to increase from around 7:00, and then peak between 8:00 – 9:00.
This trend is commonly shared between people aged 13 – 64, who frequently use their bicycles to commute towork and school. Since the times people leave work and go home from school vary depending on their type ofoccupation or grade in school, bicycle traffic is dispersed at these times. But since, generally speaking, the time
people go to work or school is usually between 7:00 – 8:00, bicycle users are out in full-force during this time
period. As a result, they frequently intermix on sidewalks and roadways, which is believed to be the reason for why
accidents increase.
25％

Composition rate

Age group of cyclists
12 or under20％

13 ‒ 18
19 ‒ 2415％

25 ‒ 64
65 or over

10％

5％

0％

0:00

1:00

2:00

3:00

4:00

5:00

6:00

7:00

8:00

9:00

10:00
12:00
14:00
16:00
18:00
20:00
22:00
11:00
13:00
15:00
17:00
19:00
21:00
23:00

Fig. 9. Rates for time periods in which bicycle-bicycle accidents occur (total from 2010 – 2014)

Fig. 11 shows the rates for locations where bicycle-bicycle accidents occur. Roughly 40% of the accidents occur at
non-signalized intersections, and you can see that crossing collisions frequently occur at non-signalizedintersections. Moreover, accidents on sidewalks account for more than 20% of these, and just like withbicycle-pedestrian accidents, the rate caused by 13 – 18 year olds is high. When you look at accidents that occur
at non-signalized intersections by the width of the roadway, you see that nearly half of these occurred atintersections with relatively small roadways of 5.5m or less, on which both the primary and secondary parties wereriding (Table 2). When traveling through non-signalized intersections and with narrow roadways, cyclists should
sufficiently slow down in anticipation of other bicycles and other traffic passing through, and should properly checkto make sure it is safe by coming to a complete stop as needed.

Composition rateof locations where accidents occurlSpeciafeature

100％
90％
80％
70％

1.7

1.8

Other locations

24.3

20.3

Sidewalks

16.9

Non-intersections(roadways)

5.0

Near intersections(roadways)

18.1

60％

4.8

50％
40％

41.7

39.6

30％

0％

11.5

14.3

13 ‒ 18（n=3,835）

Other age groups（n=12,742）

Side ofprimary party

Side ofsecondary party

13 ‒ 18 year olds Other age groups

Less than 5.5m

706（46.4） 2,569（48.4）

Less than 5.5m 5.5 ‒Less than 13m

293（19.3）935（17.6）13m or wider

42（2.8）152（2.9）

Less than 5.5m

155（10.2）484（9.1）

285（18.8）935（17.6）13m or wider

16（1.1）102（1.9）

Less than 5.5m

13（0.9）75（1.4）13m or wider 5.5 ‒Less than 13m

9（0.6）

40（0.8）1（0.1）

16（0.3）

Non-signalizedintersections
Signalizedintersections

20％
10％

Table 2. No. of casualty accidents by roadwidth at non-signalized intersections(total from 2010 – 2014)

5.5 ‒Less than 13m 5.5 ‒Less than 13m

13m or wider* Age group expresses the age group of the cyclist who is theprimary party.

Fig. 11. Bicycle-bicycle accidents
by location (total from 2010 – 2014)

Total

1,520（100.0） 5,308（100.0）* Age group expresses the age group of the cyclist who is theprimary party.

■ Violations by the parties involved in accidents〜High rate of careless riding and distracted riding among 13 – 18 year olds〜〜With bicycle-bicycle accidents, accidents from head-on collisions are common〜
100％

Composition rateof bicycle-bicycle accidents

Fig. 10 shows the types of bicycle-bicycle
accidents. Crossing collisions account forroughly half of these, and there are also a great
many accidents when cyclists pass one another,such as from head-on collisions, while passingor overtaking, or while passing each other. The
rate of head-on collisions is particularly highamong riders between the ages of 13 – 18
compared to the other age groups. It goes
without saying that riders should keep a careful
eye on what’s ahead of them, but they must also
be sure to keep to the left on roadways, andleave enough space when overtaking or passing
vehicles up ahead on sidewalks and roadways.
Also, when they cannot leave enough space,
cyclists should refrain from overtaking others
recklessly, and should ride in a pressure-freemanner.

Other

90％
80％
70％

8.4
8.9

6.8
8.0

60％
48.6

55.6

20％

0％

Collision while
passing or overtaking
Crossing collision

30％

10％

Collision whileturning left
Collision while
passing each other

50％
40％

Collision whileturning rightRear-end collision

15.3
13 ‒ 18（n=3,835）

10.9

Head-on collision

Other age groups（n=12,742）* Age group expresses the age group of the cyclist who isthe primary party.

Fig. 10. Bicycle-bicycle accidents by type of accident(total from 2010 – 2014)

Fig. 12 shows a breakdown of the violations by the parties involved in accidents. There is a high rate of violationsof mandatory safe riding among both primary and secondary parties, but particular violations such as ignoring
traffic signals and failing to come to a complete stop were seen with primary parties. No difference was seen basedon the age group of the primary party, but Table 3 reveals that 13 – 18 year olds frequently engage in carelessriding and distracted riding.
Moreover, with bicycle-bicycle accidents, 66.6% of secondary parties committed a traffic violation that caused theaccident. The claim cannot be made that the casualties in these cases were the result of a one-sided error on thepart of the other cyclist, like with bicycle-pedestrian accidents, as both cyclists warrant attention.

Composition rate of legal violations■ What sorts of accidents are common?

100％

No violation

90％

Unable toascertain

33.4

80％
70％
60％

64.1

Violations of proper
bicycle riding methods

50％
46.5

40％
30％

8.9

9.9

10％

8.4

10.7

0％

4.9

5.5

20％

13 ‒ 18

12.0

Other age
All agegroupsgroups（n=3,835） （n=12,742） （n=16,577）
Primary
Secondary
party
party

Failure to cometo a complete stop in
designated locations, etc.
Violations in
low-speed locations
Violations ofmandatory safe riding
in intersections
Traﬃc lane
violations
Ignoring traﬃcsignalsFig. 12. Breakdown of violations
by cyclists (total from 2010 – 2014)
ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

13-18 year olds Other age groups

Other violations
Violations ofmandatory safe riding

63.2

Table 3. Breakdown of violations of mandatory
safe riding by primary parties (total from 2010 – 2014)
Steering error42（1.7）137（1.7）

Braking error9（0.4）

39（0.5）

Aimless riding

116（4.7）

223（2.8）

Distracted riding

327（13.3）699（8.7）503（20.5）

1,524（18.9）

1,249（50.8）

4,660（57.9）

85（3.5）426（5.3）

Failure to observe
surrounding traﬃc movement
Failure to conﬁrm safety
factors (front, sides)
Failure to conﬁrm safety
factors (rear)

Safe speed14（0.6）27（0.3）

Failure of prediction

50（2.0）130（1.6）

Other

62（2.5）

182（2.3）

Total

2,457（100.0） 8,047（100.0）

ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

Accidents perpetrated by cyclists~ To ensure that your precious child is not the perpetrator of a traffic accident ~ITARDA INFORMATION no.112■ Where do accidents occur?

6 Characteristics of bicycle-bicycle accidents〜Pay attention to crossing collisions at intersections with narrow roads〜■ Time periods with lots of accidents〜Particular attention is required during the time period when people are going to school / work〜

Fig. 9 shows the rate of bicycle-bicycle accidents by the time period in which they occur by the age group of the
primary party. Bicycle-bicycle accidents start to increase from around 7:00, and then peak between 8:00 – 9:00.
This trend is commonly shared between people aged 13 – 64, who frequently use their bicycles to commute towork and school. Since the times people leave work and go home from school vary depending on their type ofoccupation or grade in school, bicycle traffic is dispersed at these times. But since, generally speaking, the time
people go to work or school is usually between 7:00 – 8:00, bicycle users are out in full-force during this time
period. As a result, they frequently intermix on sidewalks and roadways, which is believed to be the reason for why
accidents increase.
25％

Composition rate

Age group of cyclists
12 or under20％

13 ‒ 18
19 ‒ 2415％

25 ‒ 64
65 or over

10％

5％

0％

0:00

1:00

2:00

3:00

4:00

5:00

6:00

7:00

8:00

9:00

10:00
12:00
14:00
16:00
18:00
20:00
22:00
11:00
13:00
15:00
17:00
19:00
21:00
23:00

Fig. 9. Rates for time periods in which bicycle-bicycle accidents occur (total from 2010 – 2014)

Fig. 11 shows the rates for locations where bicycle-bicycle accidents occur. Roughly 40% of the accidents occur at
non-signalized intersections, and you can see that crossing collisions frequently occur at non-signalizedintersections. Moreover, accidents on sidewalks account for more than 20% of these, and just like withbicycle-pedestrian accidents, the rate caused by 13 – 18 year olds is high. When you look at accidents that occur
at non-signalized intersections by the width of the roadway, you see that nearly half of these occurred atintersections with relatively small roadways of 5.5m or less, on which both the primary and secondary parties wereriding (Table 2). When traveling through non-signalized intersections and with narrow roadways, cyclists should
sufficiently slow down in anticipation of other bicycles and other traffic passing through, and should properly checkto make sure it is safe by coming to a complete stop as needed.

Composition rateof locations where accidents occurlSpeciafeature

100％
90％
80％
70％

1.7

1.8

Other locations

24.3

20.3

Sidewalks

16.9

Non-intersections(roadways)

5.0

Near intersections(roadways)

18.1

60％

4.8

50％
40％

41.7

39.6

30％

0％

11.5

14.3

13 ‒ 18（n=3,835）

Other age groups（n=12,742）

Side ofprimary party

Side ofsecondary party

13 ‒ 18 year olds Other age groups

Less than 5.5m

706（46.4） 2,569（48.4）

Less than 5.5m 5.5 ‒Less than 13m

293（19.3）935（17.6）13m or wider

42（2.8）152（2.9）

Less than 5.5m

155（10.2）484（9.1）

285（18.8）935（17.6）13m or wider

16（1.1）102（1.9）

Less than 5.5m

13（0.9）75（1.4）13m or wider 5.5 ‒Less than 13m

9（0.6）

40（0.8）1（0.1）

16（0.3）

Non-signalizedintersections
Signalizedintersections

20％
10％

Table 2. No. of casualty accidents by roadwidth at non-signalized intersections(total from 2010 – 2014)

5.5 ‒Less than 13m 5.5 ‒Less than 13m

13m or wider* Age group expresses the age group of the cyclist who is theprimary party.

Fig. 11. Bicycle-bicycle accidents
by location (total from 2010 – 2014)

Total

1,520（100.0） 5,308（100.0）* Age group expresses the age group of the cyclist who is theprimary party.

■ Violations by the parties involved in accidents〜High rate of careless riding and distracted riding among 13 – 18 year olds〜〜With bicycle-bicycle accidents, accidents from head-on collisions are common〜
100％

Composition rateof bicycle-bicycle accidents

Fig. 10 shows the types of bicycle-bicycle
accidents. Crossing collisions account forroughly half of these, and there are also a great
many accidents when cyclists pass one another,such as from head-on collisions, while passingor overtaking, or while passing each other. The
rate of head-on collisions is particularly highamong riders between the ages of 13 – 18
compared to the other age groups. It goes
without saying that riders should keep a careful
eye on what’s ahead of them, but they must also
be sure to keep to the left on roadways, andleave enough space when overtaking or passing
vehicles up ahead on sidewalks and roadways.
Also, when they cannot leave enough space,
cyclists should refrain from overtaking others
recklessly, and should ride in a pressure-freemanner.

Other

90％
80％
70％

8.4
8.9

6.8
8.0

60％
48.6

55.6

20％

0％

Collision while
passing or overtaking
Crossing collision

30％

10％

Collision whileturning left
Collision while
passing each other

50％
40％

Collision whileturning rightRear-end collision

15.3
13 ‒ 18（n=3,835）

10.9

Head-on collision

Other age groups（n=12,742）* Age group expresses the age group of the cyclist who isthe primary party.

Fig. 10. Bicycle-bicycle accidents by type of accident(total from 2010 – 2014)

Fig. 12 shows a breakdown of the violations by the parties involved in accidents. There is a high rate of violationsof mandatory safe riding among both primary and secondary parties, but particular violations such as ignoring
traffic signals and failing to come to a complete stop were seen with primary parties. No difference was seen basedon the age group of the primary party, but Table 3 reveals that 13 – 18 year olds frequently engage in carelessriding and distracted riding.
Moreover, with bicycle-bicycle accidents, 66.6% of secondary parties committed a traffic violation that caused theaccident. The claim cannot be made that the casualties in these cases were the result of a one-sided error on thepart of the other cyclist, like with bicycle-pedestrian accidents, as both cyclists warrant attention.

Composition rate of legal violations■ What sorts of accidents are common?

100％

No violation

90％

Unable toascertain

33.4

80％
70％
60％

64.1

Violations of proper
bicycle riding methods

50％
46.5

40％
30％

8.9

9.9

10％

8.4

10.7

0％

4.9

5.5

20％

13 ‒ 18

12.0

Other age
All agegroupsgroups（n=3,835） （n=12,742） （n=16,577）
Primary
Secondary
party
party

Failure to cometo a complete stop in
designated locations, etc.
Violations in
low-speed locations
Violations ofmandatory safe riding
in intersections
Traﬃc lane
violations
Ignoring traﬃcsignalsFig. 12. Breakdown of violations
by cyclists (total from 2010 – 2014)
ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

13-18 year olds Other age groups

Other violations
Violations ofmandatory safe riding

63.2

Table 3. Breakdown of violations of mandatory
safe riding by primary parties (total from 2010 – 2014)
Steering error42（1.7）137（1.7）

Braking error9（0.4）

39（0.5）

Aimless riding

116（4.7）

223（2.8）

Distracted riding

327（13.3）699（8.7）503（20.5）

1,524（18.9）

1,249（50.8）

4,660（57.9）

85（3.5）426（5.3）

Failure to observe
surrounding traﬃc movement
Failure to conﬁrm safety
factors (front, sides)
Failure to conﬁrm safety
factors (rear)

Safe speed14（0.6）27（0.3）

Failure of prediction

50（2.0）130（1.6）

Other

62（2.5）

182（2.3）

Total

2,457（100.0） 8,047（100.0）

ITARDA INFORMATION no.112

(Masahide Honda)

Follow thefive principles
for safe bicycleuse!

1. Ride on roadways as a general rule, and only on
sidewalks as an exception
2. On roadways, ride on the left side
3. On sidewalks, pedestrians have priority so rideslowly close to the roadway
4. Follow the safety rules● Drunk riding, riding with two people,
and riding side-by-side are prohibited● Use a light at nighttime● At intersections, abide by the traffic signals,
come to a complete stop and confirm safety
5. Children must wear helmets

Reference: Please see the homepage of the National Police Agency for the structure of the Cyclist Retraining Course.
National Police Agency homepage. Ensure safe and comfortable traffic / Safely riding bicycles by following the rules: Bicycles are classified as vehicles.

http://www.npa.go.jp/koutsuu/kikaku/bicycle/index.htm

イタルダインフォメーションに関するお問い合せ先

渉外事業課

TEL 03-5577-3973

FAX 03-5577-3980

公益財団法人 交通事故総合分析センター●ウェブサイト http://www.itarda.or.jp/〒101-0064 東京都千代田区猿楽町2-7-8 住友水道橋ビル8階
TEL 03-5577-3977(代表) FAX 03-5577-3980

ITARDA INFORMATION no.112●E メール koho@itarda.or.jp

つくば 交通事故調査事務所lSpeciafeatureAccidents perpetrated by cyclists~To ensure that your precious child is not the perpetrator of a traﬃc accident~

No.112277

住 友 水 道 橋 ビル８ 階

Bicycles are classiﬁed as vehicles. Cyclists must follow traﬃc rules and ride bicycles safely.

交通事故分析レポート No.112

Age group 13-18 areoften the perpetratorsof traﬃc accidents
while riding bicycles!

35

公益財団法人 交通事故総合分析センター〒101 0064 東 京 都 千 代 田 区 猿 楽 町 ２ ７ ８■Bicycle-bicycle accidents(1) Cyclists must come to a stop at intersections with stop signs. They should also ride slowly throughintersections with poor visibility, even in the absence of a stop sign, or come to a complete stop tocheck to make sure that it is safe.
(2) Morning is a time period when everyone is in a rush. When people are in a rush they fail toadequately check to confirm safety, which means they are more liable to cause accidents. Makean effort to leave home a little earlier and dedicate yourself to a pressure-free riding.

ITARDA INFORMATION30

No. of cyclist-perpetrators
per 100,000 of the population■Bicycle-pedestrian accidents(1) Pedestrians have priority on sidewalks. When cyclists have no choice but to ride on sidewalks,
they must be attentive to pedestrians, and must ride slowly near roadways. Also, cyclists must
avoid riding in a manner that would cause pedestrians to jump back, such as by ringing a bell or
passing close beside them.
(2) Using a light improves rider’s visibility to pedestrians. Take care to use your light in order to bevisible when it starts to get dark. Furthermore, when selecting a children’s bicycle, select one with
an automatic light feature to prevent the children from forgetting to turn on their light.

ITARDA INFORMATION

Bicycles do not require a driver’s license, and can even be used by children who do not know thetraffic rules. But these children frequently end up perpetrating accidents. To ensure that children do
not perpetrate accidents, it will be important to promote traffic safety education for cyclists as part oftheir school education, while also providing them with instruction that reiterates this at home. Given
the fact that 13 – 18 year old cyclists in particular tend to perpetrate accidents, it is important to work
to thoroughly inform them of traffic rules, such as by providing bicycle safety education aligned withthe timing in which they advance in school.
For bicycle-pedestrian accidents, violations by pedestrians are rare, and pedestrians are madecasualties as a result of one-sided carelessness on the part of the cyclist. Conversely, withbicycle-bicycle accidents, more than 60% of secondary party cyclists were guilty of some sort ofviolation, and both cyclists bear responsibility for the accident. However, in cases where the otherparty becomes a casualty due to the accident, then the rider must bear the commensurate
responsibility for this. Young cyclists and their parents must pay attention to the following points toensure that they do not perpetrate accidents.

交通事故分析レポート

7 Conclusion

イタルダ インフォメーション

25

20

15

10

5

0

9 or under 10 ‒ 12

13 ‒ 15 16 ‒ 18

19 ‒ 24

25 ‒ 4445 ‒ 64 65 or over

* Population as of October 1, 2014 from statistical data of the Ministry of Internal Aﬀairs and Communications* For the number of perpetrators, the number of cyclists who caused accidents in which the other party was a casualty
was tabulated.

No. of cyclist-perpetrators per 100,000 of the population by age group (2014)

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