Tyler Rosen

Public Bicycle Shares and Their Impact On Cyclist-Involved Injury

Author: Tyler Rosen (public health), 2021 Winner ðŸ†

Faculty mentor: Suzanne Baker

Abstract

Public bicycle sharing programs (PBSPs) are relatively new in the context of city infrastructure, with their inception first beginning in the early 90s. Their use has expanded rapidly in recent years, and are now used in >850 cities across the world, including right here in Detroit. This has yielded questions regarding their impact on cyclist safety and, to produce a competent assessment on the matter, data was compiled from 10 peer-reviewed studies published no earlier than 2004. These articles examined rates of cyclist-involved injury both before and after the implementation of PBSPs, and their data were compared in order to both identify trends and quantify their impact on cyclist safety. With one notable exception further expanded upon later, general trends overwhelmingly pointed towards an increase in cyclist safety with the introduction of public bicycle share programs. Ultimately, the evidence pointed out by these trends is strong that public bicycle share programs (PBSPs) in conjunction with other cyclist infrastructure such as bike lanes, and appropriate use of helmets, appear to impart a positive impact on health to users, alongside reducing rates of cyclist-involved injury. Additionally, a less significant but still measurable positive impact on the environment via reduced carbon emissions was noted in one study; however, the many environmental factors present in the duration of the study made suggesting a causal link between the two problematic.

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