You have to make cycling important & convenient (and yes, removing helmet laws is part of that)
If you want to see a healthy bicycle culture and learn how to create one, in addition to David Hembrow’s blog look no further than the Dutch Cycling Embassy (be sure to view the film on their main page). A group of Dutch people, having realised that the world is envious of their cycling culture (despite being ‘just normal’ to them), has decided to do something about it. There are many great minds behind this project.
If you wanted to learn about how to be the best surf life saver in the world, you’d come to Australia and learn the skills required. If you want to build a world class bicycle culture you need to look to the experts and stop fiddling around the edges – you need to learn from the Dutch. Why? Because they’ve made many of the mistakes we’re currently making and have solved them. Why retrace steps which do not need to be retraced? It’s a waste of time and more importantly, money.
Here in Australia there is no desire to remove our mandatory bicycle helmet law (or even relax it) as it is seen as ‘such a small issue. We ignore it at our peril – it is a barrier to cycling that really needs to be removed. Think of it (the removal of the law) as a pinch of salt: a seemingly trivial ingredient, without which you can’t make a decent loaf of bread. We need this barrier to be removed.
Congratulations on the formation of the brand new Dutch Cycling Embassy! We follow with interest.
Unfortunately it will not be easy with the monkeys in charge of the zoo.
And on that note! Imagine my thoughts at being stuck behind a ‘Smart Bus’ whose driver would not turn left on a green arrow!
‘Smart’?