Jupiterimages/Thinkstock(BOULDER, Colo.) — Although it seems counterintuitive, the more bicyclists that ride on crowded city streets, the less chance they’ll have of colliding with cars.
What accounts for this phenomenon known as the “safety in numbers effect?” It’s something that researchers at the University of Colorado haven’t yet ascertained.
However, what they did find out after studying the incidence of accidents involving motorists and bicyclists in Boulder — one of the nation’s most bike friendly cities — is that collisions dropped significantly at intersections when there were more cyclists on the road.
Co-author Wesley Marshall says they could verify the “safety in numbers effect” with a good deal of certainty because Boulder was one of the first cities in the nation to establish a bicycle counting program some time ago.
As for why more bicyclists are shown to reduce accidents, Marshall can only guess. One theory is that it changes the behavior of drivers, making them more apt to look out for people on two wheels.
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