Call for drivers to wear helmets

[Monster]

Call for drivers to wear helmets
Paul Tatnell
August 27, 2010 - 1:10PM

Research by two leading universities found head injuries could be reduced by as much as 25 per cent if people wore light head protection.

The study - conducted by the University of Adelaide's Road Accident Research Unit and the Monash University Accident research Centre - said drivers of older cars would "benefit significantly" by the extra protection.

Monash University Accident Centre head professor Jack McLean claims a cheap headband could offer protection that an air bag could not.

Headbands trialled by the centre have padding on the sides and front and "would be cooler, lighter and less bulky than a conventional helmet".

A Federal Office of Road Safety spokesman - who released the research - said the helmet option should be voluntary.

"Car occupants are already better protected than cyclists and motorcyclists. But this research shows that safety could be improved quite a lot by using simple, low head protection," he said.

"We are publishing these results so the community can make informed choices."

Head injuries account for almost half of the injuries caused in car crashes and cost the community $1.5 billion a year, the agency said.

Call for drivers to wear helmets

Next they will call for cars to have full roll cage, 6 point seatbelt harness, HANS, carbon fiber crumble zone and monocoque.

Asking drivers to wear a helmet to drive is a bit excessive.

 

[MikeJ]

Dunno 'bout Australia, but up here more lives are lost when people hurt themselves in their homes than in traffic. Maybe people should be made wear helmets all the time.

 

[bum-man]

I'll wear a helmet when they bump the speed limit an extra 30mph.

 

[Monster]

I'll wear a helmet when they bump the speed limit an extra 30mph.

Now that, is a great idea.

 

[HighestOfHigh]

I'll wear a helmet when they bump the speed limit an extra 30mph.

Preach! Everything is like 25mph, 45mph and 55mph where I'm at. I would love for that to increase that. Of course I already drive 30mph faster anyway.

 

[Mr Robert]

Speeding is one of the last few ways to be quasi free

 

[Monster]

I don't want this thread to turn into one about how much faster over the speed limit you have gone, or one that encourages people to break the speed limit, having said that, a lot of the speed limits in Sydney are very very questionable.