A Course in Bicycle Driver Education

Farrell, Mary Lou · 1981 · ROSA P / Dunlap and Associates, Inc.

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Summary

This document outlines a comprehensive bicycle safety training program developed for fourth-grade students by Dunlap and Associates, Inc., under contract with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The program was motivated by a dramatic increase in bicycle/motor vehicle accidents in the mid-1970s, during which over 1,000 bicyclists were killed and 40,000 injured annually. The curriculum aims to reduce these incidents by educating young riders on traffic laws, mechanical maintenance, and hazard avoidance, specifically targeting the ten most common types of bicycle/motor vehicle accidents. The training program is structured as a ten-lesson course delivered through instructor lesson plans, student workbooks, and visual aids such as slides and films. The instructional design emphasizes active student involvement through "discussion-in-the-round" seating arrangements, ensuring open dialogue without graded performance pressure. The curriculum covers three primary domains: mechanical safety, traffic rules, and decision-making processes. Lesson 2, for example, details bicycle anatomy, proper fit criteria based on rider age and leg length, and a systematic inspection procedure for components like wheels, brakes, and chains. The program introduces a character named "Detective Wheel" to investigate accident scenarios and teaches a four-step "Decision Making Process": searching the environment, predicting outcomes, deciding on safe actions, and executing those actions. The content addresses specific accident categories, referred to as "cases," such as riding out of driveways, wrong-way riding, and intersections. For instance, Lesson 3 focuses on "Case No. 1: Rideout Driveway," instructing students to stop and search left-right-left before entering the roadway to prevent collisions with motorists who have insufficient reaction time. The course also covers communication with other drivers, reckless riding behaviors, and special problems like overtaking. Instructional strategies include tallying student accident experiences to highlight severity differences between falling accidents and motor vehicle collisions, and using local accident statistics to reinforce the relevance of the material. The program incorporates gamification through a "Bicycle Safety Game" and concludes with a safety quiz to reinforce learning. The significance of this work lies in its systematic approach to child bicycle safety, shifting focus from general awareness to specific, actionable skills for navigating traffic. By categorizing accidents into ten distinct types and providing targeted prevention strategies for each, the curriculum seeks to equip young riders with the maturity and knowledge necessary to avoid high-severity collisions with motor vehicles. The emphasis on mechanical inspection and proper bike fit addresses single-vehicle accidents, while the decision-making framework aims to reduce multi-vehicle incidents by improving situational awareness and predictability. This structured educational model serves as a standardized resource for teachers and administrators to implement evidence-based safety training in schools.

Key finding

The training program utilizes a structured ten-lesson curriculum with active discussion methods and visual aids to teach fourth-grade students bicycle maintenance, traffic rules, and accident avoidance strategies.

Methodology

other

Provenance

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Topics

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• cyclist safety
• vru conspicuity
• motorcycle conspicuity