Many adults have fond memories of walking or cycling to school as a child. With some basic safety precautions many children can still enjoy that experience, according to Jeff Miller, executive director of the Bicycle Coalition of Maine.

“Statistically, people are more likely to get killed in a car crash. The health, mental and cognitive benefits for children [of cycling and walking] far outweigh the risks,” Miller said.

Certain skills and practices make cycling as safe as possible. Developing these skills takes time, but it can be a fun, healthy family time, Miller said.

Wearing a properly fitted helmet is very important and is a legal requirement for children 16 and under, but preventing crashes through safe bike driving is essential, Miller said. “It is important that parents be good role models and drive safely themselves. Drive defensively whether on a bicycle or in a car,” he added.

One way to approach concerns about people along the route, who might prey on children, is to form a “walking bus” or “biking train,” where one parent walks or bikes with a group of children. Busy roads can be an insurmountable barrier, but often parents can find an alternative route and ride it with the child, pointing out safety issues along the way.

The highest-risk age group is 10- to 14-year-olds, according to a Maine Department of Transportation study.

“At this age kids are more independent, they are stronger riders and can go farther, yet they’re all confidence – they have that immortality complex,” Miller said. “That’s why the coalition has offered a program in the spring [funded by a grant through the Maine DOT] for third- and fourth-graders to catch them before they reach that high-risk age group.”

Before citing the statistics, Miller said he wanted to emphasize that there are inherent risks in anything we do.

There haven’t been any bicycle fatalities in Maine for two years. Over a five-year period, 1996-2000, there were 1,400 reported bicycle crashes in Maine, nine of them fatal.

While there were more bicycle crashes in urban areas, the fatalities were all on rural roads – no doubt, said Miller, because of the higher speeds on rural routes.

Of the 1,400 crashes, one-third involved a serious cyclist error, such as riding at night without lights or riding in the wrong direction.

Nationwide, 45,000 people are killed each year in car accidents, compared to 700 bike deaths and 5,000 walker deaths. While cycling and walking account for a comparatively low percentage of the total number of deaths, 12-13 percent, walking and cycling receive a disproportionately low share of safety funding, only 1 percent.

John Balicki, bike and pedestrian coordinator at the MDOT, said that continuing to build roads with shoulders where cyclists and walkers can travel is important. Education campaigns for drivers also are needed, focusing on attention to speed limits around schools at certain times of the day, he said.

The bicycle coalition Web site is a source of safety information for bike and car drivers, parents and children. Visit www.BikeMaine.org or call 623-4511.

For school staff who would like to increase bike safety or to find out about applying for a spring safety program, call John Balicki at MDOT, 624-3252 or john.balicki@state.me.us.

For information about a program that provides helmets for low-income children, call the Maine Coalition for Safe Kids at (800) 649-1304.

Nancy Jacobson is a bike safety educator.