This post originally appeared on Orphan Road.
Matin asks KC Metro about their bike sharing program:
How would you handle helmet laws?
The vendor would be asked to address the issue of how helmets would be provided. Most users would bring their own helmets; there would probably also be some type of system for checking out helmets.
Huh. Â I don’t think I ever really thought about helmets in conjunction with bike sharing systems. Â The odds of me remembering to bring my helmet in such a situation are quite low. Â And the idea of checking out a helmet seems problematic for a number of reasons (reason #1: umm… ew?). Â Perhaps this is why bike sharing is most successful in European cities where you can bike relatively safely without a helmet.
I’ve thought about this before, and use it as my #1 argument to abolish the helmet law. Yes, helmets increase your safety when riding a bike. And I’d wear mine most of the time even if not required to. But sometimes the helmet law absolutely discourages bike riding.
I’d bet helmets would make you much safer in a car as well. What are the odds of passing a car helmet law?