Despite behaving more cautiously in traffic, internationals are more frequently involved in cycling accidents than Dutch students, according to a survey conducted among over 1,500 students by Knowledge Centre TeamAlert, which was published last week.
4.3 percent of Dutch students who filled out the survey had been involved in a cycling accident in the month prior to the research, compared to a striking 11.1 percent of international students. Additionally, while a quarter of Dutch students had experienced a near accident, this figure rose to one third among internationals.
Running red lights
Interestingly, internationals reported less risky behavior. Nearly half of Dutch students admitted to cycling through red lights in the past month, whereas only a third of internationals did so. Furthermore, 57 percent of Dutch students would cycle on the sidewalk, compared to just 41 percent of internationals.
Internationals considered themselves to be slightly worse cyclists than their Dutch counterparts. This sentiment was echoed by Dutch students, with almost 80 percent regarding themselves as (much) safer cyclists, while around 70 percent of internationals believed they were either as safe or less safe than their Dutch peers.
Familiar findings
UG traffic psychologist Dick de Waard has seen similar results in previous studies. ‘Although, in our similar study, we actually found more violations among internationals.’ This discrepancy could be due to the fact that international students in De Waard’s study had more cycling experience: three quarters of them regularly cycled in their home countries, compared to less than a quarter of the students in the TeamAlert survey.
‘It’s good that this study was conducted through a questionnaire’, says De Waard. ‘That way, you also reach people who are currently afraid to get on a bike.’ He notes that this was a challenge in their traffic study, where they weren’t allowed to make participants cycle if they weren’t already frequent cyclists, due to ethical guidelines, which led to the exclusion of that group.
Overwhelming
De Waard understands why internationals might view themselves as less skilled cyclists. ‘Cycling in busy traffic can be overwhelming, and cyclists often disregard traffic rules. You need a bit of moxy.’
He adds that experience plays a crucial role in feeling safe while cycling, regardless of one’s background. ‘This is also evident with Dutch children whose parents drive them to primary school. Then, when they start secondary school and suddenly have to bike there, they’re thrown in at the deep end. It’s better to gain experience gradually.’