-
Urban Bicycling With Children
Many people are intimidated by bicycling in an urban environment, and this is even more of an issue when safety for children is concerned. Nonetheless, cycling for transportation or recreation offers many benefits to children (and their parents), and there are many techniques that significantly reduce risk of serious injury while bicycling in an urban environment. This article explores the benefits of urban bicycling with children, safety techniques for riding with children, and examines a range of equipment options for bicycling for children of all ages.
The Case For Urban Cycling With Children
There are a number of very good reasons to bicycle with children in the city. Children are naturally curious and bicycling is an excellent way to explore the urban environment. Bicycling expands the child's universe beyond the immediate vicinity of their home and school, exposing them to the people and places between home, school, and other destinations. Through bicycling, children learn to read and use maps, navigate traffic, and interact with pedestrians and motorists. Bicycling is also good exercise that is easier to fit into a busy schedule when used for the dual purpose of transportation. Instead of purchasing large vehicles such as SUVs that pollute and detract from our cities while sealing children off from their natural and social environment, parents can bicycle with their children and make transportation an engaging, educational, health-promoting family experience. The New York Times gave this recent report on New York City students bicycling to school. Photos showing New York City parents cycling with their kids are found here.
Bicycling with children initiates so-called "virtuous cycles" that further promote bicycling. Parents who bicycle with their children may be encouraged to bicycle more often because of their children's enthusiasm for bicycling. Adults bicycling with children tend to zealously guard their children's safety, becoming potent advocates on the road and with government for improving bicycling safety. Motorists tend to drive less aggressively when they are aware of children bicycling nearby. Children who bicycle regularly will be more likely to bicycle as adults. In all of these ways, urban bicycling with children promotes bicycling and bicycling safety generally.
As Enrique Penalosa has said, "The measure of a good city is one where a child on a tricycle or bicycle can safely go anywhere." Parents can help realize this vision of a good city by bicycling with their children and making sure that they are safe.
Riding On the Sidewalk
Generally speaking, even the youngest cyclist if properly equipped and escorted can cycle safely on the sidewalk, although it is best for children to first learn how to cycle in an enclosed area that is not in use by others such as a park, schoolyard or playground during off-hours.
Depending on the jurisdiction, cycling on the sidewalk by children is permitted. In New York City, a child age 12 or younger operating a bicycle with wheels smaller than 26" in diameter is permitted. Many children aged 5 or older can operate a bicycle safely and independently, while exhibiting respect toward pedestrians, on less-crowded sidewalks.
[Add information from other jurisdictions].
It is best for children to remain on the sidewalk until they have learned certain key skills, such as maneuvering around stationary and slow-moving objects (including pedestrians), yielding to others, dismounting and re-mounting smoothly, and stopping at intersections.
A bicycling parent can escort a bicycling child on the sidewalk by holding and operating the handlebars of the child's bike (see above). With a little practice, the adult can accurately control the speed and direction of both bikes, and even come to a complete stop and hold it (without dismounting) by distributing most of his or her weight across the front wheels of the two bikes. Though pedestrians sometimes express alarm when confronted with this technique, their concerns often are allayed when it becomes apparent that the adult is in control and will yield and allow pedestrians to pass at whatever speed using whatever path they choose (i.e., "after you"). This technique is too dangerous to use on the roadway among motor vehicles because of the higher speeds and need for greater maneuverability.
Where parents are not permitted to accompany their children on the sidewalk, a child properly trained to stop at each intersection can be accompanied by a parent who rides the length of the block in the roadway and then dismounts at the intersection and escorts the child on foot (or holding the child's handlebars as above) through the crosswalk to the next segment of sidewalk. The adult should try to keep him or herself between the child and intersecting/turning motor vehicle traffic in these situations, as shown below (this may require switching sides in the middle of a two-way street, so that the adult is always between the child and the oncoming traffic):
Riding On Separated Bike Paths
The key skills for children to learn on separated bike paths are (1) the ability to ride at speed in a straight line, so that they are predictable to faster-moving oncoming traffic from behind; (2) signalling turns; and (3) proper use of a bell or horn. Children may find it useful to focus on the painted lines on separated paths that divide traffic by direction or by type (i.e., peds vs. bicyclists) in learning how to ride in a straight line. The escorting adult can help shield the child from faster oncoming traffic by riding directly behind the child. Oral reminders that there are faster, oncoming vehicles behind the child are also helpful.
Riding On On-Street (Painted) Bike Lanes
On-street, painted bike lanes can provide a useful transition for children who have learned how to ride in a straight line, stop at intersections, and are otherwise are prepared to begin riding in motor vehicle traffic. Kids as young as 9 years old can learn these skills.
As shown in the following two photos, when using an on-street, painted lane to cycle with a child, the adult should ride on the outside flank of the child, where upcoming hazards (such as opening car doors, errant pedestrians, or turning motor vehicle traffic) can be spotted and warned against, while the parent serves a buffer to prevent oncoming traffic from meandering into the bike lane:
Parents should resist the impulse to "lead" their kids through traffic, because a parent in front of their children is unable to spot and guide the children through hazards that emerge after the parent has passed, such as the left- turning cab in the picture below:
Some cyclists believe that riding in on-street lanes is more hazardous than riding in the middle of a traffic lane, because of the possbility of being "doored" or sideswiped. These risks are real, but can be guarded against. The risk of serious injury from dooring is greatly reduced at speeds typical of kids (8 MPH or less) when the parent can spot and warn the child against against occupied parked cars presentng the danger of dooring before the child passes. Similalry, a parent riding several feet out into traffic on the child's flank can protect against sideswiping--if the parent is correctly positioned and uses hand signals appropriately to ward off motorists, only out-of-control or truly malicious drivers pose a danger. For many parents, the reduced risks of a child being injured in the bike lane despite an adult riding on the rear flank are preferable to the stress and danger of attempting to "hold the lane" against oncoming motorists, while cycling up the middle of a traffic lane with kids at speeds of 8 MPH or less.
Obviously, there is little to stop motor vehicles from (illegally) blocking painted bike lanes, and this happens far too often. Even government officials responsible for kids' safety may be ignorant of the impact of blocking bike lanes. Kids must learn to come to a stop at these blockages until given the go-ahead by a parent, or they are old enough to competently assess whether there is an adequate gap in oncoming traffic to allow them to go around the blockage:
Kid-Friendly Urban Group Rides
Group rides are an excellent way for children to bicycle safely and independently. Kids often love the excitement and camraderie of group bicycling. Depending upon the number of adults in the group, they can form a "pod" around the children that will buffer and protect them from motor vehicle traffic. If there are too few adults for a "pod," they should be positioned at the front and at the outside flank, with the children proceeding in between, single file or two or three abreast, depending upon traffic conditions, the size of the group and applicable traffic rules.
Time's Up!'s monthly Central Park Moonlight Ride provides an excellent opportunity to introduce kids to group bicycling, because of the absence of motor vehicle traffic, the manageable size of the ride (20 to 200 bicyclists, depending upon the weather), limited distance (6-8 miles), superb ride leadership and generally welcoming attitude toward families with kids. Transportation Alternative's "Tour de" series (Tour de Bronx, Tour de Brooklyn, and the Tour de Queens) are also well-suited to families, and provide a police escort to allow car-free bicycling with kids. However, due to the popularity and consequently the size of these events, you will want to keep your kids next to you throughout the ride or you might lose them. In addition, there is no point-drop sweep system, so if your family is slow, the police escort at the back of the ride may leqave you behind. Also, some younger kids will find the 20+ mile routes of these rides daunting. Other New York City rides suitable for families are organized during May of each year, which traditionally is bike month.
Parents can also organize urban group rides through their children's schools. At least one Manhattan independent school conducts bicycle field trips as part of an urban cycling curriculum. If the kids are 12 or older, already know how to cycle, have sufficient adult supervision, and ride a carefully-chosen route, liability concerns should be no barrier to organizing such a trip.
Transporting a Child On or With an Adult Bicycle
A child can be safely transported on or with an adult bicycle in a number of ways. There are a variety of child seats that are integrated into the frame of an adult bicycle, including rear wheel-mounted seats, top tube seats, European-style cargo bikes, and "perches," as well as trailers that attach to adult bikes and allow the adult to control the child's motion. Each design has its own safety features, benefits and drawbacks.
<a: href=blog entry on totcycle with more information.
"Bike Ferrying" a Child
Even children too young to ride can be introduced to bicycling by sitting them on the seat, with them gripping the adult who walks the bike on the sidewalk holding the handlebars and the rear of the saddle. The child begins to learn the "feel" and balance of a bicycle, and the adult enjoys the efficiency of getting the child to the destination more quickly than otherwise possible (walking at a child's pace), coupled with the ability to bike away to the next destination without the encumbrance of a child seat or other specialized equipment:
Rear Wheel-Mounted Seats
These are the most commonly found type of child seats for adult bikes. They can accommodate larger and older children, are reasonably comfortable for smaller children to nap in, and keep the child close to the adult. The increased weight at the rear of the bike can make handling cumbersome, however, and both the child's view and the adult's view of the child are poor for this kind of seat.
Tube-Mounted Seats
Child seats mounted on or above the top tube offer an alternative to rear-wheel mounted seats; the most widely available model (linked here) uses a metal bar that is fixed to the seat post and head tube rather than directly to the top tube. These seats offer the greatest stability, improved views and interaction between adult and child, and those with a padded front rest give some possibility for the child to nap. Their main disadvantage is that except on bikes with large frame sizes, the placement of the seat forces the adult to ride bow-legged; with older, larger children the adult may even find it uncomfortable to ride low on the handlebars.
There are also frames with built-in tube-mounted seats, but this design of bike does not appear to be marketed widely (or at all) in the United States.
Front Wheel-Mounted Seats
As with tube-mounted seats, the advantage of this type is that the child's view is not blocked by the parent, and it is easier for adult and child to communicate safely while riding. By mounting on the stem and/or handlebars, the problem of riding bow-legged is reduced, but handling is somewhat compromised by having the child and seat move together with the front wheel as it turns. These seats are not very comfortable for small children to nap in, as they offer no head support.
Below is a bike with older models of both front- and rear-wheel mounted seats.
Cargo Bikes
These provide the safest and most comfortable ride for both adult and child, but their weight can be a disadvantage in hilly neighborhoods, and they are generally more expensive than other options. There are several configurations of cargo bikes; tricycles (pictured below), "Long John" style bicycles, and Longtails (like the Xtracycle or Madsen), which provide an extended rear cargo area that can mount one or possibly two child seats.
Tricycles
Much like cargo tricycles, conventional tricycles (with two fixed wheels in back, and one for steering in the front) can also be adapted with rear child seats. These have recently become more popular in New York.
Trailers
Probably the most common way to transport children by bike, trailers offer flexibility and comfort; however they may not be as well suited for urban transportation as they are wider and less maneuverable than other options. While the enclosure and low position offer more comfort and safety from falls for the child, it is directly in the splash from the rear tire, making it less desirable for all-weather travel. (A good rear fender for the bike can help with this.) One advantage is that it can be placed on or taken off a standard bicycle and sometimes used as a stroller.
Trailer cycle (a.k.a. trail-a-bike, fastback, third wheel attachment)
An excellent option for older children, these allow children to actively participate in riding, while not requiring them to do the whole ride themselves. Unlike a tandem, the child has a freewheel drive and is not required to pedal in synch with the adult. However these devices may flop from side to side, especially during turns but also sometimes unexpectedly, creating instability (especially where the weight ratio of adult+adult bike : child+attachment is low). These devices can also place a great deal of stress on the adult's seatpost, potentially causing damage. Sheldon Brown provides additional information on these devises here.
Tandems
Tandems are of course the traditional option for two-person cycling and are more stable than an adult bike with a trailer attachment or rear-mounted child seat. Sheldon Brown has written an excellent article on parent-child cycling on tandems. The adult may need to pedal more slowly than feels optimal so that the child can pedal in synch. As Brown explains, this problem can be avoided by installing shortened rear cranks for the stoker. Alternatively, the child can keep their feet on the frame as below, al though is a less stable and safe position than a riding position with feet on the pedals:
Perches
As shown below, there are small seats and footrests that install on the top and front tubes of an adult bicycle frame, sometimes called "perches." Perches generally are not sold with seatbelts, and so they pose a risk of the child flying forward in the event of a collision or a short stop (see examples below):
"Perching" a child on the top tube or front tip of the seat of an adult bicycle without any saddle, footrests or seatbelt to hold them there is unsafe and often illegal. In addition to the risk of serious injury in the event of a collision, it is uncomfortable to sit on a tip tube for any length of time and a child may, in attempting to reposition for greater comfort, fall off (see below).
ALSO ON THE LIVABLE STREETS NETWORK
REFERENCES
Each source is referred to by the same number every time it is cited. Please keep citation style consistent.
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
PICTURE REFERENCES
Pictures are cited in the order they appear above. Please keep citation style consistent.
FURTHER READING
- International Bicycle Fund article on infant & child cycling safety
-
Kidical Mass- A Family Fun Ride celebrating that Kids are Traffic Too!
