Mandatory bicycle helmet laws in Western Australia: "Australia was the first country in the world to impose uniform national mandatory bicycle helmet legislation, beginning in 1990. Western Australia commenced police enforcement of the law on July 1, 1992.
Analysis of results in Western Australia suggests the helmet legislation has:
increased hospital admissions per cyclist on the road
reduced the popularity of cycling
damaged public health
This website provides a compendium of reports and studies into cyclist injuries and cycling participation rates in a mandatory rather than voluntary bicycle helmet jurisdiction, and compensates for the Australian media's lack of interest in public health and safety.
The legislation has been enforced in Western Australia for 18 years - a timescale providing abundant data to analyse the effect of an all-age mandatory bicycle helmet law.
Government data shows an increase in cyclist hospital admissions and total injuries despite also showing fewer people cycling on West Australian roads during most of the 1990s - a downturn in public recreational exercise with further negative consequences for community health and safety."
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