HEADS-UP HELMET PROGRAM

Despite a California law that requires children under age 18 to wear a helmet when on their bicycles, a 1994 study showed that fewer than one in three children who rode their bikes to school in Yuba County wore a helmet. Only one in 11 children wore a helmet when bicycling through residential neighborhoods. Joy Ames, health education specialist for the Yuba County Health Services, received grant funding from the Office of Traffic Safety to purchase bicycle helmets and develop a bicycle safety education program. She scheduled one-hour bicycle safety classes in many locations across the county in four languages spoken by the residents. Children who attended a class with their parents received a free helmet. The children learned the basics of bicycle safety and the importance of helmet use. Parents learned how to fit the new helmets properly on their children. The grant ended in 1996, but the Yuba County Health Services continues to support the program. So far, the program has distributed more than 700 helmets. Between 1994 and 1997, children's helmet use rose 26% around Yuba County schools. In residential areas, the percentage of children wearing helmets jumped 34%.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/00410721
• Corporate Authors:

  National Safety Council

  1121 Spring Lake Drive
  Itasca, IL  United States  60143
• Authors:
  • Kedjidjian, C B
• Publication Date: 1999-1

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Photos;
• Pagination: p. 22
• Serial:
  • Traffic Safety (Chicago)
  • Volume: 99
  • Issue Number: 1
  • Publisher: National Safety Council
  • ISSN: 0041-0721

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bicycle helmets; Bicycling; Counties; Government funding; Grant aid; Safety education; Safety programs; Utilization
• Geographic Terms: California
• Subject Areas: Education and Training; Finance; Highways; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Research; Safety and Human Factors; I84: Personal Injuries;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00759722
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Feb 10 1999 12:00AM