Protect Your Children from Bicycle Injuries

Following are steps you can take to protect children from bicycle injuries:

• Insist that children wear bicycle helmets whenever they ride.
• Children cannot control a bicycle that is too large. A child must be able to straddle the bike and stand with both feet flat on the ground.
• Younger children may need to ride a bicycle with "training wheels."
• A child must be able to stop the bike by using the brakes.
• Ride with your children to teach them safe riding and to obey the rules.
• Teach your children the proper hand signals for left turns, right turns and stopping. Make certain they understand and observe all traffic signals and signs.
• Experts recommend that children ride on sidewalks until they are at least 10 or 11 years old. Check with your community to determine if local ordinances prohibit or restrict the use of bicycles on sidewalks.
• When riding on sidewalks, be aware of cars entering or leaving driveways.
• Teach children to look left, right and left again before riding into traffic from a sidewalk, driveway or parking lot.
• When riding on the street, children should be in a straight line near the curb, and be alert for car doors opening into traffic lanes.
• Know and obey the rules of the road.
• Bicycles should be walked across the street at an intersection, after looking left, right and left again.
• Most fatal accidents occur at dusk and at night. Children should not ride a bike at dusk or at night. If a child is still outside when it turns dark, the bicycle light must be turned on and the child should be wearing light clothing.
• All bikes should have reflectors on the front, rear and wheel spokes.

Reprinted with the permission of Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.