Improving the safety of cycling in Europe (PIN Flash 50)

Cyclists remain among the most vulnerable road users. Unlike occupants of cars, vans and lorries, cyclists have little physical protection. As a result, collisions involving cyclists are more likely to lead to serious injury or death. Ensuring that the road transport system protects vulnerable road users is therefore an essential component of the Safe System approach to road safety.

Cycling plays an increasingly important role in Europe’s transport systems. It contributes to healthier populations, more liveable cities and progress towards climate and environmental goals. Across Europe, governments are encouraging people to shift from private car use to more sustainable forms of mobility, including walking, cycling and public transport. In this context, cycling has become a central element of policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving air quality, making more efficient use of land, and addressing congestion in urban areas.

The benefits of cycling extend beyond environmental sustainability. Regular cycling contributes to improved public health by increasing physical activity and reducing the risk of a wide range of non communicable diseases. It can also help to reduce noise pollution and improve the quality of urban space. For these reasons, increasing cycling levels has become a key objective in many national mobility strategies and urban transport plans across Europe.

At the same time, the popularity of cycling is increasing in many European countries. This trend has been driven by a combination of factors including investment in cycling infrastructure, changes in mobility patterns following the COVID-19 pandemic, the expansion of electrically assisted bicycles and a growing recognition of the environmental and health benefits of active travel. While this shift is welcome, it also presents an important policy challenge: increases in cycling activity must be accompanied by safety improvements, to avoid a surge in deaths and serious injuries among cyclists.

Achieving this requires a comprehensive approach that combines safer infrastructure, appropriate speed management, safer vehicles, improved road user behaviour, helmet use and better data collection. Infrastructure that separates cyclists from fast-moving motor traffic, safe speed limits where such separation is not possible, and technologies in motor vehicles designed to detect and protect vulnerable road users can all play a critical role in reducing risk.

Improving cyclist safety is also closely linked to broader road safety objectives in Europe. The European Union has committed to reducing road deaths and serious injuries by 50% by 2030, as part of its Vision Zero ambition to eliminate road deaths by 2050. Ensuring that cyclists benefit from progress towards these targets is essential, especially as cycling levels continue to grow.

This report analyses recent trends in cyclist deaths and serious injuries across Europe and identifies the key risk factors affecting cyclists on European roads. It also examines the policies and measures that can help improve cycling safety while supporting the continued growth of cycling as a safe, healthy and sustainable mode of transport.