RAA reveals most dangerous suburbs and roads for cyclists

Cyclists are most at risk of being injured in a collision in Adelaide and Norwood, and on Anzac Highway and Military Road, an RAA report has found.

The report examined the suburbs and roads where, according to data from 2011 to 2015, cyclists are most likely to be involved in a casualty crash.

RAA Senior Manager Road Safety Charles Mountain said Adelaide was “by far the worst area” with cyclists more likely to be involved in a crash in the city than anywhere else in the state.

“In a five year period, there were 296 casualty crashes involving cyclists in Adelaide. On Rundle Street alone, cyclists were involved in almost half (45%) of all crashes that occurred and, in most cases, were not at fault,” said Mr Mountain.

Norwood was named the second most dangerous suburb, with 70 casualty crashes involving cyclists occurring between 2011 and 2015.

“The Parade in particular is one for cyclists to watch out for, as 32 per cent of all casualty crashes recorded on this road involved cyclists,” said Mr Mountain.

Other suburbs with a high number of casualty crashes involving cyclists were North Adelaide (51), Unley (50) and Glenelg (45).

RAA’s report also highlighted specific roads, flagging Anzac Highway, Military Road and Jetty Road as danger zones.

“Between 2011 and 2015, there were 75 casualty crashes on Anzac Highway that involved cyclists and nine of these resulted in serious injury,” said Mr Mountain.

“Sixty two casualty crashes involving cyclists occurred on Military Road, making up 44 per cent of all casualty crashes on that road.”

On average, cyclists were involved in 565 casualty crashes per year, with around 12 per cent serious or fatal.

“Looking at the report, we can see that most of the crashes occurred at intersections across popular cycling routes and were deemed not to be the fault of the cyclists,” said Mr Mountain.

“Both motorists and cyclists need to be extra cautious in certain suburbs and on particular roads, particularly during peak times. At some locations, such as Jetty Road and Military Road, the busiest times are on weekends.

“Motorists and cyclists need to watch out for each other, particularly at intersections and when turning. Motorists should also be checking for cyclists before opening their doors.”

Top five dangerous suburbs for cyclists:

1. Adelaide
2. Norwood
3. North Adelaide
4. Unley
5. Glenelg

Top five dangerous roads for cyclists:

1. Anzac Highway
2. Military Road
3. The Parade
4. Unley Road
5. Pulteney Street