How dangerous are bycycle trailers for kids

hgotsparkle

My mum used to take me out in one (in the 90s!!) and that was in the outskirts of london where traffic wasn't at a constant standstill but there wasn't much road space either and I was never injured or crashed into!

sickparrot

bap98189 wrote: »

In my experience riding down a dual carriageway is far safer than riding on a normal A-road. The lanes on dual carriageways tend to be wider and there is often a decent width of tarmac between the slow lane and the kerb.

umm.. no.

Everybody expects everybody else to be doing 70mph, so the articulated lorry doing 60 down the inside isn't going to slow down any when a cyclist suddenly appears in front of him and he can't pull out because of cars in the other lane.

Everyone is playing with their phones or reading books because there are no junctions or traffic lights they don't need to be taking any notice of the road. They drift around so that extra bit of kerb space won't do you any good whatsoever. Friend of the Missus was killed a couple of years ago when white van man slammed into the back of a stationary line of traffic at 70mph fiddling with his phone. They recon if you're standing on the hard shoulder of a motorway your life expectancy is 30 minutes. Dual carrageways don't have a hard shoulder but the speeds are the same.

No, I only went on a dual carrageway once about 20 years ago and vowed never to do it again, I certainly won't be pulling my child in a little cart behind me on one.

Bollotom

Seen a couple as there are a couple of "Childrens Centres" nearby, but they were on the pavement except one. I think as long as the hi-vis aspect is maintained they are no more nor less dangerous than other means of transporting children. There's also a chap who has a carrier on the rear of the bike and a sort of foot-bar above the front wheel for another child who looks like they're hanging on. As said the danger comes from non-observance, and using phones while moving. I'm not a cyclist. In fact I bought a bike back in the 70s and decided to give it a good run out from London to Brighton. Took me about 4 days. Got to Brighton, sold the bike and came back on the train. :cool:

bitmadmax

Too many crap drivers on the road made all the more complacent as they know the law is on their side if they kill anyone.

You can be dressed up like a Christmas tree and you would still not be seen, as you aren't "expected" to be on the road.

Stick to the pavements and pleasant canal towpaths - lugging a trailer you aren't likely to be going fast enough to cause anxiety to anyone.

melanzana

Some enterprising engineer could design the trailer to be at the front!

Just like the delivery couriers.... I'm sure it could be done. Much safer, as you can see what the sprogs are up to.

I think they are a great idea. But I don't have kids, so I use mine for shopping. It's fantastic! So stable. Three wheels on my wagon and all that.

I arm known as trailer trash Mel! It's great.

Johnmcl7

There are adapted bikes which allow children to sit ahead of the rider although I find the balance feels a bit odd. I don't have children myself but when trying out bikes with friends and children, I liked the trailer because you could pedal normally and the children could do whatever they wanted and it didn't affect the balance of the bike. I find it a bit terrifying having the child on a seat on the bike because if the bike goes over they're going to come down with a thump and as they gestured and pointed while in the seat it affected the balance of the bike.

I wouldn't take a trailer onto particularly busy roads anyway as the speed is going to be lower and I'd have thought if anything it's safer as it stands out more. I can't see a car hitting the trailer being much worse for the child rather than hitting the back of the bike.

John