HOPE Objectives
As part of the COST Action, HOPE’s primary objectives were to:
• Stimulate international collaboration in the field of bicycle traffic safety and helmets;
• Increase scientific knowledge with regards to traffic safety of cyclists;
• Disseminate this knowledge to key stakeholders, including manufacturers, legislators, the scientific community, and of course, the cyclists themselves.
In addition, HOPE aimed to achieve a number of secondary objectives, including:
• Producing state-of-the-art reviews, disseminating knowledge and identifying new areas for research regarding the wide variety of social, psychological, physical and cultural aspects of the decision to wear a helmet;
• Establishing a pan-European database of parameters regarding helmet usage and injury statistics;
• Developing knowledge about cyclist behaviour to enhance cyclists’ conspicuity on the road;
• Investigating the protective properties of bicycle helmets in real accident situations in order to improve helmet testing standards;
• Stimulating new research collaborations, preferably on a European level;
• Disseminating information to the public, to the industry and to legislators, in an effort to maximise user comfort and adoption, influence safety and manufacturing standards, and ultimately benefit society.
