Musings: Helmets a must for e-bike riders
Wearing a helmet on an e-bike can help prevent a serious head injury. Credit: John Roca
One of my sons (he’s 43) recently got onto a friend’s electric bike to ride a couple of blocks to his home in Copiague. He didn’t put on his helmet, which he had at the friend’s house. The next thing he remembers is waking up in a recovery room at Good Samaritan University Hospital.
He had emergency surgery for a serious brain injury but recovered well. I thank the person who found him and called 911. I also thank the Copiague Fire Department rescue team and the trauma unit at Good Samaritan.
Here’s my point. I myself live on a somewhat busy street with a 30-mph speed limit. I’ve seen a large increase of e-bike use, and practically none of the riders wears a helmet. It’s easy to guesstimate that the vehicles on the street travel at 30, 40 or 50 mph.
Most e-bikers ride 20 to 30 mph. One, while traveling on the right shoulder, passed a car. Mishaps can happen in an instant — an animal darts out, a flat tire occurs, a pedestrian steps off a curb. E-bike riders need to be smart: Get a helmet, wear it — and slow down.
— William Howe, Huntington
WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO JOIN OUR DAILY CONVERSATION. Just go to newsday.com/submitaletter and follow the prompts. Or email your opinion to letters@newsday.com. Submissions should be no more than 200 words. Please provide your full name, hometown, phone number and any relevant expertise or affiliation. Include the headline and date of the article you are responding to. Letters become the property of Newsday and are edited for all media. Due to volume, readers are limited to one letter in print every 45 days. Published letters reflect the ratio received on each topic.
