‘Curious Conversations’ podcast: Laura Hamm talks about cycling safety
Laura Hamm joined Virginia Tech’s “Curious Conversations” to talk about cycling safety, infrastructure, and the behaviors of both riders and vehicle operators. She explained the challenges to getting accurate information about bicycle-vehicle collisions and what conditions make riding safer. She also talked about a project she’s working on that will help the Virginia Department of Transportation better assess traffic stress, connectivity, and accessibility of bike and pedestrian routes and her own experience as an avid cyclist.
“Curious Conversations” is available on Spotify, Apple, and YouTube.
Takeaways
Across the country, less than 1 percent of people report cycling as a primary form of transportation and the No. 1 reported reason for not cycling are safety concerns.
Cyclists being overtaken, or hit from behind, by a vehicle is the most common scenario for a cyclist fatality.
Having a physical barrier between cyclists and vehicles typically creates the safest riding environment.
Researchers at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute are equipping bicycles with a combination of instrumentation, including radar and lidar, to help bridge the knowledge gap related to the specifics of bicycle-vehicle collisions.
About Hamm
Hamm is a senior research associate in the Division of Vehicle, Driver, and System Safety at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. Her research focuses on the safety and mobility of vulnerable road users, including cyclists and pedestrians. She is currently leading a pilot program to collect and analyze naturalistic data from cyclists aimed to better understand bicycle-vehicle interactions and cyclist behavior under diverse environmental contexts. She is also leading a project in Virginia to incorporate new data sources into the calculation of level of traffic stress for pedestrians and cyclists.
Learn more
Virginia Tech Transportation Institute creates the future of transportation safety
Cycling for safety: Olympians visit Virginia Tech
As gas prices fluctuate, expert’s research shows cycling continues to grow as commuting alternative
About the podcast
"Curious Conversations" is a series of free-flowing conversations with Virginia Tech researchers that take place at the intersection of world-class research and everyday life. Produced and hosted by Travis Williams, assistant director of marketing and communications for the Office of Research and Innovation, university researchers share their expertise and motivations as well as the practical applications of their work in a format that more closely resembles chats at a cookout than classroom lectures. New episodes are shared each Tuesday.
