High school and college students are much less likely to wear bicycle helmets than children or older adults, officials recently discovered in a local survey.

The survey, completed Sept. 12, was conducted by the Ames Police Department in order to determine the rate of bicycle helmet usage within the city.

Riders were divided into three age groups for the survey. Officials found that 10 percent of high school and college students wore helmets, while 72 percent of adults older than traditional college students and 73 percent of younger children wore them.

Police Chief Dennis Ballantine was not surprised by the findings that high school and college students wear helmets the least. “They’re the group that tends to wear seat belts the least too,” he said. “They’re going to live forever.” He also said that these students may think that wearing a helmet looks silly or is uncomfortable.

“Kids probably wear them because Mom and Dad make them,” he said. Older adults usually wear helmets because they realize they can get hurt if they have an accident, Ballantine said.

Counts were taken at three separate locations: Brookside Park, the intersection of Welch Avenue and Knapp Street, and the intersection of Lincoln Way and Beedle Drive. Ballantine said the locations chosen typically have heavy bicycle traffic.

The Ames Police Department currently has a bicycle patrol, funded by a federal grant. The survey was conducted as part of this grant application.

The bicycle patrol works to enforce bicycle safety laws. This includes trying to increase the amount of bicycle helmet usage for safety purposes. The patrol currently is working to be “pro-active on traffic laws.” They also try to influence bicycle owners to register their bikes for the purpose of aiding the police department in recovery if the bike were stolen.

Currently there are no laws requiring the use of bicycle helmets. “It’s not illegal not to wear one,” he said, “but every year there are at least some injured from bicycle accidents.”

Ballantine does not foresee a law requiring helmets being passed soon. “We can’t even make motorcycle helmets mandatory in Iowa,” he said.

Percentage of bikers surveyed wearing helmets

10% of college/h.s. students

72% of adults

73% of children