test of consumer acceptance. There then started a long process of education and persuasion, together with detailed modifications to the original United States standard, aimed at wider acceptance and acceptability of pedal cycle helmets.
             In July 1990 the state legislature made the wearing of pedal cycle helmets compulsory. Nationwide, official figures show that deaths among pedal bicyclists have fallen from around 100 each year some 10 years ago to about half that number currently. Most of that fall has occurred in the years since 1987. Bicycle crashes occur mainly during times of heavy traffic, and during daylight. Three-quarters of crash victims are male, with a high proportion being teenagers on school trips and young adults on work trips. Most collisions between bicycles and cars occur at intersections or where cyclists or drivers enter a roadway. The most common injuries are to the limbs, followed by more injuries to the head.
             Collisions between bicycles and motor vehicles result in the worst injuries. The primary impact is with the bicycle and the lower limbs of the cyclist. The body of the cyclist is then thrown up over the front of the car. Impact with the windshield of the car is common at impact speeds as low as 25 km/h. The cyclist's head almost always hits the hood, the lower center part of the windshield or the A pillars that support the ends of the windshield. The body of the cyclist is further injured by contact with roof structures, and at impact speeds of 55 km/h and over the cyclist is likely to be thrown completely over the car.
             Several researchers have found that a major barrier to helmet use by children and adolescents is lack of parental awareness. When parents were asked why their children do not own bicycle helmets, the most common responses were: "never thought about purchasing a helmet" (35 percent), "never got around to purchasing a helmet" (29 percent), "child wouldn't wear it anyway" (26 percent), an...