Photo/Illutration Police advise a cyclist on how to ride safely in Tokyo in October. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Cyclists were involved in 23.3 percent of all traffic accidents in Japan in 2022, the highest rate on record, according to statistics released by the National Police Agency.

Although the overall number of road accidents continued to decline, there were 69,985 cases that resulted in death or injury of cyclists, up 291 from 2021 and the second straight year of increase, the NPA said.

The 23.3-percent proportion of accidents involving bicycles represented the sixth consecutive annual increase and was the highest ratio since comparable data became available 20 years ago.

After topping 180,000 in the early 2000s, the number of cyclist-involved accidents continued to decline and fell below 100,000 in 2015.

However, the trend turned upward in 2021, when more people avoided public transportation and bicycle use increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Of the 1,985 cyclists killed in road accidents between 2018 and 2022, about three-quarters were involved in crashes with motor vehicles, while one-quarter died in single-bicycle accidents.

About 70 percent of the cyclists were violating laws, such as failing to sufficiently confirm safety on their routes.

Most of those killed, or 94.9 percent, were not wearing helmets. Of those who died from head injuries, 96 percent were helmetless while only 3.9 percent were wearing the protective gear.

Only 9.4 percent of the 363,000 cyclists injured during the five years were wearing helmets, according to the NPA.

Under new legislation that took effect in April, cyclists are required to wear helmets, but there is no penalty for non-compliance.

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