The following is the summary of a study on bicycle couriers by the Societe de l'assurance automobile du Quebec from 1992. It was prepared in French. This is the only part I have in English. Once I get it translated I wil put the whole thing up.
Note that although the study comes out against licensing, once again it did not consult couriers. It did, however consult cyclists' associations, like they are experts on messengers.
Also note this was prepare by an automobile insurance group.
This document provides food for thought on the safety concerns involving bike couriers based on the experience, opinions and perceptions of municipal authorities in Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver, Seattle, New York City and Washington, D.C. as well as of cyclists' associations in Canada and the United States.
Consultations have brought to light the following points:
The safety of bike couriers is currently a concern to both municipal authorities and to cycling activists; couriers are a reality that seems here to stay in the downtown core of large cities on the North American continent;
the safety aspect as it relates to this type of road user is little known, even ignored because of a lack of data of their involvement in accidents and of reliable complaint records, hence the difficulty of taking steps to alter the situation;
exposure factors to the risk of road accidents that characterize bike couriers are related to the nature of their employment and the traffic environment: their age (18-25 years), sex (mostly males), employment status (mostly an contract, paid on a delivery or commission basis and working full time on the road), the purpose of their work (rapid delivery), their area of operation (business section with heavy vehicular traffic and numerous pedestrians, etc.);
typical risk behaviour of bike couriers consists above all in travel on sidewalks, riding against traffic on one-way streets and crossing against a red light. There is nothing to indicate, however, that they act more recklessly than other cyclists using the downtown core of a city where vehicular and pedestrian traffic is heavy. It is reasonable to assume that their behaviour draws attention mainly because their clothing and bag (often bearing the company name or courier service logo) make them more visible;
the accident rates for bike couriers in Montreal show that they are overrepresented in accident statistics for bicycle riders at large (six times more likely than other riders), but which can easily be explained by the distance the couriers cover and the amount of time they spend on the road. Couriers probably have no more of a propensity far accidents per kilometre travelled than other bicycle riders; the difference in mishap rates between the two groups might well be statistically insignificant. For that reason, caution is advised in imputing accident risk to couriers in order to justify specific intervention targeting this type of road user;
provisions to create a legal framework that would structure the local activities of bike couriers have either been put into place or are under discussion in cities such as Toronto, Vancouver, New York and Washington D.C., reflecting a willingness an the part of authorities and cyclists' associations to get a handle an the situation, whether or not a road safety problem has been rigorously identified. The aim is to track offenses by bike couriers and keep safety record statistics;
objections to special legal measures for bike couriers relate to the cost of implementing provisions intended for relatively few individuals and the difficulty of attributing safety gains to specific measures. The potential impact on the courier business is also a concern.
In summary, our conclusions are twofold:
1. Despite a certain lack of precise and specific statistical data, it seems that bike couriers do not have, per kilometre travelled, an accident rate above the average for all cyclists;
2. Whenever as necessary, it appears possible for a municipality to control bike couriers as showed by the New York City experience.
If you have comments or suggestions, email me at messvilleto@yahoo.com