“I’ve got to do better”: New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani gets helmet for riding around city after criticism; Punchy hills around Cockermouth at Tour of Britain + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Who are you calling a helmet?
We live in a strange age of political communication, the present and incoming generation of politicians and their special advisers are uncomfortably native when it comes to digital media. A failure to cut through is unacceptable, but it’s also not an easy to task to produce ‘content’ that doesn’t make the viewer want to curl up in a ball and consider retreating to the wilderness. Just look at any of the US President’s AI-generated monstrosities…
It helps that Zohran Mamdani himself is significantly younger than most politicians, and can knowingly cut through the kitsch or cliché because he understands the media assignment, rather than being someone decades older clearly told to do something by order of the young person with a phone in the office.
Take the New York City mayor’s latest video, published yesterday afternoon and which has already amassed 28 million views, and 2.3 million likes on Instagram alone…
View this post on Instagram
Having taken part in various events and been spotted repeatedly not wearing a helmet when using a hire bike, Mamdani has made content out of his newly-bought helmet ‘unboxing’. It’s light-hearted and appears to have gone down rather well in a social media algorithm increasingly ‘stanning’ politicians and their every action.
Funnily enough, despite its social media reputation, Bluesky has actually had some of the more interesting discourse on the substance of wearing a helmet. Here’s BBC reporter David Gregory-Kumar…
Ok. The evidence is drivers take more risks around cyclists wearing a helmet. It’s safer not to (does not apply to kids) and when you put in proper infrastructure you don’t need them at all.
— David Gregory-Kumar (@drdavidgk.bsky.social) 18 August 2026 at 16:12
Gregory-Kumar then linked to a 2019 study by Ian Walker (he of ‘motonormativity’ fame) that suggested wearing a helmet actually led to drivers attempting closer, more dangerous passes.
There were other users hemming and hawing, here are some notable comments:
“Best thing you can do is wearing a “dutch helmet”: create such safe bicycling infrastructure that a helmet is not necessary.”
“Helmets discourage people from riding, which in turn increases the rate of accidents. It also cues to drivers that it’s okay to drive closer and be reckless around them. The best way to prevent a head injury isn’t to wear a helmet, it’s to not to be in an accident in the first place.”
“95% of Netherlands cyclists don’t wear helmets, and more than 30% commute using bicycle every work day, yet their head injury rate is lower than other countries with much lower numbers of cyclists. Why? Because they have purpose built often separate well designed cycle integrated infrastructure”
“Even if the infrastructure would be perfect a helmet is highly preferable. you’re never alone and others could always be idiots or a mechanical failure is possible at every moment.”
It should be said that helmets have been in the news quite a bit lately, thanks to the head of the professional cyclists’ union calling for stricter safety standards in light of Fin Tarling’s death.
In addition, this isn’t the first road safety policy put forward by Mamdani who has worked to tackle the supply of illegally-modified e-bikes in the city.
Still, Rome wasn’t built in a day, and given the poor historic attitude towards cyclists from the authorities, a helmet probably isn’t a bad way to go…
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If you are going to wear a helmet, it might be best to learn how to do the straps up...
As we all know, proper hydration is crucial. And this article is particularly hypertonic with BS.
@Rendel Harris When I lived in Cambridge, I regularly used the busway for training rides, as did plenty of others. Particularly heading north from Cambridge towards St Ives, it's generally pretty wide, pretty quiet (it's not especially popular with walkers) and has very good visibility and few junctions. Being pretty much pancake flat, even a mediocre cyclist like myself could comfortable exceed 15mph. As with any shared path you should of course show consideration to other users, and this may mean slowing down sometimes, but the idea there needs to be a blanket 15mph speed limit at all times and along the entire length seems ridiculous to me.
I haven't really done wheelies since the 80s when I was a kid on a Raleigh Burner, other than lifting the front wheel a bit to get up a kerb, or in response to a bunch of kids I pass shouting "do a wheelie" (given what some kids shout at cyclists, I usually oblige with an attempt). Never been any good at riding with no hands though, meaning I rarely eat whilst moving - most of the time it's a brief stop to open a gel, bar, chew etc.
@mdavidford I think the surprise here is how much better it is for the health of young children which should lead to much improved health as they age.
Surprise! Clean air and active travel are good for your health! https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1l1r1zne1ro
As chair of Walk Ride Bath(NES), I can also confirm that WRB strongly opposed this section stating it fell significantly short of LTN 1/20 compliance in November 2024 highlighting that a much stronger route along the northern edge of the park along an existing lit road was better. The council appears to have ignored our response. https://walkridebath.org.uk/2024/11/26/bath-walking-wheeling-cycling-links-response/ Also let's be clear, the map used here is disingenuous. Nothing other than the park route is being delivered. Not the critical Queen Square infrastructure or anything linking into Weston. They are delivering a bit in the middle that adds f'all to the network that was there already. Note West of England Combined Authority have already warned BaNES to stop descoping and increasing costs on City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement schemes they manage.
I am very familiar with this area, and being a major route into Bath, it will be an every day experience for Road CC staff. I am in S Gloucestershire, and it would appear you have the same issue in Bath, that given ANY proposal for spending on Active Travel Infrastructure, the Range Rover lobby suddenly become all environmently friendly and object on the grounds that ANY lighting will disturb the wildlife (a major issue with large parts of the Bristol to Bath Railway Path). I note that major changes to road junctions, including masses of extra tarmac and lighting, are never objected to on environmental grounds. I know that Bath is getting a lot right on Active Travel infrastructure, and it appears the Range Rover lobby will be addressed by this lighting scheme, so that the scheme could go ahead. The alternative is a major road that runs alongside the park that I would never dare to ride a bike along. I believe we should be supporting the scheme, and then putting the case forward for increased light levels once the scheme is in place, and exactly what is happening right now on the Bristol to Bath Railway Path in S Gloucrstershire.
@chrisonabike Remember that Adam Hansen did not write the article, very likely has little say in which parts of his statement are put into that article, where they are put in the article, how they are framed in the article, indeed, we do not know the full transcript of Adam Hansen's statement, what questions he was asked, whether the information about helmets was late in the statement, an afterthought, etc. In any case, it seems unlikely he asked the BBC reporter to use that title.
"We’re removing entrance-level products and really focusing on better and best" ...Oh they want USWE's spot in the market. Shame I rather like my ~£50 rogue light. I wouldn't pay 2x as much.
1 thought on ““I’ve got to do better”: New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani gets helmet for riding around city after criticism; Punchy hills around Cockermouth at Tour of Britain + more on the live blog”
If you are going to wear a helmet, it might be best to learn how to do the straps up…