Why is dooring so dangerous?

Cyclists already have enough to worry about when they hit the road that they share with moving cars. The last thing they want to add to their plate is worrying about parked cars, too.

Unfortunately, this is the exact fear many cyclists have due to dooring incidents. What are these incidents and how do they impact cyclists everywhere?

Doors and traffic

Momentum Mag discusses the impact of dooring on individuals. Dooring involves a parked car’s passenger or driver opening the door without checking, thus opening the door directly into – or into the path of – a cyclist.

The primary danger of dooring happens when the cyclist ends up knocked into traffic, or if they swerve into traffic reflexively to get away from the door before they hit it. This can result in other cars hitting the cyclist, which can result in severe injuries on par with crashes between cars and pedestrians.

Hitting the door itself

Just hitting a car door at cycling speeds can also do a lot of damage, though. Bruises, broken bones, head injuries and concussions are not uncommon among the reported cases of cyclists crashing into car doors.

In some cases, victims also hit the window, which can lead to glass breaking and result in laceration injuries. On top of that, a victim may even get launched over the top of the door, leading to impact and fall injuries.

The easiest way to cut down on dooring is for drivers of cars to have an awareness of it. If they know about the chances it could happen, they will likely check more thoroughly before opening their doors in the future.