NO doubt the York road safety trainer pictured with cycling bobbies had good reasons for not wearing a cycle helmet (June 6).

Those of us who have been riding for more than 50 years and survived in hostile traffic locations such as Birmingham, London and Paris will be extremely conscious that this headgear is largely irrelevant.

Those who wear them should be reminded that it does not guarantee them not being involved in an accident, whereas experience following the sort of training provided by the road safety team is far more valuable.

Only 8.6 per cent of all fatal injuries are caused by head impacts alone. In the remaining 91.4 per cent, even if a helmet had prevented any head injury, the cyclist would have died of other injuries.

Even those made to the highest specification are only designed to resist impacts equivalent to those of velocities up to 12mph.

Research into potential accidents shows universal helmet wearing would save no more than two lives a year, while further studies indicate a trend to higher accident rates in countries where helmet use has been made compulsory.

Ron Healey,

Howard Drive, York.

Updated: 12:24 Saturday, June 22, 2002