Helmet use in Japan has risen 3? years after a revised road traffic law called on all cyclists in Japan to endeavor to wear one. Progress has been slow, however, with just one in four cyclists now wearing one.
To encourage more cyclists, especially young people, to wear helmets, the Metropolitan Police Department has developed a new helmet with input from university students. The helmet went on sale in August.
Before the amendment took effect in April 2023, only parents and guardians were urged to have children under 13 wear helmets. The revised law has extended this duty to all cyclists, but there is no penalty for not wearing a helmet.
According to the MPD, about 60% of people killed in bicycle accidents in Tokyo over the five years through 2025 died from head injuries. The fatality rate for cyclists not wearing helmets was 2.3 times that of those who wore them, the MPD said.
Even so, the nationwide helmet-wearing rate stood at just 24.4%, up 3.2 percentage points from a year earlier, according to a National Police Agency survey released in September. Only three prefectures — Ehime, Oita and Fukui — topped 60%, while the remaining 44 all stood below 50%. Tokyo came in at 15.5%, while Osaka ranked last at 9.5%.
In July 2024, the MPD began developing the new helmets in collaboration with Ryohin Keikaku, the operator of the Muji retail chain. It also enlisted students from Aoyama Gakuin University and Yamano Beauty College in Tokyo.
“We launched the project to encourage helmet use from the perspective of young people, who often avoid wearing helmets because of concerns about fashion and their hair,” said Yohei Gonda, who oversaw the project as a senior official in the administration section of the MPD’s Traffic Bureau.
The students first discussed why helmets had not caught on, examining complaints such as “It messes up your hair” and “It’s too bulky to carry around.” They then split into groups to look for solutions.
Their proposals included improving the design and offering helmets in gift catalogs so that more people would have a chance to try one. About two years after the project began, helmets incorporating the students’ ideas were completed. Ryohin Keikaku sells them in Japanese as the “Bicycle Helmet That Lets Air Flow Through.”
The helmets have a matte finish that goes well with a wide range of outfits, and their inner structure is designed to prevent bangs from becoming messed up. They can also be worn even with tied-back hair. A promotional poster for the helmets states, “There’s no reason left not to wear one!”
Students involved in the project appeared at a traffic safety event in Tokyo’s Koto Ward in September to show off the new helmets’ features.
“We focused on convenience, so the chin strap can be fastened with one hand,” said Riko Nagano, 21, a third-year student at Aoyama Gakuin University, referring to the helmets’ magnetic buckle. “I’d be happy if more people started wearing helmets.”
Students from Yamano Beauty College came up with hairstyles, some designed to look stylish even under a helmet and others to hold their shape after the helmet?is removed. They also made hairstyling videos to encourage people to wear helmets.
Gonda emphasized the success of the project involving the students and praised their contributions.
“Many innovative and positive ideas were put forward,” he said. Still, he added, “We are only halfway toward getting many people to wear helmets. We will continue to take every opportunity to encourage their use.”
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