Nagoya City announced on June 22 a new safety campaign to encourage bicycle riders to wear helmets and a subsidy of half the purchase price of new helmets. The subsidy is available to all city residents and of any age and will end on Feb. 15, 2024.
To qualify for the subsidy, the helmets must have safety standard marks of SG, JCF, CE (European), GS (German) or CPSC (USA) and a receipt showing the order and sale made from April 1, 2023. The application for the subsidy can be made either online or on a paper application at a ward office. The reimbursement is made in 10 yen increments of half the price up to a maximum of 2,000 yen per helmet.
According to the city’s promotion material, 70% of bicycle accident deaths are caused by head injuries and that not wearing a helmet more than doubles your risk of death. Nagoya City’s 5 rules are 1. Ride on the left side of the road, and on sidewalks pedestrians have right of way. 2. Obey all traffic signals and instructions. 3. Use a light at night. 4. Riding while intoxicated is illegal. 5. Wear a helmet. In addition, the city says having bicycle insurance is mandatory by Aichi Prefecture law.