Is It Illegal To Wear Headphones While Riding A Bike?

Nowadays using headphones connected on mobile devices while bicycling has become unbelievably trendy. Some people love listening to music as they are riding a bike because the music motivates them to ride harder. They put headphones on ears and enjoy the wonderful feeling while bicycling. For most of them, the combination of these two activities goes perfectly together, and they can enjoy their beloved activities at the same time.

But what about these activities combined together, are they common? Is it wearing headphones while riding a bike illegal? Is it safe? Is this actually a good idea? Are there some laws for using headphones while riding a bike? 

Enjoying and listening to music on headphones while riding a bike, is one of most topics that separate the cycling society.

For some, wearing headphones and listening music while cycling is very dangerous because they are blocking the “key sense” that help people listening what is happening around them, and it helps people to prevent from accidents. 

Others simply disagree with this, and they enjoy in loud music which is the motivation for them to do hard riding. 

However the main reason behind this agrees and disagrees, about wearing headphones and listening to music, is because of the safety in the middle of a traffic jam.

As a drivers use the radio in the car to create social, safe and comfortable place when are on the road, the cyclist makes the same thing during riding, plus they get motivated to ride more miles and ride fast and harder.

Loud music plays the most important part to boost your fitness skills, it increases your capacity to ride faster, harder and with more enjoyment. 

Dr. Costas Karageorghis claimed, “Music is effectively a legal performance-enhancing drug.” 

Listening to music or using a headset to talk may not seem as dangerous as other forms of distraction, such as texting and driving, but, if the headset interferes with a driver’s ability to hear his/her surroundings, it can be. Headset use can make it impossible to hear “car horns”, shouts, or vehicles approaching you – putting you at risk of an accident. 

Surrounding noises contribute to a bicyclist’s safety on busy roadways. A bicyclist should be able to hear the noises of traffic, other bikers, and pedestrians around them to prevent an accident. 

For headphones users and fans it is hard to accept this and stop enjoying in this activity while cycling. Most research shows that listening to music during riding cannot be determinable to your safety and health as some people believe. 

A study made by Dr. RchelAlderd and Dr. Katarina Jungnickel shows that use of headphones helps to produce a “sensory strategy” which helps the cyclist to handle with riding in a hazardous dangerous and risky situation.

Listening to music and riding a bike is very satisfying but at the same time, it is very dangerous. I think people that wear headphones while riding a bike don’t understate the danger seriously. 

We are supposed to see our ears as a system for scanning that scans the environment where we are and gives us information if we are in danger, so we can protect ourselves and prevent an incident to happen. 

Image Credit: slate.com

Riding a bike and having headphones, listening to loud music is illegal. If you really need to wear headphones for the listening location then don’t use them, you can use an earphone. 

The more you ride a bike, the more you'll grow your sense of the surroundings. If you are doing something where you have to be alert, then you have to maximize situational awareness. The hearing is a “keyway” of achieving this. 

You ask yourself why? Well this is because when you are out of your sense, you are using the easy to look ahead; the touch isn’t very useful, if something is touching you before you hear it is too late; the sense of smell isn’t very useful, because you can just smell unlike taste that will not help you; so the only thing that you can use while riding a bike is hearing. This sense will give you the information from all directions that are actually useful. 

The expert, John S. Allen, says: “Bicycle hearing is quite complicated.”With this, he wants to say that the person who is riding a bike should not depend on listening sounds to keep away from the accident. 

He also claims that “open-air” headphones that are not over the whole ear create an atmosphere that allows hearing outside sounds. The headphones which cover the whole ear, close the canal hearing canal, and outside sounds cannot be heard. 

Florida is one of the few states in the world that forbid wearing headphones while cycling with a low, there is illegal to do this activity while riding. 

The Florida law says people don’t have to operate the vehicle, also including the bicycle, while wearing headphones and listening to music. But also there is one exception for the cyclist and allowed them to wear a headset connected with the cell phone, but to produce music only in one ear. 

• Poorer auditory awareness. Some study showed that people who cycle and listen to music at the same time are less likely hearing sounds around them. For example, if someone calls you, or the car is coming to you or other cyclist bells to you will definitely not listen to them.
• Different safety reports. Young adults and teenagers who are using mobile device reported high squash rate. But there was no bigger danger for an older cyclist or middle-aged and no evidence for about it.
• Varied riding performance. Studies found that people who listen to music and ride a bike disobey traffic system more than cyclists who use a phone. But experiments showed no negative influence of headphones used while cycling. 

However for those who like having some tunes when riding and also handy GPS as well. Here's my recommendation:

Buy some nice athletic (sweat-proof) headphones that are not noise-canceling OR noise-isolating. You can listen to your music and you'll still be able to hear around you.

I recommend you to buy the BOSE SoundSport headphones, they work great. Even when the music is playing you can still hear traffic. You can even hear people chatting on the side of the road as you ride by.

In my opinion, even though listening to music can relax you and “boost your body” while cycling, it is very dangerous to wear headphones and listen to loud music especially If you drive on roads. This blocks your ear and brain to hear what is happening around you.

In a traffic situation, therefore, to me, it is crucial to keep eyes and EARS always in “alert mode.” 

1. Why People Use Headphones While Riding? 

Most of the people wear headphones during cycling because they love the combination of these two activities. Listening to music makes them ride harder and faster. They get motivated and enjoy riding a bike while listening to their favorite music. 

2. Does Using Headphones While Cycling Is Legal? 

Having headphones on you and listening to music when you ride a bike it is illegal. In some countries, this activity is forbidden with a law. 

3. Is It Risky To Wear Headphones During Riding A Bike? 

For most of the people, these actives combined together are very dangerous because while listening to music you block your sense to hear. It is important to listen to what is happening behind you and next to you, when you drive a bike, because that way you may prevent a happening accident. 

4. Do You Often See People Who Wear Headphones While They Ride A Bike? 

Yes, I see them too often. People usually listen to music during cycling because that way they god motivated, even though it is dangerous and forbidden with a law.