Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Arizona

Insane Comic Books Warn Phoenix Children That Biking Will Kill Them

This comic book was produced by the Phoenix Street Transportation Department to warn young children about the dangers of not wearing a helmet. Retrieved from the Arizona Republic
This comic book was produced by the Phoenix Street Transportation Department to warn young children about the dangers of not wearing a helmet. Via The Arizona Republic
This comic book was produced by the Phoenix Street Transportation Department to warn young children about the dangers of not wearing a helmet. Retrieved from the Arizona Republic

Hey kids, the Phoenix Department of Street Transportation has a fun message for you: Riding your bike is likely to result in a gory horror scene. If you don't wear your helmet, of course.

This is the cover of a comic book being distributed to third and fourth graders in Phoenix.
This is the cover of a comic book being distributed to third and fourth graders in Phoenix.
This is the cover of a comic book being distributed to third and fourth graders in Phoenix.

That's the gist of an over-the-top "bike safety" comic book that has alarmed parents of third and fourth graders in Phoenix. The comic shows a cyclist with his brain exposed and blood dripping down his skull on the cover. The inside is equally horrifying, conjuring a world where kids get run over and lose the use of their legs because they pop wheelies.

The books were produced by the Phoenix Street Transportation Department with a $18,700 grant from the Governor's Office of Highway Safety. An illustrator hired by the transportation department explained to the Arizona Republic that they were meant to scare children into wearing helmets.

Helmets can protect against head injuries in the event of a crash or fall, but the idea that helmet use is the one true answer for bike safety is cartoonishly simple.

Gory comic books about bike helmets are not the kind of thing you see in places with excellent bike safety records. It is basically an admission that public agencies have failed to create safe streets and an indictment of the prevailing safety culture.

At a time when kids are developing chronic disease at an alarming rate thanks in part to the lack of physical activity, Phoenix is sending the message that something as normal as riding a bike will cause you to resemble an extra from the Walking Dead.

635967461555959517-Legs

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

America Has a Golden Opportunity to End the ‘Highway Boondoggle’ Crisis

America's wasteful highway spending has gotten out of control — and if President Trump really wants to promote efficient government, he'll urge Congress to stop it.

October 9, 2025

Thursday’s Headlines Sleep Tight

A new study links insomnia with the length of a person's commute.

October 9, 2025

Wednesday’s Headlines Are the Best of the Best

What does it take to turn the tide against the dominance of cars? These cities are an example.

October 8, 2025

This Newsroom Is Looking For Its Next Big Tip on the Train

Investigative journalists at ProPublica are betting that the next big tipster is riding the DC rails right now — and reaching out to find them.

October 8, 2025

Chicago Bike Scavenger Hunt Raises Money for Local Abortion Fund

Chicago cyclists are standing up for bodily autonomy — or, more accurately, pedaling for it.

October 7, 2025

The Shocking Untold History of America’s Rails-to-Trails Movement

Some of the fiercest battles for the future of public space in America have happened on abandoned railway corridors — and the battles aren't over yet.

October 7, 2025
See all posts