Editing Hitchhiking (section)

==Safety==
{{wikivoyage|Tips for hitchhiking#Stay safe|safe hitchhiking|some tips}}
[[File:Clyde Goes Hitchhiking.webm|right|thumb|An episode of ''[[About Safety]]'', a 1970s educational children's show, about the safety of hitchhiking]]
Limited data is available regarding the safety of hitchhiking.<ref name="dearth">{{cite web|last=Wechner |first=Bernd |title=A dearth of research: Does anyone really know anything about hitch-hiking? |url=https://bernd.wechner.info/Hitchhiking/Suite101/Article/?71 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Compiling good safety data requires counting hitchhikers, counting rides, and counting problems, all difficult tasks.<ref>{{cite web|last=Wechner |first=Bernd |title=The Pros and Cons of Hitch-Hiking |url=https://bernd.wechner.info/Hitchhiking/Suite101/Article/?02 |quote=There are no statistics on hitch-hiking, at least none that are meaningful and reliable. Compiling useful statistics would require counting hitchers and the amount of rides they receive, and comparing them to the problems reported, which would be a difficult task. |df=dmy-all |website=bernd.wechner.info}}</ref>

Two studies on the topic include a 1974 [[California Highway Patrol]] study and a 1989 German federal police (Bundeskriminalamt Wiesbaden) study.<ref name="dearth" /> The California study found that hitchhikers were not disproportionately likely to be victims of crime.<ref>{{cite news|last=McLeod |first=Jamie |title=The 'better' Better Way |url=http://theeyeopener.com/2007/01/the-better-better-way/ |access-date=3 May 2013 |newspaper=The Eyeopener |date=10 January 2007 |quote=The most recent hard evidence I could find about hitchhiking danger was a 1974 study conducted by the California Highway Patrol examining crimes committed by and on hitchhikers. It found that in 71.7 per cent of hitchhiker related crimes the hitchhiker was the victim. It also found that only 0.63 per cent of the crimes reported during the period of the study were hitchhiker-related, and that hitchhikers were not disproportionately victims of crime. }} '''Citing:''' {{cite news|title=California Crimes And Accidents Associated With Hitchhiking |url=https://bernd.wechner.info/Hitchhiking/CHP/body.html |publisher=California Highway Patrol |date=February 1974 |quote=No independent information exists about hitchhikers who are not involved in crimes. Without such information, it is not possible to conclude whether or not hitchhikers are exposed to high danger. However, the results of this study do not show that hitchhikers are over-represented in crimes or accidents beyond their numbers. |df=dmy-all }} Also available as [https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/Digitization/18834NCJRS.pdf a PDF.]</ref> The German study concluded that the actual risk is much lower than the publicly perceived risk; the authors did not advise against hitchhiking in general.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://prino.neocities.org/www/a-und-a/anhalterwesen-und-anhaltergefahren.html|title=Anhalterwesen und Anhaltergefahren: unter besonderer Berücksichtigung des "Kurztrampens"|author=Joachim Fiedler|publisher=Bundeskriminalamt Wiesbaden|year=1989|location=Wiesbaden, Germany|language=de|oclc=21676123|display-authors=etal}}</ref> They found that in some cases there were verbal disputes or inappropriate comments, but physical attacks were very rare.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.zeit.de/1990/28/trampen-ohne-grosses-risiko |title=Trampen ohne großes Risiko|website=[[Zeit Online]]|date= 1990}} "In one of 10,000 rides, a woman is raped and in two of 1,000 rides, there is an attempted rape."</ref>

Recommended safety practices include:<ref>{{cite web|title=Hitchhiker's safety|website=Hitchwiki|access-date= 1 January 2014|url=http://hitchwiki.org/en/Hitchhiker%27s_safety }}This is a link to the referenced article; but, note that it has not been fully peer-reviewed, and that we cannot guarantee its validity.</ref>
* Asking for rides at gas stations instead of signaling at the roadside
* Refusing rides from [[Driving under the influence|alcohol impaired drivers]]
* Hitchhiking during daylight hours
* Trusting one's instincts
* Traveling with another hitchhiker; this measure decreases the likelihood of harm by a factor of six.<ref>Based on: {{cite thesis|url=http://wesscholar.wesleyan.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2428&context=etd_hon_theses#page=44 |type=BA thesis |last=Compagni Portis |first=Julian |date=2015 |title=Thumbs Down: America and the Decline of Hitchhiking |publisher=Wesleyan University |page=44 }} '''Citing:''' {{cite news|title=California Crimes And Accidents Associated With Hitchhiking |url=https://bernd.wechner.info/Hitchhiking/CHP/body.html |publisher=California Highway Patrol |at=Table 18 |df=dmy-all }} Also available as [https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/Digitization/18834NCJRS.pdf a PDF.]</ref>

In the UK, [[The Scout Association]] specifically lists hitchhiking as an activity not permitted at any scouting event.<ref>The Scout Association, [https://prod-umbraco-core.azurewebsites.net/media/pjbj33kc/autumn-2024-pdf-no-markup-final.pdf Policy, Organisation and Rules], Autumn 2024, section 9.1.1.2, accessed on 1 January 2025</ref>