Nobody can deny that riding a bike is inherently riskier than being coddled in a car. It’s a risk that we knowingly take in exchange for the benefits that motorcycling offers – but looking through the casualty statistics for the whole world reveals there’s a massive difference in the dangers depending on where you’re riding.
We’re looking here at the road traffic fatality figures compiled by the World Health Organization, which include percentages of deaths for two and three-wheeled vehicle users, cyclists, pedestrians and car drivers and passengers. Of course, countries where motorcycles and scooters make up a larger proportion of traffic dominate the list, which is made using the 2016 casualty figures for each country.
For comparison, in the UK, around 20.5% of road deaths are motorcyclists or their passengers. We’ve also excluded nations with tiny numbers of casualties – for instance, 80% of road fatalities in the Cook Islands were motorcycle users in 2016, but since there were only five deaths the ratio could be massively skewed by a single accident. It’s the same story for the Maldives, with a 75% ratio but only four road deaths during the year.
10: Sri Lanka: 50.8% of road fatalities are motorcyclists
Total registered vehicles: 6,795,469
Registered motorcycles: 4,815,617
Helmet law? Yes.
Helmet standards? Yes.
Helmet fastening required? No.
Helmet wearing rate: 95%
Given that motorcycles make up around 71% of all traffic it’s no surprise they’re involved in 50.8% of road deaths. Good helmet wearing rate.
9: Paraguay: 52.2% of road fatalities are motorcyclists
Total registered vehicles: 1,871,947
Registered motorcycles: 567,388
Helmet law? Yes.
Helmet standards? Yes.
Helmet fastening required? Yes.
Helmet wearing rate: Unknown
Bikes only make up 30% of Paraguay’s vehicles but their riders account for 52.2% of road deaths.
8: Colombia: 52.5% of road fatalities are motorcyclists
Total registered vehicles: 13,477,996
Registered motorcycles: 7,512,036
Helmet law? Yes.
Helmet standards? Yes.
Helmet fastening required? No.
Helmet wearing rate: 96% (riders), 80% (passengers)
Bikes make up 55% of traffic and account for 52.5% of deaths. Relatively strong record on helmet use.
7: Benin: 56.5% of road fatalities are motorcyclists
Total registered vehicles: 469,761
Registered motorcycles: 195,157
Helmet law? Yes.
Helmet standards? No.
Helmet fastening required? Yes.
Helmet wearing rate: 25% (riders), 1% (passengers)
Bikes make up 40% of traffic but 56.5% of road deaths, but it seems helmet laws are widely ignored.
6: Myanmar: 64.8% of road fatalities are motorcyclists
Total registered vehicles: 6,381,136
Registered motorcycles: 5,391,505
Helmet law? Yes.
Helmet standards? No.
Helmet fastening required? Yes.
Helmet wearing rate: 32% (riders), 27% (passengers)
More than 84% of Myanmar’s vehicles are powered two- and three-wheelers, so it’s no surprise they’re involved in the majority of road deaths.
Top ten continues on page two >>>
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