Safety, health and environmental impacts of commercial motorcycles in Sub-Saharan African cities

In Sub-Saharan Africa, vulnerable road users make up approximately 50% of all traffic fatalities. Despite the dangers of using motorcycles for transportation, the usage of motorcycles—and more recently, motor tricycles—for both personal and commercial purposes has increased exponentially in most Sub...

Full description

Saved in:

Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Urban, planning and transport research Vol. 11; no. 1
Main Authors:	Ntramah, Simon, Peters, Krijn, Jenkins, Jack, Mugisha, Marion M., Chetto, Reginald, Owino, Fredrick, Hayombe, Patrick O., Opiyo, Paul, Santos, Rosemarie T., Johnson, Ted
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Macclesfield Taylor & Francis Ltd 01-12-2023 Taylor & Francis Group
Subjects:	Bicycles Cities Commercial motorcycles Environmental impact Motor tricycles motorcycle taxis Motorcycles Operators Roads Safety safety and health Sub-saharan African cities Taxicabs Tricycles Liberia Ghana
Online Access:	Get full text
Tags:	Add Tag No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!

Description
Summary:	In Sub-Saharan Africa, vulnerable road users make up approximately 50% of all traffic fatalities. Despite the dangers of using motorcycles for transportation, the usage of motorcycles—and more recently, motor tricycles—for both personal and commercial purposes has increased exponentially in most Sub-Saharan African cities. The study sought to study the safety, health and environmental impact of commercial motorcycles in Sub-Saharan African cities. Two cities—the national capital and a secondary city—were selected in each of our five study countries: Ghana, Liberia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. Using a mixed-methods approach, motorcycle taxi operators were surveyed and key transport stakeholders were interviewed in these ten cities. In Ghana, where both motorcycle and motor-tricycle taxis are officially banned but continue to operate, we also surveyed motor-tricycle taxi operators. The results indicated variability in accident occurrence across countries for both minor and major road traffic collisions (RTCs) among motorcycle/tricycle taxi riders. Apart from Liberia, motorcycle/tricycle taxi unions in our study countries contribute to improving the safety of their riders. Interest in electric bikes is low amongst riders in all five countries, with education and infrastructure provision required to cause a shift from conventional bikes to electric bikes.
ISSN:	2165-0020 2165-0020
DOI:	10.1080/21650020.2023.2259233