With the festive season kicking off and many people travelling upcountry to spend their Christmas holiday, motorcycles popularly known as boda boda will be a key mode of transport.
Besides having an uncountable number of motorbikes in our cities and urban areas, they are much more popular in rural areas.
A report released in February this year by the Motorcycle Assemblers Association of Kenya, indicates there are more than 600,000 motorbikes on our roads.
However, in the recent past, boda boda related road accidents have increased, raising a red flag over their safety.
The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) in a report last year indicated that 1,570 people died in different boda boda related crashes across the country between January and July 2017.
The fact that we have dedicated wards in some of our hospitals for boda boda accident casualties shows how dire the situation is.
In this breath, as you plan to make a quick dash this festive season using a motorcycle, ensure that your safety comes first by adhering to these three safety standards:
1. Wearing a helmet and reflector jacket
Always ensure that you ride with your helmet and reflector jacket on. These riding gears are often ignored but they play a big role in keeping you safe.
A helmet protects your head in case of an accident while a reflector jacket will make you visible to other drivers behind you.
2. Never ride on an overloaded motorcycle
It is a common picture to see a boda boda ferrying three people which is dangerous. NTSA only allows the motorcycle to carry one passenger only.
Overloading motorcycle tinkers with its stability thereby raising the probability of a crash.
3.Speed
Request your rider not to ferry you in very high speed. One of the causes of motorcycle accidents in Kenya is high speed and recklessness by riders.
Motorcycle riders too should ensure that their bikes are at all times well-serviced and roadworthy. They should also adhere to laid down traffic rules.
If we all collaborated and did the right thing this festive season, we will have zero reports of boda boda crashes.
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