Traffic in Bangkok Near MBK Centre Thailand South East Asia. Motorbikes are ubiquitous in Thailand, but helmets are not. Activis
Traffic in Bangkok Near MBK Centre Thailand South East Asia. Motorbikes are ubiquitous in Thailand, but helmets are not. Activists aim to tackle a problem that claims thousands of lives. Thailand ranks worst in the world for motorbike and two-wheeler casualties, with more than 11,000 motorbike drivers or passengers dying annually. Official statistics suggest such incidents account for 70% of the country's road fatalities. Many die because they don't wear a helmet. According to a Motorcycle Safety Foundation report, unhelmeted riders in Thailand are between two and three times more likely to be killed, and three times likelier to suffer a "disastrous outcome". Thailand's government introduced a "year of the helmet" in 2010 and is following up with a 100% helmet use campaign to highlight the danger of riding unprotected. Both schemes are part of an ambitious "master plan on road safety" aimed at hitting the UN target – set by the organisation's decade of action for road safety (pdf) – of fewer than 10 deaths per 100,000 people. Yet Thailand remains wildly off the mark; only 47% of those driving or riding pillion wear helmets. Official figures suggest neighbouring Asian countries fare little better, with motorbikes accounting for 61% of fatalities in Indonesia, 58% in Malaysia and in Cambodia.
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