Over child motorcyclists
> Some as young as six putting their lives in danger on roads nationwide
PETALING JAYA : Casualties among children and teenagers riding motorcycles illegally are on the rise with some as young as six years old putting their lives in danger in the suburbs and rural roads nationwide.
Official data from traffic police disclosed that many young motorcyclists from six to 10-year-olds are killed on the roads every year, with 13 deaths and 88 injured last year. It is an increase of 10 deaths and 79 injuries compared to 2014 statistics.
The “2015 Statistical Report on Road Accidents” released by the Federal Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department also revealed that 249 unlicensed bikers aged between 11 and 15 were killed, 229 sustained serious injuries and 427 cases of minor injuries.
It is a hefty jump compared to the 2014 statistics which saw 225 killed, 198 (serious injuries) and 324 (minor injuries) for the 11 to 15-year-old age group.
The report also disclosed that due to motorcycle crashes last year, there were 1,235 road fatalities or an average of 3.4 deaths a day – bikers and pillion riders – including babies on board.
The 2015 fatalities involving pillion riders were:
16 infants and toddlers (up to five years old) 17 children (six to 10 years old) 53 children (11 to 15 years old) 97 teenagers (16 to 20 years old) There were 790 deaths in the 16- to 20year-old age group while 577 suffered serious injuries and 1,112 cases of minor injuries – the highest fatalities and casualties from a particular age group in the overall road fatalities nationwide.
A total of 3,816 motorcyclists and 387 pillion riders from all ages perished last year, an increase of 24 deaths (for bikers and pillion riders) than the previous year’s figure.
There were 2,509 deaths involving Malay bikers, followed by Indians (513); Chinese (473) and foreigners (236) last year.
Most road deaths were in rural areas, claiming 2,193 victims, followed by urban areas (801), small towns (572) and major cities (250).
The 2015 fatalities data also revealed that 1,295 bikers and pillion riders (108) were not using safety helmets.
The most common time for deaths on the road involving bikers was between 8.01pm and 10pm, with 500 deaths, and from 6.01pm to 8pm with 470.