The draft policy aimed at controlling the speed and movement of motorcycles in Bangladesh may undergo revisions, as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has expressed dissatisfaction at a recent Executive Committee on National Economic Council (Ecnec) meeting. 

According to sources, on March 21, the prime minister said the city dwellers travel quickly from one place to another on motorcycles. “Therefore, if the speed limit for motorcycles is specified, it will demotivate the drivers." 

The prime minister directed the Ministry of Home Affairs to address the issue as soon as possible.

Several reports and surveys claim that casualties from motorcycle accidents have increased in recent years, and almost half of the motorcycle accidents that are reported in the country are caused by reckless driving. 

Hence, Motorcycle Movement Policy 2023 was formulated by the government aiming at reducing the use of fast bikes which would help to bring down the number of deaths.

The draft policy primarily mentions three objectives—reducing road accidents by regulating motorcycle movement, encouraging the use of less risky motorcycles, and raising awareness among motorcyclists

A nine-member committee headed by Joint Secretary of Road Transport and Highways Department Anisur Rahman prepared the draft policy this year.

The committee includes representatives of the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), the Bangladesh University of Engineering (Buet), the Roads and Highways Department, and the Bangladesh Police.

On Saturday, speaking on the condition of anonymity, some of the committee members mentioned that as per the instructions of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the policy will be modified with careful consideration. 

It is still undecided whether the committee will be requested to revise the draft or whether stakeholders will revise it themselves. Nonetheless, steps will be taken promptly to address this matter, they added.

They also noted that after revision the draft policy will be published on a website and in newspapers as per the rules.

The revised draft policy will be subject to further consideration based on the feedback received following its public release. Finalizing the policy will require time once the entire process is completed, they noted.

When contacted, another member of the committee Assistant Professor of the Accident Research Institute of Buet Shahnewaz Hasanat-E-Rabbi said the policy does not mention anything about the maximum speed limit of vehicles in the city. Only an 80km limit is mentioned for the highways.

The damaged motorcycle that crashed into a pole on the side of the Mawna-Barmi road in Sreepur upazila of Gazipur on Sunday, October 31, 2021 Dhaka Tribune

The motorcycle policy proposes a maximum speed limit of 30kmph in urban areas, which is based on a United Nations declaration, he mentioned.

Shahnewaz Hasanat-E-Rabbi also said if the policy is enacted, motorcyclists will face problems on the roads as the policy only limits their speed and not the other vehicles.

“One solution to this complication can be to set the speed limit of 30km for all vehicles plying the roads here. Then there will be no more speed differences, bikers will also have no problem with the decision,” he said.

However, he added, according to the directives of the prime minister, the stakeholders may make the final decision on how to amend the policy.

There are several other proposals made for the Motorcycle Movement Policy 2023. They are given below.

During ride-sharing, the driver should wear specified clothing by provided the company and a helmet of a specific colour. 

Pregnant women, senior citizens, and anyone below 12 years of age cannot ride the motorcycle. 

It is also mentioned in the provision that one cannot ride a motorcycle while wearing an earphone or talking on a mobile phone.

Goods cannot be carried on motorcycles in an unsafe and unbalanced manner without a carrier. 

Motorcycles cannot be parked in areas where traffic is blocked. 

Motorcycle manufacturing companies will prepare and distribute handbills, leaflets, posters, and stickers related to road safety. They will also have to promote various issues related to road safety in electronic and print media. The related activities should be reported to the authorities regularly.

Motorcycles cannot be driven on national and regional highways for a total of 10 days before and after Eid-ul-Fitr, Eid-ul-Azha, Durga Puja, and other similar festivals.

Motorcycle drivers cannot carry passengers while on the highway. 

Drivers will be required to wear safety gear such as a chest guard, knee guard, elbow guard, ankle covering shoes or sneakers, full finger gloves, and full pants and shirts.

Motorcycles cannot be ridden without up-to-date valid documents (driving license, registration certificate, tax token) as well as retro-reflective number plates and RFID tags.

Dhaka Tribune

Both the driver and the rider of a motorcycle must wear a helmet properly approved by BSTI. 

In order to drive on highways, motorcycles are required to have ABS (Anti-lock braking system) and must be driven on the left lane, and not on the sidewalks or footpaths. 

While driving a motorcycle in the rain, it should be operated at a slow, controllable speed to ensure easy stopping. Sharp turns, acceleration, and sudden stops must be avoided.

In fog, low beams or dippers should be turned on and the motorcycle should be driven with caution and controllable speed. If the visibility is severely compromised, the driver must stop the motorcycle. 

A retroreflective jacket should be used while riding a motorcycle at night and a first aid kit should be carried.

The draft policy proposes tariff concessions to popularize scooters at the production, assembly, and import levels. 

Running a campaign highlighting the benefits of the use of scooters has also been mentioned there.  

In January this year, some 205 people were killed and 114 injured in 214 motorcycle accidents, according to a report by Jatri Kalyan Samity (JKS).

A total of 816 vehicles were identified in organized accidents during this period. Some 27.32% of these accidents are on motorcycles or bikes.

Meanwhile, in 2022, casualties from bike accidents in Bangladesh increased by 19.28% compared with last year as 2,097 people were killed in 2,003 accidents till October.

The data were shown in a Road Safety Foundation's (RSF) motorcycle accident report in Bangladesh from January to October 2022.

FILE PHOTO: Motorcycle turned to rubble in an accident with a picnic bus in Dumuria, Khulna on January 22, 2021 Dhaka Tribune

The report also said in 2021, in the first 10 months 1,758 people were killed in 1,653 motorcycle accidents.

In comparison in 2022 the number of accidents rose by 21.17% during the period, it said.

According to the report, 764 of the deceased were students, which account for 36.43% of total fatalities and 4.38% were passersby who were hit by motorcycles.

Road Safety Foundation mentions reckless driving by youths, and teens, availability of high-speed motorcycles, lax traffic management, incoherence in surveillance, reckless speed of all vehicles, unskilled drivers, a trend of not following traffic rules by motorcyclists, language used in advertisements to encourage youths for overspeed, lack of dividers on roads and highways, and a political backing to create a culture of reckless motorcycle driving as the main reasons of the rise in accidents.

Road Safety Foundation Executive Director Saidur Rahman and Jatri Kalyan Samity Secretary General Mozammel Hoque Chowdhury pointed out that there is a direct correlation between motorcycles and speed.

A large number of individuals are opting for motorcycles as a means of transportation in order to avoid traffic congestion and reach their destinations quickly. The service is being provided by ride-sharing companies, while others are using their own personal motorcycles. 

The lack of management and disorder in public transportation is one of the key factors leading to the increased use of motorcycles, which unfortunately also results in a rise in the number of accidents and fatalities, they noted.

They said to overcome this situation, it is necessary to take coordinated initiatives at the government and private levels. 

To reduce the number of accidents and fatalities related to motorcycles, it has been suggested by the experts that motorcycle companies should refrain from promoting reckless and speedy driving in their advertisements. 

In addition, they recommend increasing the surveillance of concerned authorities on the road and implementing transparency measures at every stage, from the purchase and sale of motorcycles to road traffic.

Two types of motorcycles are commonly seen on the roads in Asian countries, including Bangladesh. One is fast and considered as sports bikes and the other is of relatively low-speed, the majority of which falls under the scooty category. 

Although the scooty is seen capturing the market in other Asian countries, the scene is different in Bangladesh, where people opt for relatively faster motorcycles which are considered more prone to road crashes.

Under the current situation, the government wants to increase the use of the scooty to cut down on road crashes. At the same time it is considering restricting the use and production of motorcycles in the country. 

A policy is reportedly being formulated to reduce road accidents by regulating motorcycle movement, encouraging safe use and use of less risky bikes alongside increasing awareness among riders. 

The Motorcycle Movement Policy-2023 recently formulated by the government aims at reducing the use of fast bikes which will bring down the number of casualties in road crashes as well. 

Officials said the policy is likely to get final approval soon. 

A scooty is considered to be more comfortable, fuel-efficient and easy-to-maneuver. As motorcycle traffic in Dhaka and other major cities in the country has increased manifold in recent times, bike accidents are blamed for most of the accidents and casualties. This has been attributed to the reckless riding of motorcycles, tendency to overspeed, lack of understanding of risks, reluctance to obey the law and use of mobile phones while on the move.

As a result, the Road Transport and Highways Department has taken to the path of controlling the movement of motorcycles to improve existing road safety conditions.

The draft policy suggests tariff concessions to popularize scooters at the production, assembly and import levels. Running a campaign highlighting the benefits of the use of the scooty has also been mentioned there.  

According to sector insiders, the use of motorcycles is high in various countries of the region, including neighboring India and Vietnam, most of which are scooters. 

As a result, motorcycle traffic is high in those countries, but the number of accidents and casualties is low. The exact opposite picture can be seen in Bangladesh. Although there are fewer bikes in terms of population, accidents and fatalities are high in Bangladesh.

According to a recent study, there are about five crore motorcycles in Vietnam for 95 million people. Of these, there is a significant number of scooties. 

In the case of Bangladesh, there are 170 million people and the number of motorcycles is about 40 lakh. Against 10 thousand bikes, 28 people died in accidents in Bangladesh, and four people died in Vietnam while the number is 9 for India, according to a recent study. 

A study was conducted in 2021 by the Accident Research Institute of Buet with the support of the World Bank. It shows that among the 16 countries where motorcycles are highly used, Bangladesh tops the list of fatalities.

The data shows that 28.4 people die in accidents against every 10,000 motorcycles in the country every year. About 40% of those who die are between the ages of 24-30 years.

Shahnewaz Hasnat-e-Rabbi, assistant professor of Accident Research Institute, worked on the draft policy.

"The use of the scooty is much higher than sports motorcycles in other countries of the region compared to Bangladesh. It also reduces the number of accidents and casualties in those countries. It is the opposite in Bangladesh,” he said.

According to him, a majority of sports bike users in Bangladesh are young and have the tendency to take part in races with their vehicles. 

Shahnewaz Hasnat-e-Rabbi says that generally the scooty is designed for low speed and safe travel across short distances.

The sports bikes are designed for fast and long-distance travel. In the draft policy, the maximum speed of motorcycles in cities has been suggested at 30kmph. 

The policy will prohibit the sale and transfer of motorcycles to people without driving licences. 

Motorcycles cannot be handed over to buyers without registration. At the time of handing over the motorcycle to the buyer, two helmets of BSTI approved quality shall be provided for driver and rider.

A nine-member committee headed by Joint Secretary of Road Transport and Highways Department Anisur Rahman prepared the draft policy. The committee includes representatives of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), Bangladesh University of Engineering (BUET), Roads and Highways Department and the Bangladesh Police.

Several members of the committee told Bangla Tribune on condition of anonymity that the use of motorcycles is increasing in the country due to various reasons. Many have started considering it as an alternative to public transport. Accidents and casualties have also increased as sports bikes are very popular here.