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Annals of Advances in Automotive Medicine
Commuter motorcycle crashes in Malaysia: An understanding of contributing factors Jennifer Oxley, Jeremy Yuen, Mano Deepa Ravi, Effie Hoareau Monash University Accident Research Centre, Melbourne, Australia
Mohammed Azman Aziz Mohammed, Harun Bakar Social Security Organisation, Ministry of Human Resources, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Saraswathy Venkataraman, Prame Kumar Nair Monash University, Sunway Campus, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
__________________________________ ABSTRACT – In Malaysia, two-thirds of reported workplace-related fatal and serious injury incidents are the result of commuting crashes (especially those involving motorcyclists), however, little is known about the contributing factors to these collisions. A telephone survey of 1,750 motorcyclists (1,004 adults who had been involved in a motorcycle commuting crash in the last 2 years and 746 adult motorcyclists who had not been involved in a motorcycle crash in the last 2 years) was undertaken. The contributions of a range of behavioural, attitudinal, employment and travel pattern factors to collision involvement were examined. The findings revealed that the majority of participants were licensed riders, rode substantial distances (most often for work purposes), and reported adopting safe riding practices (helmet wearing and buckling). However, there were some concerning findings regarding speeding behaviour, use of mobile phones while riding, and engaging in other risky behaviours. Participants who had been involved in a collision were younger (aged 25-29 years), had higher exposure (measured by distances travelled, frequency of riding, and riding on high volume and higher speed roads), reported higher rates of riding for work purposes, worked more shift hours and had a higher likelihood of riding at relatively high speeds compared with participants who had not been involved in a collision. Collisions generally occurred during morning and early evening hours, striking another vehicles, and during normal traffic flow. The implications of these findings for policy decisions and development of evidencebased behavioural/training interventions addressing key contributing factors are discussed.
__________________________________ INTRODUCTION Malaysia, a middle income country, is a rapidly developing multi-racial nation, and over the last 1015 years has experienced significant economic expansion with growth in population, industrialization and motorization. Private vehicle ownership has increased dramatically and a high proportion of privately-owned vehicles are motorcycles: between 1997 and 2007 there was a significant increase in the number of registered motorcycles from 4,328,117 to 9,433,640 (Road Safety Department of Malaysia, 2008). Neighbouring countries also have significantly increases in motorcycle volumes. The motorcycle is regarded as an important mode of daily transport in many nations, particularly in Asian countries, and is mainly used for CORRESPONDING AUTHOR: Jennifer Oxley, PhD, MUARC, Monash Injury Research Institute, Monash University, Wellington Road, Clayton, 3800, Victoria, Australia. Email: [email protected]
commuting and running daily errands. A recent survey on motorcyclists’ receptiveness on transport and vehicle policies revealed that many Malaysian road users still favour motorcycles as a mode of transport, despite recent Government increases in motorcycle insurance premium (Radin Umar, 2006). The motorcycle is popular for a number of reasons including low vehicle purchase price and insurance surcharge rates, low running costs, licence issuing as low as 16 years old, and ease of travel on congested roads (commuting is faster and cheaper than in car or public transport). Unfortunately, Malaysia has an associated high level of road trauma: approximately 4-5 times higher than countries with a good road safety performance (such as Sweden, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, etc). In 2010 alone, 6,872 people died on Malaysian roads and close to 26,000 were injured, and approximately 60 percent of these deaths were motorcyclists (despite contributing to approximately
57th AAAM Annual Conference Annals of Advances in Automotive Medicine September 22-25, 2013
45
Vol 57 • September 2013 50 percent of the vehicle fleet) (Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research [MIROS], 2011). Furthermore, a substantial proportion of motorcycle collisions occur during commuting trips. The Social Security Organisation of Malaysia (SOCSO) reported that, of the 50,000 workplace injury incidents each year, two thirds of these are the result of commuting collisions (that is, collisions while travelling to and from work, and for work purposes) and motorcyclist collisions comprise the majority (SOCSO, 2009). Motorcyclists are an extremely vulnerable road user group due to their lack of protection and carry a high risk of death. In Malaysia, motorcycle fatalities are shown to be three times higher compared to passenger car fatalities, six times higher than pedestrian fatalities and nearly 50 times higher than bus passenger fatalities (Abdul Manan & Várhelyi, 2012). While there are a number of known factors associate with collision and injury risk for motorcyclists, such as rider vulnerability, vehicle instability, lack of conspicuity, and rider behaviour (speeding, helmet wearing, etc) (see Oxley & Budd, 2011), less is known about more specific risk factors that may contribute to commuter collisions involvement. This paper presents the findings of an in-depth examination of contributing factors to motorcycle commuter crashes amongst a sample of Malaysian riders. METHODS A telephone survey was undertaken to gain information from motorcycle commuter riders about their riding and travel patterns, behaviour, attitudes employment characteristics and collision experiences to examine potential contributing factors to collision involvement risk. The participant groups and recruitment strategies are described below, as well as the data collection and analysis methods. Participants A total of 1,922 participants, in two discreet groups as detailed below, took part in this study: Case Group: Case group participants (n=1004) comprised individuals who regularly rode a motorcycle and who had been involved in a commuter-related motorcycle collision in the last two years and made a medical claim through the Social Security Organisation. Control Group: Control group participants (n=918) comprised individuals who regularly rode a motorcycle and who had not been in a motorcycle
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collision (either commuter or any other) in the last two years. Recruitment. The recruitment process is described below: Case Group: A random selection of potentially eligible crash-involved motorcycle riders were identified by mining the SOCSO claims database. The database was accessed between March and June 2012. All claims within the previous two years were accessed and any claim for a motorcycle-related injury was selected. Contact details were provided to a marketing research company in Kuala Lumpur. Control Group: Potentially eligible non-crashinvolved participants who regularly rode a motorcycle for commuting purposes were identified using an extensive database of the Malaysian population registering their interest in market research, held by the market research company. Potential control group participants were randomly selected from the database, however, were only selected if they reflected the age, ethnic and gender distribution of the case group participants and were commuter motorcyclists. Survey. The survey was designed to gather information with which to examine the contributing factors to collision involvement risk among commuter motorcyclists. The information collected included travel patterns and riding practices, employment characteristics, attitudes to and knowledge of general road safety issues, and demographic information. For case participants, an additional section on collision experiences and circumstances was included (collision characteristic data are not presented here, as the focus is on the contributing factors to crash risk). Data collection and analysis. Approximately 5,000 potential case group and 5,000 potential control group participants were contacted and invited to take part in the study. This number was selected, assuming a 20 percent response rate. One thousand and four case and 918 control group participants took part in the study, representing a 19.2 percent response rate. Data was collected by telephone interview and recorded electronically during the interview. Telephone interviewers were trained market research ers and trained by road safety researchers on explanation and interpretation of road behaviours. Clear instructions were provided to interviewers regarding interpretation of responses. Analysis of the data was undertaken using preliminary bi-variate
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tests and employing hierarchical logistic regression modelling to examine the impacts of demographic information, riding and travel patterns, employment characteristics, and self-reported behavioural and attitudinal factors on crash involvement. RESULTS Participants A total of 1,750 participants were included in the analyses. The full sample of case group participants was included, totalling a sample of 1,004 crashinvolved participants. Of the total sample of control group participants (n=918), 172 were excluded from analysis, as there was some indication that they had been involved in some type of motorcycle collision, but it was unclear whether it was a commuter-related collision or not. Table 1 provides a summary of the demographic characteristics of the survey participants by group. Overall, there were no differences between case and control groups in terms of age group, gender, and ethnic group as these characteristics were matched during the selection process. Seventy four percent of the sample were Malay or Bumiputera (indigenous Malays), five percent were Chinese, and 20 percent were Indian (the remainder were ‘other’foreigners), Table 1 – Demographic characteristics of participants by group. Characteristic Age Group: 18-24 years 25-29 years 30-39 years 40-49 years 50+ years Gender: Male Female Highest Educational Level: No formal education Primary School Some Secondary School MCE/HSC College University Licence Status Licensed Unlicensed
Case Group % (n=1004)
Control Group % (n=746)
Total % (n=1750)
18.6 42.0 24.0 7.9 7.5
21.8 34.9 21.0 7.8 14.5
20.0 39.0 22.8 7.8 10.5
89.9 10.1
89.3 10.7
89.7 10.3
0.6 2.8 13.7 49.6 24.5 8.8
0.3 3.2 10.6 45.6 24.7 15.6
0.5 3.0 12.4 44.7 24.5 11.7
95.1 4.9
94.6 5.4
94.9 5.1
Annals of Advances in Automotive Medicine
Within-group age group and gender differences were found. The majority of respondents were young, with the majority aged between 25 and 39 years of age. There was an effect of age group by group, χ2 (6) =31.01, p
Annals of Advances in Automotive Medicine
Commuter motorcycle crashes in Malaysia: An understanding of contributing factors Jennifer Oxley, Jeremy Yuen, Mano Deepa Ravi, Effie Hoareau Monash University Accident Research Centre, Melbourne, Australia
Mohammed Azman Aziz Mohammed, Harun Bakar Social Security Organisation, Ministry of Human Resources, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Saraswathy Venkataraman, Prame Kumar Nair Monash University, Sunway Campus, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
__________________________________ ABSTRACT – In Malaysia, two-thirds of reported workplace-related fatal and serious injury incidents are the result of commuting crashes (especially those involving motorcyclists), however, little is known about the contributing factors to these collisions. A telephone survey of 1,750 motorcyclists (1,004 adults who had been involved in a motorcycle commuting crash in the last 2 years and 746 adult motorcyclists who had not been involved in a motorcycle crash in the last 2 years) was undertaken. The contributions of a range of behavioural, attitudinal, employment and travel pattern factors to collision involvement were examined. The findings revealed that the majority of participants were licensed riders, rode substantial distances (most often for work purposes), and reported adopting safe riding practices (helmet wearing and buckling). However, there were some concerning findings regarding speeding behaviour, use of mobile phones while riding, and engaging in other risky behaviours. Participants who had been involved in a collision were younger (aged 25-29 years), had higher exposure (measured by distances travelled, frequency of riding, and riding on high volume and higher speed roads), reported higher rates of riding for work purposes, worked more shift hours and had a higher likelihood of riding at relatively high speeds compared with participants who had not been involved in a collision. Collisions generally occurred during morning and early evening hours, striking another vehicles, and during normal traffic flow. The implications of these findings for policy decisions and development of evidencebased behavioural/training interventions addressing key contributing factors are discussed.
__________________________________ INTRODUCTION Malaysia, a middle income country, is a rapidly developing multi-racial nation, and over the last 1015 years has experienced significant economic expansion with growth in population, industrialization and motorization. Private vehicle ownership has increased dramatically and a high proportion of privately-owned vehicles are motorcycles: between 1997 and 2007 there was a significant increase in the number of registered motorcycles from 4,328,117 to 9,433,640 (Road Safety Department of Malaysia, 2008). Neighbouring countries also have significantly increases in motorcycle volumes. The motorcycle is regarded as an important mode of daily transport in many nations, particularly in Asian countries, and is mainly used for CORRESPONDING AUTHOR: Jennifer Oxley, PhD, MUARC, Monash Injury Research Institute, Monash University, Wellington Road, Clayton, 3800, Victoria, Australia. Email: [email protected]
commuting and running daily errands. A recent survey on motorcyclists’ receptiveness on transport and vehicle policies revealed that many Malaysian road users still favour motorcycles as a mode of transport, despite recent Government increases in motorcycle insurance premium (Radin Umar, 2006). The motorcycle is popular for a number of reasons including low vehicle purchase price and insurance surcharge rates, low running costs, licence issuing as low as 16 years old, and ease of travel on congested roads (commuting is faster and cheaper than in car or public transport). Unfortunately, Malaysia has an associated high level of road trauma: approximately 4-5 times higher than countries with a good road safety performance (such as Sweden, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, etc). In 2010 alone, 6,872 people died on Malaysian roads and close to 26,000 were injured, and approximately 60 percent of these deaths were motorcyclists (despite contributing to approximately
57th AAAM Annual Conference Annals of Advances in Automotive Medicine September 22-25, 2013
45
Vol 57 • September 2013 50 percent of the vehicle fleet) (Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research [MIROS], 2011). Furthermore, a substantial proportion of motorcycle collisions occur during commuting trips. The Social Security Organisation of Malaysia (SOCSO) reported that, of the 50,000 workplace injury incidents each year, two thirds of these are the result of commuting collisions (that is, collisions while travelling to and from work, and for work purposes) and motorcyclist collisions comprise the majority (SOCSO, 2009). Motorcyclists are an extremely vulnerable road user group due to their lack of protection and carry a high risk of death. In Malaysia, motorcycle fatalities are shown to be three times higher compared to passenger car fatalities, six times higher than pedestrian fatalities and nearly 50 times higher than bus passenger fatalities (Abdul Manan & Várhelyi, 2012). While there are a number of known factors associate with collision and injury risk for motorcyclists, such as rider vulnerability, vehicle instability, lack of conspicuity, and rider behaviour (speeding, helmet wearing, etc) (see Oxley & Budd, 2011), less is known about more specific risk factors that may contribute to commuter collisions involvement. This paper presents the findings of an in-depth examination of contributing factors to motorcycle commuter crashes amongst a sample of Malaysian riders. METHODS A telephone survey was undertaken to gain information from motorcycle commuter riders about their riding and travel patterns, behaviour, attitudes employment characteristics and collision experiences to examine potential contributing factors to collision involvement risk. The participant groups and recruitment strategies are described below, as well as the data collection and analysis methods. Participants A total of 1,922 participants, in two discreet groups as detailed below, took part in this study: Case Group: Case group participants (n=1004) comprised individuals who regularly rode a motorcycle and who had been involved in a commuter-related motorcycle collision in the last two years and made a medical claim through the Social Security Organisation. Control Group: Control group participants (n=918) comprised individuals who regularly rode a motorcycle and who had not been in a motorcycle
46
collision (either commuter or any other) in the last two years. Recruitment. The recruitment process is described below: Case Group: A random selection of potentially eligible crash-involved motorcycle riders were identified by mining the SOCSO claims database. The database was accessed between March and June 2012. All claims within the previous two years were accessed and any claim for a motorcycle-related injury was selected. Contact details were provided to a marketing research company in Kuala Lumpur. Control Group: Potentially eligible non-crashinvolved participants who regularly rode a motorcycle for commuting purposes were identified using an extensive database of the Malaysian population registering their interest in market research, held by the market research company. Potential control group participants were randomly selected from the database, however, were only selected if they reflected the age, ethnic and gender distribution of the case group participants and were commuter motorcyclists. Survey. The survey was designed to gather information with which to examine the contributing factors to collision involvement risk among commuter motorcyclists. The information collected included travel patterns and riding practices, employment characteristics, attitudes to and knowledge of general road safety issues, and demographic information. For case participants, an additional section on collision experiences and circumstances was included (collision characteristic data are not presented here, as the focus is on the contributing factors to crash risk). Data collection and analysis. Approximately 5,000 potential case group and 5,000 potential control group participants were contacted and invited to take part in the study. This number was selected, assuming a 20 percent response rate. One thousand and four case and 918 control group participants took part in the study, representing a 19.2 percent response rate. Data was collected by telephone interview and recorded electronically during the interview. Telephone interviewers were trained market research ers and trained by road safety researchers on explanation and interpretation of road behaviours. Clear instructions were provided to interviewers regarding interpretation of responses. Analysis of the data was undertaken using preliminary bi-variate
©
tests and employing hierarchical logistic regression modelling to examine the impacts of demographic information, riding and travel patterns, employment characteristics, and self-reported behavioural and attitudinal factors on crash involvement. RESULTS Participants A total of 1,750 participants were included in the analyses. The full sample of case group participants was included, totalling a sample of 1,004 crashinvolved participants. Of the total sample of control group participants (n=918), 172 were excluded from analysis, as there was some indication that they had been involved in some type of motorcycle collision, but it was unclear whether it was a commuter-related collision or not. Table 1 provides a summary of the demographic characteristics of the survey participants by group. Overall, there were no differences between case and control groups in terms of age group, gender, and ethnic group as these characteristics were matched during the selection process. Seventy four percent of the sample were Malay or Bumiputera (indigenous Malays), five percent were Chinese, and 20 percent were Indian (the remainder were ‘other’foreigners), Table 1 – Demographic characteristics of participants by group. Characteristic Age Group: 18-24 years 25-29 years 30-39 years 40-49 years 50+ years Gender: Male Female Highest Educational Level: No formal education Primary School Some Secondary School MCE/HSC College University Licence Status Licensed Unlicensed
Case Group % (n=1004)
Control Group % (n=746)
Total % (n=1750)
18.6 42.0 24.0 7.9 7.5
21.8 34.9 21.0 7.8 14.5
20.0 39.0 22.8 7.8 10.5
89.9 10.1
89.3 10.7
89.7 10.3
0.6 2.8 13.7 49.6 24.5 8.8
0.3 3.2 10.6 45.6 24.7 15.6
0.5 3.0 12.4 44.7 24.5 11.7
95.1 4.9
94.6 5.4
94.9 5.1
Annals of Advances in Automotive Medicine
Within-group age group and gender differences were found. The majority of respondents were young, with the majority aged between 25 and 39 years of age. There was an effect of age group by group, χ2 (6) =31.01, p
