Characteristics of Commercial Motorcyclists in Benin City: Implications for Road Safety

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the characteristics of commercial motorcyclists in Ugbowo, Benin-city. A cross-sectional and descriptive study was carried out among commercial motorcyclists in Ugbowo, Benin-city, Edo State. A total of 252 commercial motorcyclists were involved in the study. A cluster sampling method was used in selecting respondents in 7 out of the 14 parks in Ugbowo. Majority of the respondents 218 (86.5%) did not attend any riding school while only 34 (13.5%) had attended one. One hundred and forty-two (56.4%) possessed a riding license and only about half of them (51.3%) wore helmets, 40.9% wore goggles and 7.8% had fire extinguishers. None of the respondents provided helmets for their passengers. This study highlighted certain characteristics of commercial motorcyclists that may promote road traffic accidents. Therefore, there is need for mobilisation and sensitisation of commercial motorcyclists and the general public on road safety.