Motorcycle accidents and its relation to work: a literature review

Abstract

In the last decade, the number of accidents involving motorcycles has greatly increased in Brazil. The Motorcycle has been gaining growing acceptance and approval due to its advantages in traffic and low cost. Objective: The aim of this study was, through a literature review, to describe the main aspects of traffic accidents with motorcycles and their relationship with work. Method: This is a descriptive study by way of a literature review using the major databases of open access. Inclusion criteria were scientific articles and publications of the past 10 years. The selected texts were in English, Portuguese and Spanish and the descriptors used were: motorcycle, traffic accident, accident at work, epidemiology, mortality and occupational mortality. Results: the Motorcycle is a socially important vehicle in Brazil, especially for the working class, which uses it for their own transportation or as a means of providing services such as those of motorcycle-taxis, motorcycle couriers or delivery motorcycles. Victims of accidents involving motorcycles are mostly male, aged 20-30 years old. Most of them are individuals with a low level of education for whom working as motorcycle couriers and motorcycle taxi drivers seems to be an opportunity to enter the labor market. The majority of professional motorcycle drivers’ jobs consist of transporting food or delivering drugs for drugstores. As risk factors, the authors identified: use of helmets open type; high exposure to all kinds of risk factors (physical, chemical, psychosocial); driving in situations of physical and mental fatigue, prior consumption of alcohol, more than 10 hours daily journeys. Bikers not always had job registry documents and in few cases the accidents were reported as work related. On weekends, there were proportionally more accidents. Conclusion: Few studies in Brazil address aspects of the work of motorcycle drivers. However, we believe that, as a first step, measures must be taken based on proactive actions: education of couriers (with defensive driving course, as required by current law); guidance made available for employers and consumers through information campaigns; and strict enforcement related to the conditions of work experienced by these professionals carried out by municipal and federal agencies, linked to the Ministry of Labour.