UCLA

In many developing countries motorcycles are used not only for personal travel (commuting, leisure, etc.) but also to deliver documents and small commodities (e.g., food) or to provide taxi services. Incomes of these commercial motorcyclists are generally based on the number of services they are able to provide within a given amount of time. Some have suggested that this incentive might induce commercial motorcyclists to engage in risky behaviors – that is they might be more likely to drive fast and break traffic laws in order to maximize income. To empirically test for differences between commercial and non-commercial motorcyclists, I estimated a logistic regression model using data from a survey conducted by the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF) between 2012 and 2013 in Bogota and Barranquilla, Colombia. My results support the hypothesis that motorcycles used for commercial activities and whose income is generally based on the number of services they are able to provide are at a higher risk of being involved in a crash. The probability of being involved in a crash is higher when using motorcycles for taxi services than when using motorcycles for non-commercial purposes or for commercial activities other than courier or taxi services (after controlling for exposure, demographic characterizes, vehicle features, and other possible explanatory variables, though this finding may be affected by a possible reporting bias by those providing (illegal) taxi services). By contrast, motorcyclists who provide courier services have neither a higher nor lower probability of being involved in a crash compared to those riding motorcycles for non-commercial purposes or for commercial activities other than courier or taxi services. Other variables associated with crash occurrence include age, owning the motorcycle, and riding in Bogota. While I see evidence that the financial incentives of being paid per job motivate risky driving behaviors among commercial motorcyclists, better data and further research are needed to fully understand the causes of differential crash risks among types of motorcyclists.