Assessment of Preventive Measures for Motorcycle Road Accidents in Tanzania:

Abstract

Motorcycle road accidents are common in all districts of Arusha Region, including Arumeru. The general objective of this study was to assess the measures for motorcycle road accidents in Arumeru District in Arusha Region. Specifically, the study identified types of motorcycle accidents, examined causes of motorcycle road accidents, and assessed effective measures for preventing motorcycle road accidents. The study applied a mixed method research design by combining qualitative and quantitative methods. The study was based on a sample size of 129 respondents who included motorcyclists (n=97) and police officers (n=32). Sampling was done through multi-stage sampling strategy which combined simple random, and stratified sampling techniques. Data were gathered through a combination of questionnaires and interviews. Data analysis was done through descriptive statistics and content analysis respectively. The study findings identified collisions, crushes, and hitting are the frequent types of motorcycle accidents occurring in Arumeru District. The findings revealed that drivers’ related causes and environmental causes. The frequent drivers related caused included over speeding, physical exhaustion, driving under influence, poor driving skills and wrongful overtaking. The study further revealed that motorcycle road accidents are caused by environmental factors such as lack of road maintenance, bad weather conditions, violation of road safety rules by other road users and weak enforcement of road safety rules. The study identified four safety measures that included wearing proper protective gear, avoiding driving under alcohol influence, avoiding aggressive driving and complying with road safety rules. The study findings also showed that regulatory measures such as penalizing through heavy fines, regular vehicle inspection, provision of training and monitoring speed are highly helpful regulatory measures for preventing motorcycle road accidents in Arumeru District. The study concludes that prevention of road accidents requires collaborative efforts of both motorcyclists and law enforcement officers.