Study on traffic accidents involving motorcycles in the City of Corumbá and surrounding region, Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil, in 2007

Abstract

ABSTRACT

On Brazilian urban roads, motorcycles and similar modes of automotive transportation have become important forms of transport both for people and for small volumes of cargo. The choice to use a motorcycle is based on a number of factors, including the low price of acquisition, long-term financing with low-cost installments, agility in transit, low maintenance costs and the expansion of options for work. Motorcycles increasingly participate in urban activities, urban spaces and urban problems. Due to the ever-increasing number of motorcycles, there has been a significant increase in the number of accidents involving such vehicles across the Country. In this article, we investigate the causes of traffic accidents involving motorcycles in the City of Corumbá and the surrounding region, Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil, in 2007. The article's main objective is to provide information about adopting interventional actions directed towards reducing the number of accidents. Our data came from all the incident reports for accident victims in 2007 made by the 3^rd Section of the 3^rd Fire Brigade in Corumbá, Mato Grosso do Sul. The results include the number of registered incidences (328), their distribution over time and geographic area, their ultimate cause and a profile of the victims. Victims were predominately male (86.48%) and younger than 42 years of age (93.94%); in other words, they were fully capable individuals.