Perils Of Pillion Riding

Most of us have observed that the overall state of road safety in Nepal is far from satisfactory. The situation is particularly concerning for two-wheelers, which are among the riskiest modes of road transport. Some years ago, while travelling through Dhankuta, I noticed a mother riding pillion on a motorcycle, carrying an infant wrapped in her shawl along a hilly road. Watching the scene from inside a four-wheeled vehicle, I could only wish them a safe journey. Similarly, recently on Raksha Bandhan, I saw two very young children, almost infants, sandwiched between the motorcycle rider and their mother, who sat at the back, with four people on a single motorcycle.

Perhaps such situations would not arise if Nepal had a well-developed and inclusive public transport system that gave due consideration to vulnerable groups, particularly children, infants, the elderly and women. Beyond the emotions these scenes evoke, the reality is that almost every household seems to own at least one two-wheeler. Their growing numbers, like a swarm of bees in the traffic of urban areas like Kathmandu, show how unreliable our public transport system has become.