Knowledge and practice of road safety regulation by commercial motorbike riders in Douala-Cameroon

Abstract

To assess the knowledge and practice of commercial motorbike riders on road safety regulation and capture their challenges towards its implementation. This was a qualitative study with a narrative design and focus group discussion (FGD) and in-depth interview (IDI) as data collection methods. Two focus group discussions (n=22) were held constituting of commercial motorbike riders who had been purposefully recruited and six in depth interviews carried out by four commercial motorbike riders and two traffic police officers were met in the Douala III and IV councils in the city of Douala in 2019. Both FGDs and IDIs were recorded, transcribed and themes were drawn out from the discussion and thematic analysis was carried out. Similar ideas were grouped together while dissecting views were separated. The commercial motorbike riders were aware that there were laid down rules addressing the functioning of the sector. They knew about use of helmets, attire to put on, respect of traffic lights and use of trafficator lights and license ownership. But most of them reported non-adherence with various reasons put forth. The commercial motorbike riders in Douala knew about the road safety regulation but were not motivated sufficiently to apply it. Key words: Knowledge, practice, road safety regulation, commercial motor bike riders, Cameroon.