Accidents: Miros to 'hold talks' with food delivery companies

KUALA LUMPUR (July 19): The Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (Miros) plans to “hold talks” with food delivery companies on the high number of accidents involving motorcycle delivery riders, FMT reported today.

“Four deaths, 55 serious injuries and 73 minor injuries within three months among the food delivery personnel using motorbikes from two app companies are not something that should be taken lightly,” Miros director-general Khairil Anwar Abu Kassim told the news portal.

Khairil Anwar was referring to the accident statistics involving food delivery bike riders during the movement control order (MCO) months.

“We will highlight to the operators the need to establish safe operating guidelines and training for the riders,” he explained. These operators will include the popular Foodpanda and GrabFood.

Khairil Anwar also highlighted his concerns about the use of smartphones while riding: “All eyes must be on the road. Using the smartphone while moving should not be a standard practice even though there are those who installed a hands-free device on the motorcycle.

“Before starting the journey (to deliver food), it is best to look at the digital map from the smartphone to determine the route to the customer’s place,” he advised riders.

For its part, Grab has announced “it has a zero tolerance policy on traffic violations and reckless driving”.

“Our riders are required to attend driver safety training and practical assessments and are equipped with helmets for driver-partners and passengers, as well as reflective jackets for drivers,” the company assured.

It added that it can also “gauge the road performance of drivers and riders via fatigue monitoring and telematics reports”.

Foodpanda “has yet to respond to FMT’s request for comments”, wrote the news portal.

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