Clinging On: The Dangerous Reality of School Runs on Motorcycles

For many Belizean families, motorcycles aren’t a choice, they’re a necessity. But outside schools each afternoon, that reality is colliding with a growing safety risk. Small children cling to riders, often without helmets, sometimes crammed between passengers, turning a routine trip home into a dangerous gamble. It’s a scene playing out daily across the country, and one that experts warn could end in tragedy. Shane Williams takes a closer look.

 

Shane Williams, Reporting

Each afternoon, school gates across the country turn into a rush-hour scramble, with parents hurrying to pick up their kids. In the middle of it all, motorcycles weave through traffic, many carrying young children home. It’s a common sight, but officers say it’s also a risky one. Without proper safety gear, especially helmets, those short trips can quickly turn dangerous for young passengers. Some children are seated in front of the driver, some holding on at the back and some not wearing helmets at all. Officers say that if a crash happens, these children face the greatest risk on the road.

 

Leon Gentle, Chief Transport Officer

“Sometimes you see these motorcycle riders taking along a child with an uncertified helmet, a helmet that cannot save their lives – with their feet stuck out because they cannot even reach the foot stand for the pillion rider on the bike. And so these are things that we have to look closely at.”

 

Authorities say the problem is not limited to helmet use. Officers also point to overloading and unsafe positioning of children as major hazards on Belize’s busy roadways. Belize City Traffic Enforcement Manager Mauricio Gonzalez says it is something they see every day.

 

Mauricio Gonzalez, Enforcement Manager, Belize City Traffic Department

“It’s an education process so that they understand that, you know what? You’re risking your family. You’re risking your own family’s lives even if they all have on a helmet. With the control of motorcycle comes with balance, and that’s the reason why they have the passenger limit set. So with additional passengers, then it brings the opportunity for the driver to lose control. But it does pose a challenge to us. It’s something that we see every morning and something that we continue to educate the residents of Belize City about.”

 

Traffic officers often find themselves in a battle between strict enforcement and socio-economic empathy.

 

Leon Gentle

“For me, it’s always eye-opening. I know motorcycle users may say this is an economic way for me to travel to and from work, to and from school. But we at the Department of Transport have to look at the safety of all persons using those motorcycles.”

 

For many parents, motorcycles are simply the most affordable transportation available. But officers say convenience cannot outweigh safety, particularly when children are involved.

 

Leon Gentle

“If there’s accessibility to shuttle runs or public transportation that may be available to take them to and from as well try our utmost best to use those modes of transportation.”

 

Mauricio Gonzalez

“When you see these types of practices, three children on a motorcycle – a parent, a child in between, it brings out a fear in all of us. What are they thinking? What are they doing? I mean that’s the thought running through our head.”

 

“While motorcycles remain one of the cheapest ways to travel, officers say when it comes to transporting children, safety should always be the only priority. From the busy streets of Belize City reporting for News Five, I am Shane Williams.”

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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