Getting ahead

In Northern Nigeria motorcyclists have attempted to dodge new laws requiring the use of helmets by wearing dried pumpkin shells on their heads. Officials have cracked down on motorcycle riders wearing improvised helmets made from calabashes, dried pumpkin shells that are usually used to carry liquid. Motorcycle taxis are widely used in Nigeria to travel around the country's congested urban areas.
February 24, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
In Northern Nigeria motorcyclists have attempted to dodge new laws requiring the use of helmets by wearing dried pumpkin shells on their heads. Officials have cracked down on motorcycle riders wearing improvised helmets made from calabashes, dried pumpkin shells that are usually used to carry liquid.

Motorcycle taxis are widely used in Nigeria to travel around the country's congested urban areas. However many drivers of the motorcycle taxis are furious over the new law as helmets can cost up to US$30, which is more than these lowly paid riders are willing to pay. The riders have held several protests against the regulations and also say that passengers often steal the helmets once they reach their destination. Similarly, many motorcycle passengers in Nigeria are equally unwilling to wear motorcycle helmets. The new law was introduced this year to attempt to tackle the country's ferociously high level of powered two wheeler accidents.

And in Taiwan a scooter rider was stopped at gunpoint by police, because she was wearing a hat instead of a helmet. A police car signalled to the scooter rider to pull over and an officer then pulled a gun on the 54-year-old rider. The police explained that the demonstration of force was not excessive and the gun was pulled because the scooterist had tried to ride away.

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