Pump it up

Vietnam's ministry of health has prompted comment and bemusement in the country after saying that people with chests measuring less than 720mm will no longer be allowed to drive motorcycles. The proposal comes as part of health criteria requiring Vietnam's drivers to be in good physical health to try to improve safety on the roads in a country where motorcycles account for 90% of vehicle traffic. However many Vietnamese people are slight of stature and this particular proposal has generated considerable amu
July 6, 2012 Read time: 1 min
Vietnam's ministry of health has prompted comment and bemusement in the country after saying that people with chests measuring less than 720mm will no longer be allowed to drive motorcycles. The proposal comes as part of health criteria requiring Vietnam's drivers to be in good physical health to try to improve safety on the roads in a country where motorcycles account for 90% of vehicle traffic. However many Vietnamese people are slight of stature and this particular proposal has generated considerable amusement as well as negative comment. Many have suggested that such rules could be beaten by silicon implants, although these would only be an option for the minority of affluent city dwellers. Questions have also been asked as to whether police will employ tape measures to check on drivers who they suspect of having too small a chest.

Related Content

  • Europe’s road safety is not improving as previously
    April 3, 2012
    The latest official figures on road safety in Europe are giving cause for concern, with data showing casualty reduction has slowed. EU Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas recently announced a disappointing progress on casualty reduction on Europe's roads. The joint European police association, TISPOL, has added that it is also concerned that improvements in cutting fatalities on Europe’s roads significantly slowed in 2011.
    Read More
  • New laws will limit vehicle pollution in Paris
    November 8, 2012
    New proposals put forward in Paris could place pollution at peak periods as a priority. The planned pollution programme would include measures such as a toll on the main routes entering Paris. Users would pay rates reflecting various criteria such as the distance travelled, whether it is a peak travel period or the environmental impact of the vehicle being used. Vehicles seen as excessively polluting would be banned, with one proposal forbidding the use of large SUV/4x4 cars that are more than 17 years old
    Read More
  • Regulating Kenya’s boda boda business
    July 28, 2015
    Kenya’s many motorcycle taxis have an unenviably poor record for road safety - Shem Oirere writes. A state-owned road safety agency in Kenya is grappling with enforcement of new traffic regulations aimed at reducing the number of road accidents involving two-wheeled motorcycle taxis, popularly known as boda boda. The latest statistics indicate that fatalities relating to these vehicles shot up by 58% during the first four months of 2015. Experts have concurred with a previous study by the World Health Or
    Read More
  • Holiday traffic jams
    October 3, 2018
    In the Northern Hemisphere the summer means time for families to head off on holiday. At this time of year, many busy routes become jammed as holidaymakers head north, south, east or west, all in search of some rest and recreation. In the UK for example, the start of the school holiday period typically leads to families taking to the roads, with massive spikes in traffic volumes as a result. Some areas are particularly bad. The highway routes lying roughly between Munich in southern Germany and Milan in no
    Read More

Highlighted Content