Motorcycle crash risk in kuwait: demographic and behavioral insights for road safety

Motorcycle crashes are an escalating road safety concern in Kuwait, driven by the rapid growth of delivery service vehicle operators who face increased exposure to risk. This study used a survey with Tree Augmented Naïve Bayes modeling to identify key demographic and behavioral factors influencing crashes, near-accidents, and risky riding. Data on rider sex, age, governorate, experience, education, and trip frequency revealed that driving experience, education level, commuting frequency, age, and location significantly affect motorcyclist incident rates. It was observed that one of high-risk groups are the 18- to 34-year-old males, who daily commute, in motorcycle-related incidents. Contrary to expectations, female vehicle operators aged 50 and above demonstrate a higher proportion of motorcycle-related incidents across all incident frequency categories, suggesting that crash involvement remains significant even in older female cohorts. The findings of this research draw attention to the most critical areas that require intervention, dictating targeted education initiatives, policy measures, and the development of solutions to promote enhanced safety. This research contributes to providing useful insights and a solid foundation for initiatives to enhance motorcyclist safety and to attenuate the associated risks for vulnerable populations in Kuwait.