Just an observation - China

[WSUCoug1994]

I just got back from 8 days in China.  It was primarily for work but was able to sneak out and see the Forbidden City and the Great Wall.  I couldn't believe how many electric bikes and scooters they have in China.  Most of them were hammered from extensive use but I would guess that 60% of the scooters and bikes were electric. 

Most of the bikes were loaded down with stuff - shopping and groceries on most of them but I saw one guy with a unique set up where he was carrying timber and PVC at 15-20' lengths. 

I thought it was interesting since ebikes have really come to the mainstream recently here in the US.  There also doesn't appear to be any rules for the ebikes/scooters as they pretty much go wherever they want even though they have dedicated lanes.  No one wears helmets.

[Ocelot]

From my time there, I don't think road rules in general are given much heed in any vehicle. They're basically treated as just a suggestion and probably seldom enforced.

[Metric Mouse]

From my time there, I don't think road rules in general are given much heed in any vehicle. They're basically treated as just a suggestion and probably seldom enforced.

LOL. I remember thinking the same thing during my last stint in that part of the world. Would be interesting to see traffic death rate data - is everyone safer when everyone assumes no one will be following the rules? Or do the low-mass transportation options reduce trauma even with a higher collision rate? It can take a real mindset change to pilot a vehicle in those conditions - an SO handles it so much better than I do.

[Choices]

In Thailand we saw a baby on a motorcycle with a knitted 'helmet'.

My old roommate lived in China for a while and said that many people didn't use headlights at night because they wanted to save gas.

[Lunasol]

I lived in Taipei for a while, and I got used to seeing 2+ people on a scooter, I once saw a family of 4! Dad, Mom and two little kids....... who knew it was possible lol

I wish the roads here were made for scooters, but no dedicated lane, some roads are in bad shape, drivers suck, and there aren't enough scooter repair workshops like they do in Asia.

[RonMcCord]

I was there a few weeks ago.  It was amazing to see what people would manage to haul on a scooter, like a small potted tree or bulk bags of rice.  Don't know about accident rates there.  In Shanghai and Beijing, because everyone is so aggressive from the pedestrians to the motorists, it didn't seem like cars went that fast because people and cyclists get in the way.  We did witness one "accident" where the lady was hit by a car but seemed fine.  Our guide said sometimes that happens where people would get grazed or pretend to get hit and then try to get money from the motorist or police.

[Freedomin5]

I wish the roads here were made for scooters, but no dedicated lane, some roads are in bad shape, drivers suck, and there aren't enough scooter repair workshops like they do in Asia.

I live in China. The roads here aren't made for scooters - there are rarely dedicated lanes, the roads are in bad shape, drivers suck big time...but I must say there are a plethora of repair shops around.

And to add to the "I once saw..." game, I once saw a guy on a scooter in a small town in China hauling two live hogs on his scooter.

[Lunasol]

I wish the roads here were made for scooters, but no dedicated lane, some roads are in bad shape, drivers suck, and there aren't enough scooter repair workshops like they do in Asia.

I live in China. The roads here aren't made for scooters - there are rarely dedicated lanes, the roads are in bad shape, drivers suck big time...but I must say there are a plethora of repair shops around.

And to add to the "I once saw..." game, I once saw a guy on a scooter in a small town in China hauling two live hogs on his scooter.

Wow I thought everywhere in China was scooter-friendly!  do you happen to live in a small city?

Taiwan is pretty flat  and the roads are very well distributed for scooters imo, I know Mexico isn't!

[SimplyMarvie]

My understanding from reading the expat hardship pay rates and the reasons behind them (because we're researching our next job) is that is that yes, the number of traffic deaths are higher, but that's only partially an issue with scooters/bikes (some of which is mitigated by slower overall speeds and less large, heavy vehicles on the road -- more bike/bike collisions than say, bike/SUV) and partially an issue with a different standard of emergency services and immediate health care interventions (so you're more likely to die of something that you might survive in the US, just because it took longer to get to you, to get you to health care, and/or when you got there, there was less they could do.)