Motorcycles with umbrellas: Potential traffic safety risks

To cope with the sun and rain in their daily lives, many people working in transportation services and street vendors have attached umbrellas to their motorbikes while driving. This poses a high risk of traffic safety.

A motorbike with an umbrella travels on Bac Son Street, Phan Dinh Phung Ward.

It is easy to see every noon or late afternoon, on the streets in the administrative center of the province, such as: Luong Ngoc Quyen, Bac Son, Hoang Van Thu, Cach Mang Thang Tam and many other streets... motorbikes with umbrellas weaving and gliding through the crowded traffic.

The owners of the vehicles are mainly delivery people (shippers), street vendors, or freelancers. For them, the umbrella is a “survival” item in unpredictable sunny and rainy conditions. But that inadvertently turns personal vehicles into a threat to other road users.

Mr. Luong Van Hiep (a student at Thai Nguyen University of Medicine and Pharmacy), who often travels on Luong Ngoc Quyen Street, said: Many technology delivery people choose to use umbrellas to protect themselves from the sun and rain, but it is really dangerous. Once, the car in front was blown off course by the wind, causing me behind to almost crash into it... It is convenient for an individual, but in many cases it becomes a danger to those around.

When asked about their feelings, many people expressed their unease at the image of umbrellas “floating” in the middle of traffic, Ms. Nguyen Thi Hien, who is studying in Thai Nguyen, frankly said: “Riding for a living, we must also ensure the safety of ourselves and other road users. Attaching umbrellas like that is no different than bringing danger to the road. We really hope that the authorities will tighten, strictly handle, and put an end to these cases…

In fact, umbrellas are not part of the technical design of motorbikes, so when attached to the vehicle, it leads to imbalance, obscures vision, and is especially dangerous in strong wind or crowded roads. The act of attaching an umbrella is a violation of the law, but is still not regularly checked and handled.

Mr. Nguyen Trong Hai, Group 11, Phan Dinh Phung Ward, commented: Attaching an umbrella to a motorbike is a violation and needs to be corrected. If we continue to be lenient, violators will think it is normal.

The need to make a living by using an umbrella is understandable. However, if such behavior is dangerous to the community, it must be considered from the perspective of traffic culture - where each individual action can affect others.

Safe traffic does not only come from immediate convenience, but is built on the sense of respect and responsibility of each traffic participant. When umbrellas still appear on the streets, it is time for us to look back at the gap in people's behavior when participating in traffic.

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/thoi-su-thai-nguyen/202507/xe-may-gan-o-tiem-an-mat-an-toan-giao-thong-15c1343/