A comparison of characteristics between food delivery riders with and without traffic crash experience during delivery in Malaysia

The rapid development of e-commerce and the spread of the COVID-19 virus created many new jobs opportunity including food delivery riders known as P-Hailing riders. The number of food delivery riders has increased drastically, especially in Malaysia. Consequently, the number of food delivery riders involved in traffic crashes also increased. This study aimed to examine the characteristics of food delivery riders involved in traffic crashes during delivery and to compare with the characteristics of food delivery riders without any traffic crash history. This paper explores and compares general characteristics, previous experience of working and receiving traffic tickets, and knowledge of road safety. Due to unavailable official records about the number of active food delivery riders in Malaysia, this study focuses on riders who registered as members of the Malaysian P-Hailing Association, PENGHANTAR. A total of 225 food delivery riders participated in the online survey conducted through Google Form. Categorical data analysis techniques were used to examine the different characteristics of food delivery riders with and without traffic crash experiences. Results show that the odds ratio of young and full-time riders are respectively about 2.05 times and 1.79 times higher than being involved in traffic crashes. Other factors that increase the odds of being involved in traffic crashes include having more than two years of experience in delivery, an average distance travelled of>100 km a day, working previously in the food and grocery sector, and without working experience. The findings from this study will help related agencies to design and develop awareness programs targeting this group of riders.