TEHRAN — Iran’s forensics organization director has said 3,745 motorcycle riders were killed in crashes last year (March 2018-March 2019).

Last year, 17,183 lost their lives in traffic related accidents and some 21.8 percent of them were motorcycle rider, IRNA news agency quoted Ahmad Shojaei as saying on Monday.

Provinces of Tehran, Fars, and Isfahan registered the greatest numbers of fatalities among motorcycle riders respectively, Shojaei said.

Some 96.3 percent of the deaths were reported among men, he said, regretting that 13.5 percent of the deaths was among individuals aging under 18.

Moreover, 25.8 percent of the deaths occurred among people aged 18 to 24 and 28.8 percent of the deaths happened among those aging 25 to 39, he concluded.

Travelling on a motorcycle carries a much higher risk of death or injury than driving the same distance in a car. Motorcycle safety concerns many aspects of vehicle and equipment design as well as operator skill and training that are unique to motorcycle riding.

MQ/MG