Motorbikes tell the real story of Malaysia’s transport problem

For a large share of daily commuters, motorcycles are not a lifestyle choice or a hobby, but a survival tool.

From Wan Agyl Wan Hassan

In Malaysia, the sustainable transport debate is often framed as a simple contest: public transport versus private cars. Build better trains, the argument goes, and people will leave their cars at home.

But for millions of Malaysians, that framing does not reflect reality.

For a large number of daily commuters, the real alternative to trains and buses is not a car. It is a motorcycle.

The kapcai is not a lifestyle choice or a hobby; it is a survival tool. It solves a problem Malaysia’s transport system has never fully addressed: how to move quickly, affordably and predictably when public transport does not work end-to-end.

This matters because motorcycles now sit at the centre of Malaysia’s transport paradox. They are efficient, flexible and accessible, yet also account for a disproportionate share of road fatalities.

Motorcyclists consistently make up the majority of road deaths in Malaysia, a pattern that has remained stubbornly unchanged despite years of campaigns and enforcement. When we talk about sustainability without addressing motorcycles, we are ignoring the mode that carries the highest human cost.

Most motorcycle users are not rejecting public transport out of preference. They are responding rationally to structural conditions. Bus services are often slow or unreliable. Rail stations can be far from affordable housing. Walking routes are fragmented, poorly lit or unsafe, especially at night.

For many workers, students and gig riders, a motorcycle becomes the only way to stitch together home, work and daily obligations.

In this context, motorcycle use is not the cause of unsafe roads. It is the symptom of a system that fails to offer viable alternatives.

This is where Malaysia’s sustainable transport conversation often falters. Too many policies implicitly assume a direct leap from cars to trains, borrowing models from cities where motorcycles were never a dominant mode. But Southeast Asian cities operate under different realities. Any credible transport transition must pass through motorcycles, not pretend they do not exist.

Safety, therefore, cannot be treated narrowly as an enforcement problem or a matter of rider behaviour. It is fundamentally a design issue. Roads that prioritise speed over protection, intersections that ignore two-wheelers, and streets without safe space for slower vehicles all amplify risk.

When motorcycles are forced to mix with high-speed traffic, fatalities are not accidents; they are predictable outcomes.

A people-centred transport system would approach this differently. It would recognise motorcyclists as legitimate road users and design accordingly: safer junctions, clearer lane discipline, speed management in urban areas and secure parking at rail stations.

Integration, however, does not mean entrenchment. It means reducing harm today while creating conditions where safer alternatives can realistically replace motorcycles over time.

Equally important is acknowledging who bears the risk. Motorcycle riders are disproportionately young, lower-income and male; often supporting families through delivery work, shift jobs or informal employment.

When fatalities occur, the economic shock ripples far beyond the individual. Transport safety, in this sense, is not just a mobility issue; it is a social protection issue.

The United Nations’ Decade of Sustainable Transport places safety at the centre of its agenda, but safety must be interpreted in local terms.

In Malaysia, reducing transport deaths without addressing motorcycle dependence is impossible. So is claiming sustainability while a large segment of the population is exposed to daily risk simply to access work or education.

None of this means motorcycles are the future we should aim for. But they are the present we must design for. A sustainable transition that ignores them will fail or, worse, deepen inequality while appearing progressive on paper.

Motorcycles will remain the rational choice for millions as long as public transport fails end-to-end. The real test of sustainable transport is not how many people ride trains, but how many no longer have to risk their lives just to get to work. - FMT

Wan Agyl Wan Hassan is the founder and CEO of MY Mobility Vision, a transport think tank.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.