Motorcycles may be the best way around Cairo traffic; in the light of the prevailing chaos, however, they are terribly unsafe. But can vespa save the day, asks Ahmed Morsy. Employee Khaled Gamal, 27, says it is the fastest means of transport. "I was never in favour of riding a motorbike, because of the safety issue, but in the end it gets me there on time. The problem is that many drivers are unlicensed," he added, "and they don't always have the requisite skill." But it is delivery people, aka "the pilots", who know the ins and outs of motorcycle riding best of all. Daily they work miracles among cars, risking their lives at every turn. According to "pilot" Mohamed Ashour, 24, "the nickname is a reference to speeding -- and speed is the only area where we might actually compete, to get there before him is the only way I can be better than a fellow pilot." Mohamed Ibrahim, 23, is an Azhar University student as well as a delivery boy; and he seems rather more aware of the hazards of the job: "My father broke his leg on two separate occasions in a crash. But since driving is what I know best, this was the only line of work open to me." Ibrahim started at age 14, driving his father's motorcycle; the makana (machine) remains his favoured mode of transport: it is economic, versatile, and it saves time. In brushes with the traffic police, he says, it always helps to explain that he is a student too: "They are more sympathetic once they know that." What makes motorcycles so unsafe is the fact that the vehicle provides virtually no protection in the event of a crash. To avoid a crash in the first place, Gamal chooses "the safer roots and alleyways". A helmet is a must, he says: according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), indeed, it is the single most effective way to prevent and reduce the risk of head injuries and fatalities resulting from motorcycle and bicycle crashes, reducing the risk of severe injury and death by 70 and 40 per cent, respectively. A motorcycle is particularly susceptible to road surface irregularities: potholes, slippery spots and the like. Yet people like Sayed Shaban, 46, who dispenses butane cylinders for a living, can only afford to be fatalistic about it: "I know driving a motorcycle is not safe, especially with a big load like the one I carry around, but what can I do? It's my only source of income." Milkman Ragab Ali, 47, will only drive down sidestreets and alleyways. The driving may be somewhat safer, but it is a tough call: "I can not afford buying a car to facilitate my work, now, can I?"
