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Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: TVR - BRAZIL-MOTORBIKE-DEATHS
HEADLINE: As delivery apps grow in Brazil, more people are dying on motorbikes
TEASER: The first months of the year were the deadliest for motorcyclists in history; almost seven riders died every day in 2024 in São Paulo state alone
PUBLISHED AT: 08/12/2024 AT 8:40AM
BYLINE: Yan Boechat
DATELINE: Sao Paulo
VIDEOGRAPHER: Yan Boechat
VIDEO EDITOR:
SCRIPT EDITORS: Baragona, Cobus
VIDEO SOURCE(S): VOA ORIGINAL
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO _X_
TRT: 3:47
VID APPROVED BY: MAS
TYPE: TVR
EDITOR NOTES))
((INTRO)) [[The first months of 2024 have been the deadliest for motorbikers in Sao Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest state in Brazil. On average, almost seven people died riding a motorbike every day in São Paulo. Experts on health and traffic say the main reason is the rapid expansion of food delivery apps. Yan Boechat has more from São Paulo.]]
((NARRATION))
Francisco Pereira considers himself a lucky man. On Christmas Day last year, a car hit his motorcycle on a busy street in the outskirts of São Paulo. One of his legs was gone instantly in the accident, and the other, crushed against the bike engine, could not be saved. Weeks later, doctors had to amputate it as well.
[Francisco Pereira, Unemployed, [MALE, PORTUGUESE]
“It was on December 25th just now. I was coming from a family party when a car tried to pass and collided with me head-on. I lost my leg instantly.”
((NARRATION))
Despite the tragic outcome, Francisco is happy to be alive. In recent years, thousands of young men like him have lost their lives riding motorcycles in São Paulo. Many, like Francisco, were working for food delivery apps.
((NARRATION))
Data from the São Paulo traffic authority shows that the last six months have been the deadliest for motorcyclists in Brazil's most populous and wealthiest state. On average, almost seven people died every day riding a motorbike in a state that is home to more than 20% of Brazil's 210 million population. In the last 10 years, almost 20,000 bikers have died in São Paulo alone.
[Linamara Rizzo Battistella, Lucy Montoro Rehabilitation Center [Female, Portuguese]
“We are seeing a greater number of drivers entering the delivery system and the traffic system prematurely, as it is a mechanism for generating income and work. On the other hand, we have consumers who are increasingly demanding regarding time; they call and say: "Hurry up, I'm in a rush."
((NARRATION))
Dr. Linamara Rizzo is among the creators of one of the main rehabilitation centers in Brazil, the Lucy Montoro Hospital. She says the expansion of the delivery market in Brazil over the last decade is one of the main reasons so many young men are dying on the streets.
[Linamara Rizzo Battistella, Lucy Montoro Rehabilitation Center] [Female, Portuguese]
"So, it is evident that we need to have protections for workers and penalties for companies that do not control the number of deliveries by their drivers.”
((NARRATION))
Ifood, the leading delivery app in Brazil with gross revenue of U.S. $10 billion last year, says there's no data proving a relationship between the increase in biker deaths and the expansion of app-based delivery services. The company says only 0.6% of motorbikes in Brazil work for them.
A recent study conducted by the Institute for Applied Economic Research, a Brazilian government organization, shows that between 2016 and 2022, the number of people working as delivery drivers on motorcycles grew by almost 1,200%.
Alan Freiria is one of them. He started working as a food delivery driver five years ago.
[Alan Freiria, Food Delivery Driver [Male, Portuguese]
"With food deliveries, with pizza deliveries, it’s better for me because, besides the mobility, I earn more, you know? It’s riskier; I’ve already lost friends, had accidents, and fallen, but that’s life. It’s not something I want to do forever.”
Alan wants to have a more stable and less risky job, but says it’s hard to find one that pays the same he makes on the streets delivering food.
((Yan Boechat, VOA News, Sao Paulo, Brazil))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
Subtitles / Dubbing AvailableNo
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateAugust 12, 2024 08:25 EDT
BylineYan Boechat
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
