driving in Madagascar

File:Route Nationale 9 (Madagaskar) 01.jpg carrying goods and passengers|alt=A flatbed truck with a roof over its bed drives down a dirt road. Beneath the roof sit quite a few people on beches; two hang on to the back of the truck. Atop the roof is a variety of goods in woven baskets. It says "Transport" on the front of the truck.]]

The road network of Madagascar, comprising about 4,500 unique roads spanning {{Convert|31,640|km|mi|sp=us}}, is designed primarily to facilitate transportation to and from Antananarivo, the Malagasy capital. Transportation on these roads, most of which are unpaved and two lanes wide, is often dangerous. Few Malagasy own private vehicles; long-distance travel is often accomplished in {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousses}} ('bush taxis'),{{refn|group=fr|name=tb}} which may be shared by 20 or more people.

While most primary roads are in good condition, the World Food Programme has classified nearly two-thirds of the overall road network as being in poor condition. These conditions may make it dangerous to drive at moderate-to-high speeds and Dahalo (bandits) (bandit) attacks pose a threat at low speeds. Many roads are impassable during Madagascar's wet season; some bridges (often narrow, one-lane structures) are vulnerable to being swept away. Few rural Malagasy live near a road in good condition; poor road connectivity may pose challenges in health care, agriculture, and education.

Drivers in Madagascar travel on the right side of the road. On some roads, to deter attacks from {{lang|mg|dahalo}}, the government of Madagascar requires that drivers travel in convoys of at least ten vehicles. Car collision fatalities are not fully reported, but the rate is estimated to be among the highest in the world. Random police checkpoints, at which travelers are required to produce identity documents, are spread throughout the country. Crops are transported by ox cart locally and by truck inter-regionally. Human-powered vehicles, once the only means of road transport, are still found in the form of {{lang|fr-MG|pousse-pousses}} (rickshaws). {{lang|fr-MG|Taxi brousses}} constitute a rudimentary road-based public transportation system in Madagascar. Rides on {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousses}} cost as little as 200 Malagasy ariary (roughly US$0.10) {{As of|2005|lc=y}}, and vehicles involved are often overpacked, sometimes with the assistant driver riding on the outside of the vehicle. Stops on their routes are generally not fixed, allowing passengers to exit at arbitrary points.

History

File:Pousse-pousse_Madagascar.jpgs}}|alt=Two Malagasy men pull children in rickshaws. Both modern vehicles and more rickshaws can be seen in the background.]]

There were no roads in Madagascar through the mid-19th century.{{Cite journal |last=Tattersall |first=Ian |author-link=Ian Tattersall |date=April 4, 2022 |title=The Itineraries of Alfred Crossley, and Natural History Collecting in mid-Nineteenth Century Madagascar |url=https://digitallibrary.amnh.org/bitstream/handle/2246/7294/N3987.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |url-status=live |journal=American Museum Novitates |publisher=American Museum of Natural History |issue=3987 |doi=10.1206/3987.1 |oclc=1308950568 |s2cid=247992222 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220618210644/https://digitallibrary.amnh.org/bitstream/handle/2246/7294/N3987.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |archive-date=2022-06-18 |access-date=2023-01-18}}{{Rp|page=11}} Goods were carried across the island along pathways by porters, while oxen, the only beast of burden available, saw minimal use.{{cite journal |last1=Campbell |first1=Gwyn |title=Labour and the Transport Problem in Imperial Madagascar, 1810–1895 |journal=The Journal of African History |date=1980 |volume=21 |issue=3 |pages=341–356 |doi=10.1017/S002185370001834X |jstor=181188}}{{rp|p=341}} After France conquered Madagascar in 1895, French colonial administrators, who did not understand the water and transportation system in place under the Merina Kingdom,{{cite journal |last1=Rijke-Epstein |first1=Tasha |title=On Humble Technologies: Containers, Care, and Water Infrastructure in Northwest Madagascar, 1750s–1960s |journal=History and Technology |date=3 July 2021 |volume=37 |issue=3 |pages=293–328 |doi=10.1080/07341512.2021.1999076}}{{rp|p=306}} immediately began building roads.{{rp|p=356}} Porters collectively resisted the creation of roads, continuing a pre-conquest movement in opposition to using horses which saw the stoning of European horse-riders in Antananarivo. In 1901, porters staged demonstrations against the introduction of {{lang|fr-MG|pousse-pousses}} (rickshaws), but the latter prevailed when a road between Antananarivo and Toamasina was completed in 1902.{{rp|p=356}}{{cite journal |last1= |date=1902 |title=Transportation in Madagascar |journal=Scientific American |volume=87 |issue=19 |page=309 |jstor=24985918}} Some human-powered vehicles remain in use {{as of|2017|lc=yes}}, in the form of {{lang|fr-MG|pousse-pousses}}.

Even as late as 1955, passenger and commercial motor vehicles in Madagascar numbered under 30,000.{{cite journal |last1=Hance |first1=William A. |date=1958 |title=Transportation in Madagascar |journal=Geographical Review |volume=48 |issue=1 |pages=45–68 |doi=10.2307/211701 |jstor=211701|bibcode=1958GeoRv..48...45H }}{{rp|p=50}} In 1958, Madagascar's road network spanned about {{convert|15,600|mi|km|sp=us|order=flip}}, almost all of it unpaved.{{rp|pp=48,50}} In subsequent decades, the country relied heavily upon water and air travel for transportation, performing minimal investment and maintenance in its road infrastructure.{{Cite book |last=Sharp |first=Lesley A |title=The Possessed and the Dispossessed |publisher=University of California Press |year=1993 |isbn=9780520918450 |edition=Paperback |doi=10.1525/9780520918450 |author-link=Lesley A. Sharp}}{{Rp|page=30}} Plantations, which were nationalized following a revolution in 1972, have exercised significant influence on road and infrastructure construction within the Sambirano, a river valley in the country's northeast, and maintained primary responsibility for road maintenance on some major thoroughfares there {{As of|1993|lc=y}}.{{Rp|page=|pages=28–30}}

Roads

File:Madagascar Transportation.jpg

{{As of|2022}}, Madagascar contains over 4,500 unique roads.{{Cite journal |last1=Prieto-Curiel |first1=Rafael |last2=Heo |first2=Inhoi |last3=Schumann |first3=Abel |last4=Heinrigs |first4=Philipp |year=2022 |title=Constructing a simplified interurban road network based on crowdsourced geodata |journal=MethodsX |publisher=Elsevier |volume=9 |page=101845 |doi=10.1016/j.mex.2022.101845 |pmc=9478433 |pmid=36117676 |doi-access=free}}{{Rp|page=2}} The road network spans approximately {{Convert|31,640|km|mi|sp=us}},{{Rp|page=746}} representing 5.4 kilometers of road per 100 square kilometers of land ({{#expr:{{convert|5.4|km|mi|disp=number}} * 100 / {{convert|100|km2|mi2|disp=number}} round 2}} mi per 100 sq mi).{{rp|p=5}} This is a small road network,{{rp|p=5}} mostly oriented toward Antananarivo.{{rp|p=65}} Last-mile transport, particularly in rural areas, is sometimes accomplished via unofficial roads.{{rp|p=5}} Traffic drives on the right side of the road.

There are three classes of road systems in Madagascar: {{lang|fr-MG|routes nationales}} ('national roads'), {{lang|fr-MG|routes provinciales}} ('provincial roads'), and {{lang|fr-MG|routes communales}} ('communal roads').{{refn|group=fr|Also 'municipal roads'.}} {{lang|fr-MG|Routes nationales}} connect Antananarivo to Antsiranana, Toamasina, Morondava, and Toliara{{rp|p=65}} and make up {{Convert|11,746|km|mi|sp=us}} of the country's road network.{{Cite web |last1=Styles |first1=Lucy |last2=Koopmann |first2=Karla |last3=Catala |first3=Cristina |last4=Schweikert |first4=Andreas |last5=Trigona |first5=Camilla |date=30 May 2018 |title=2.3 Madagascar Road Network |url=https://dlca.logcluster.org/pages/viewpage.action?pageId=852919 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220210141404/https://dlca.logcluster.org/display/public/DLCA/2.3+Madagascar+Road+Network |archive-date=10 February 2022 |access-date=18 January 2023 |website=Logistics Capacity Assessments (LCAs) |publisher=World Food Programme |edition=13th}} Most roads of all three types have two lanes and are relatively narrow; many bridges have only one lane.{{rp|pp=73–74}} The country's first toll highway, a {{Convert|250|km|mi|sp=us|adj=on}} road designed to cut the travel time between Antananarivo to Toamasina from the current 10 hours down to a target of 2.5 hours, is under construction {{As of|2022|December|lc=y}}.{{Cite news |last=Minas |first=Bruno |date=3 November 2022 |title=Madagascar: Signature du contrat de la première autoroute |language=French |work=Mayotte 1 |url=https://la1ere.francetvinfo.fr/mayotte/madagascar-signature-du-contrat-de-la-premiere-autoroute-1336756.html |access-date=19 February 2023 |archive-date=19 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230219230425/https://la1ere.francetvinfo.fr/mayotte/madagascar-signature-du-contrat-de-la-premiere-autoroute-1336756.html |url-status=live }}

= Road conditions =

{{As of|2018|alt=In 2018}}, the World Food Programme and the Global Logistics Cluster classified 64 percent of roads in Madagascar as in poor driving condition, 28 percent in average condition, and 10 percent in good condition; seven-in-ten of the primary roads fall into the latter-most category, which is defined as being navigable throughout all seasons of the year.{{rp|p=5}} The Statesman's Yearbook 2023 states that only about 22 percent of roads in Madagascar were paved {{as of|2013|lc=y}},{{Cite book |title=The Statesman's Yearbook 2023 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=2022 |language=en |chapter=Madagascar |doi=10.1057/978-1-349-96056-9_113 |via=SpringerLink |author=Springer Nature Limited|pages=744–747 |isbn=978-1-349-96055-2 }}{{Rp|page=746}} while a 2019 World Bank report states that 81 percent were not paved.{{cite report |date=2019-09-23 |title=Madagascar Connectivity for Rural Livelihood Improvement |url=https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/859311571191973040/pdf/Project-Information-Document-Integrated-Safeguards-Data-Sheet-Connectivity-for-Rural-Livelihood-Improvement-Project-P166526.pdf |publisher=World Bank |access-date=2023-01-20 |archive-date=20 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230120210942/https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/859311571191973040/pdf/Project-Information-Document-Integrated-Safeguards-Data-Sheet-Connectivity-for-Rural-Livelihood-Improvement-Project-P166526.pdf |url-status=live }} As natural gravel is not regularly available on the island of Madagascar, many roads are composed of sand lined with crushed stone.{{Cite book |last1=de O.S. Horta |first1=Jose Carlos |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0CluEAAAQBAJ |title=Geotechnics in the African Environment |last2=Traverso |first2=Carlo R. |publisher=Routledge |year=1991 |isbn=9781351445139 |editor-last=Blight |editor-first=Geoffrey E. |editor-link=Geoffrey Eustace Blight |volume=1|doi=10.1201/9780203753330-10 |chapter=Deterioration and rehabilitation of earth roads in Madagascar |via=Google Books}}{{Rp|page=66}} Many of these unsealed roads can only be used in the dry season.{{rp|pp=65–66}} Roads in rural areas are often deficient in signage, while bridges are often swept away following rainstorms; during the wet season, road conditions degrade, particularly so in the country's North.{{Cite web |date=13 January 2023 |title=Madagascar travel advice |url=https://travel.gc.ca/destinations/madagascar |website=Canada.ca |publisher=Government of Canada |access-date=19 January 2023 |archive-date=12 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221212165723/https://travel.gc.ca/destinations/madagascar |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |date=20 January 2023 |title=Madagascar: Safety and security |url=https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/madagascar/safety-and-security |website=gov.uk |publisher=Government Digital Service (Government of the United Kingdom) |access-date=20 January 2023 |archive-date=12 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221212165726/https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/madagascar/safety-and-security |url-status=live }}

= Connectivity challenges =

{{As of|2019}}, only 11.4 percent of rural Malagasy live within {{convert|2|km|mi|sp=us}} of a road in good condition, leaving 17 million without such access.{{rp|p=5}} Unsealed roads are the only way to access many parts of the country by road, including the key southern city of Fort-Dauphin.{{rp|pp=65–66}} A 2018 World Bank report, conducted in partnership with the government of Madagascar, concluded that poor road connectivity was one of the major contributors for poor access to health care. The World Bank further linked poor connectivity to challenges in agriculture and education{{rp|pp=4,6}} and identified climate change as having the potential to worsen the road connectivity situation.{{cite report |title=Madagascar Road Connectivity |date=2018-04-26 |url=https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/599781543336589193/pdf/Concept-Project-Information-Document-Integrated-Safeguards-Data-Sheet-Madagascar-Road-Connectivity-Project-P166526.pdf |publisher=World Bank |access-date=2023-01-20 |archive-date=18 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230118231517/https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/599781543336589193/pdf/Concept-Project-Information-Document-Integrated-Safeguards-Data-Sheet-Madagascar-Road-Connectivity-Project-P166526.pdf |url-status=live }}{{rp|p=4}}

Means of transport

Vehicle ownership in Madagascar has grown from under 30,000{{rp|p=50}} in 1955 to over 800,000 passenger and commercial vehicles {{As of|2013|alt=in 2013}},{{rp|p=746}} during which time the island country's population has risen from about 5 million{{rp|p=47}} to over 28 million.{{rp|p=744}} In reports in 2018 and 2019, the World Bank predicted an increase in car ownership as Madagascar's economy improved.{{rp|p=5}}{{rp|p=7}} A 2022 World Bank paper published in Public Transport found that 6 percent of Antananarivo households surveyed owned private cars, that private car ownership correlated with high income, and that car owners were less likely to use minibuses.{{cite journal |last1=Iimi |first1=Atsushi |title=Estimating the demand for informal public transport: evidence from Antananarivo, Madagascar |journal=Public Transport |date=29 June 2022 |volume=15 |pages=129–168 |doi=10.1007/s12469-022-00300-9|hdl=10986/37321 |s2cid=248871279 |hdl-access=free }}{{rp|pp=14,18,24}}

class="wikitable"

|+Vehicle ownership statistics

!Year

!Data

!Source

1955

|26,911 (≈ 5.3 per 1,000 people{{refn|group=v|Inferred from population figure of about 5 million in same source, p. 47}}), including 10,687 cars, 11,517 trucks, and 2,587 motorcycles

|Geographical Review, 1958{{rp|p=50}}

|7 passenger cars and 6 commercial vehicles per 1,000 people

|The Economist, 1978{{cite book | chapter-url=https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-1-349-16437-0_14.pdf | doi=10.1007/978-1-349-16437-0_14 | chapter=World equipment | title=The World in Figures | year=1978 | page=23 | isbn=978-0-333-30468-6 | access-date=2023-01-18 | archive-date=2019-05-03 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503125535/https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2F978-1-349-16437-0_14.pdf | url-status=live |publisher=The Economist |via=SpringerLink |doi-access=free}}

1986

|3.3 passenger cars{{refn|group=v|Inferred from per-head figure of 0.0033}} and 45 commercial vehicles per 1,000 people

|Traffic Engineering and Control, 1986{{Cite journal|url=https://www.academia.edu/24214371|title=Car ownership forecasts for low-income countries|first=Kenneth|last=Button|author-link=Kenneth Button (economist)|date=January 1, 1992|journal=Traffic Engineering and Control|via=Academia.edu|access-date=January 18, 2023|archive-date=January 19, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230119011400/https://www.academia.edu/24214371|url-status=live}}{{Rp|page=667}}

2013

|370,000 vans and trucks (13 per 1,000 people), 162,000 passenger vehicles (5.70), and 280,800 buses (9.877){{refn|group=v|Per-thousand statistics inferred from population figure of 28,430,000 in same source, p. 744}}

|The Statesman's Yearbook, 2023{{Rp|page=746}}

colspan=3|{{reflist|group=v|colwidth=25em}}

= <i lang="fr-MG" title="French-language text">Taxi brousses</i> =

{{Multiple image

| total_width = 450

| image1 = Taxi Brousses at station in Madagascar.jpg

| alt1 = Four vans are parked in parallel in front of a series of storefronts. Some have goods on top in woven containers. Men are standing on top of two of them, loading or unloading them. Other men congregate nearby.

| caption1 = Four {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousses}} at a station in Ambositra

| image2 = Taxi brousse interior in Madagascar.jpg

| alt2 = A middle-aged white man takes a selfie inside a very taxi brousse. There are at least 17 passengers behind him, ranging from infant to later age; some are making unpleasant expressions.

| caption2 = Interior of a crowded {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousse}}

| direction = horizontal

}}

Madagascar's {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousses}} ('bush taxis'){{refn|group=fr|name=tb|Usually hyphenated in French, a spelling sometimes also used in English. French plural {{lang|fr-MG|taxis-brousse}} or {{lang|fr-MG|taxis brousse}}; English plural taxi brousses or taxis-brousses.}}{{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousses}} are a type of share taxi that serve as a relatively affordable public transportation system amid Madagascar's poverty.{{cite journal |last1=Wulf |first1=Volker |last2=Misaki |first2=Kaoru |last3=Randall |first3=Dave |last4=Rohde |first4=Markus |title=Travelling by Taxi Brousse in Madagascar. An Investigation into Practices of Overland Transportation |date=2018 |doi=10.25969/mediarep/16218 |doi-access=free |journal=Media in Action |issue=1 |pages=57–97 |url=https://mediarep.org/bitstream/handle/doc/17067/MEDIA_IN_ACTION_2018_1_57-97_Wulf_ea_Travelling_.pdf?sequence=-1 |access-date=2023-01-19 |publisher=University of Siegen |archive-date=18 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230118225917/https://mediarep.org/bitstream/handle/doc/17067/MEDIA_IN_ACTION_2018_1_57-97_Wulf_ea_Travelling_.pdf?sequence=-1 |url-status=live }}{{rp|pp=61, 68}} The typical cost in 2005 was US$.10 per person, and most {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousses}} do not embark until all seats are full.{{rp|p=70}} While {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousses}} use fixed stops, passengers can also exit at any point along the route.{{rp|p=73}} {{lang|fr-MG|Taxi brousse}} company fleets range in size from a single vehicle to over a hundred, and may serve one or more urban, regional, or national lines.{{rp|p=70}} National lines{{refn|group=fr|{{langx|fr|lignes nationales}}.}} travel from their origin to their destination directly, disallowing improvised stops along the route.{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2UBADwAAQBAJ |title=Lonely Planet: Africa |editor= |publisher=Lonely Planet |year=2017 |isbn=9781787011472 |edition=14th |language=English |chapter=Madagascar |access-date=20 January 2023 |archive-date=7 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207070614/https://www.google.com/books/edition/Lonely_Planet_Africa/2UBADwAAQBAJ |url-status=live }} A vehicle is staffed by a driver and assistant driver, or two drivers on a very long route. Other people are employed to attract customers and fasten luggage to the vehicle's roof.{{rp|p=75}}

According to a 2018 study in Media in Action, most {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousses}} used on paved roads are minibuses, while most on unpaved roads are trucks with benches in the cargo area. They often are filled above their intended capacities, sometimes close to double, with small children riding for free on their parents' laps. The researchers recount that the tight space can lead to conflict among passengers and requires people exiting to either jump out of a window or have everyone in front of them get out too.{{rp|pp=70, 72}} The assistant driver, who interacts with passengers and loads and unloads luggage, does not get a seat and either stands against the door or travels on the outside of the vehicle.{{rp|p=80}} Researchers observed that the drivers often appear to eat for free, as part of arrangements between the {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousse}} companies and restaurants they stop at.{{rp|p=72}} {{As of|2018}}, {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousse}} companies must register with the government and pay {{Currency|2400000|MGA|first=yes|linked=yes}} ({{Currency|{{To USD|2400000|MDG|year=2018|round=yes}}}}) in fees and taxes per vehicle. Importation of vehicles is taxed at about ten times this amount.{{rp|p=70}}

= Cargo transport =

File:Madagascar water tanker.jpg

Trans-regional transport of crops relies on trucks. In Vakinankaratra, a network of subcollectors buy crops from farmers in their villages and then sell the crops to wholesale collectors, who either have their own trucks or work with truckers they know. Because of the cost of operating a truck, most truckers own more than one truck so as to take advantage of economies of scale. {{as of|1997}}, most trucking in Vakinankaratra is conducted by ethnic Asians, who tend to be relatively well-off but, due to a history of ethnic tensions, are wary of assets that could easily be seized. A different class of transporters, the {{lang|fr-MG|charretiers}} ('carters'), move crops to markets by ox cart.{{cite journal |last1=Barrett |first1=Christopher B. |author1-link=Christopher B. Barrett |title=Food marketing liberalization and trader entry: Evidence from Madagascar |journal=World Development |date=May 1997 |volume=25 |issue=5 |pages=763–777 |doi=10.1016/S0305-750X(96)00132-5 |url=https://www.academia.edu/1932787 |via=Academia.edu |access-date=7 February 2023 |archive-date=7 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207070631/https://www.academia.edu/1932787/Food_marketing_liberalization_and_trader_entry_Evidence_from_Madagascar |url-status=live }}{{rp|pp=766,768–769}}

Facing a water crisis in Southern Madagascar, in 1993 the national agency {{lang|fr-MG|Alimentation en Eau dans le Sud}} (AES){{refn|group=fr|'Water supply in the South'.}} engaged with the government of Japan to acquire 24 tanker trucks for water. {{As of|2004}}, 10 remain officially in service, although researcher Richard R. Marcus was only able to verify the existence of 6. According to Marcus, AES blamed tire issues, while locals alleged corruption.{{cite journal |last1=Marcus |first1=Richard R. |title=Where Community-Based Water Resource Management has Gone Too Far: Poverty and Disempowerment in Southern Madagascar |journal=Conservation and Society |date=April–June 2007 |volume=5 |issue=2 |pages=202–231 |jstor=26392881 |jstor-access=free}}

Safety

The maximum urban speed limit is {{Convert|50|km/h|mph|sp=us}}, or in some cases, {{Convert|80|km/h|mph|sp=us}}. {{As of|2018}}, there is no national speed limit in rural areas or on highways, though local governments have the ability to impose and modify speed limits within their jurisdictions.{{Cite report |publisher=World Health Organization |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1086320098 |title=Global status report on road safety 2018 |date=2018 |isbn=978-92-4-156568-4 |location=Geneva, Switzerland |oclc=1086320098}}{{rp|p=185}} The Antananarivo–Toamasina toll highway, whose construction began in late 2022, will have a speed limit of {{Convert|120|km/h|mph|sp=us}} across the entire highway. Volker Wulf et al. in Media in Action reported the speed limit for trucks is {{Convert|45|km/h|mph|sp=us}}; {{lang|fr-MG|taxi brousses}} may go up to {{Convert|75|km/h|mph|sp=us}} but in practice go around {{Convert|40|km/h|mph|sp=us}}.{{rp|p=74}} The blood alcohol content limit for drunk driving is 0.08 grams per deciliter. There is a seatbelt law but no child restraint law. Motorcyclists must wear helmets. Children are allowed as motorcycle passengers; children under five may not sit in the front seat of a car.{{rp|p=185}} Handheld phone use while driving is illegal. A 2018 World Health Organization (WHO) fact sheet said that hands-free use of a phone behind the wheel is legal,{{rp|p=185}} though a 2019 information sheet from the United States Bureau of Consular Affairs reported that hands-free use is illegal.{{Cite web |date=14 June 2019 |title=Madagascar International Travel Information |url=https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Madagascar.html |website=Travel.State.Gov |publisher=Bureau of Consular Affairs (United States Department of State) |access-date=20 January 2023 |archive-date=12 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230112151212/https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Madagascar.html |url-status=live }} {{PD-inline}} Nighttime street lighting in the country is of limited availability.

The Intersectoral Committee for Road Safety and Ministry of Transport and Meteorology oversee road safety in Madagascar.{{rp|p=185}} While there are no official statistics on road safety in Madagascar,{{rp|p=5}} the country's Gendarmerie Nationale{{refn|group=fr|'National gendarmerie'.}} reported 340 people in 2016 who died within 24 hours of a car crash; the WHO estimated a true total of 7,108 car crash fatalities, or 28.6 per 100,000 inhabitants.{{rp|p=185}} In comparison, the global average is 18.2 and the African average is 26.6; Madagascar has the 24th-highest fatality rate out of 175 countries or regions assessed.{{rp|p=7}} About half of vehicle fatalities are pedestrians.{{rp|p=185}} According to the government of Canada, car collisions in Madagascar may instigate crowd violence. Car collisions in which a participant is injured or killed necessitate a court case, where the parties found liable for damages are required to cover all expenses related to the case; leaving Madagascar is prohibited prior to the completion of the case.

Dahalo (bandits) (bandits) have attacked vehicles, leading the government to require that vehicles travel in convoys of at least 10 on many roads.{{rp|p=89}} Vehicles seek to travel at higher speeds, but become more vulnerable to attacks when forced by potholes to slow.{{rp|p=89}} Herds of zebu may also pose a hazard to driving. It is customary in Madagascar to blow one's car horn while traveling around road curves in order to notify other drivers of one's presence. Random vehicle checkpoints at which travelers are required to produce identity documents are spread throughout Madagascar.

Notes

Madagascar French terms

References

Madagascar

Category:Road transport in Madagascar