Wearing hoodies and sun hats limits Vietnamese motorbike riders' vision

A female motorist wearing sun protective gear waits at a red light on Hanoi's Nguyen Chanh Street on July 12, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Pham Nga

One Monday morning, while sipping coffee at my usual spot in downtown Tay Ninh Province in southern Vietnam, I heard a loud crash. I turned and saw a middle-aged woman on a motorbike had slammed into the side of a sedan crossing an intersection.

She had not slowed down before impact. She fell but escaped with only minor scratches, while bystanders called her family for help. The sedan, however, suffered severe damage.

Had she not seen the car? Was she distracted or sleepy? Fortunately, no one was seriously hurt, but the accident left me wondering.

The second case happened in early December 2024.

A friend showed me a video of a student riding a motorbike on a narrow, two-lane road. As a car ahead signaled left and started turning, the student, going too fast, could not brake in time. He swerved left, jumped the curb, and crashed into a nearby streetlight.

The third case took place at the start of the Lunar New Year 2025.

A news report showed footage of a motorbike crashing into a semi-truck. The truck had signaled right and was slowly turning into a parking lot when, at the same moment, a student on a motorbike sped forward and crashed into it.

All three accidents had one thing in common: the riders were not aware of their surroundings. But why? Why did they keep speeding forward when other vehicles were clearly in their path? The answer, I believe, is restricted vision.

In the first case, the woman's sun hat covered most of her face, leaving only a narrow slit for her eyes. Her helmet pushed the brim outward and downward, further blocking her view.

In the second and third cases, the riders wore hoodies with large hoods. Combined with helmets, these likely obscured their side vision, making it harder to spot nearby vehicles.

These incidents reminded me of my childhood curiosity about horses. They wear blinders to limit their vision, making them easier to control. Sun hats and hoodies are doing the same to motorbike riders - except on the road, this loss of awareness is dangerous.

What’s worse, many young people, especially students, have turned this into a trend. They pull their hoodies up, strap a helmet over them, and speed through traffic after school. Look around, and you will see them everywhere, oblivious to the risk and a danger to everyone on the road.

Authorities should take this issue seriously. Sun hats and hoodies not only limit vision but also affect spatial awareness and driving behavior. The dangers they pose on the road demand urgent attention.