Traffic in Bangkok Near MBK Centre Thailand South East Asia. Motorbikes are ubiquitous in Thailand, but helmets are not. Activists aim to tackle a problem that claims thousands of lives. Thailand ranks worst in the world for motorbike and two-wheeler casualties, with more than 11,000 motorbike drivers or passengers dying annually. Official statistics suggest such incidents account for 70% of the country's road fatalities. Many die because they don't wear a helmet. According to a Motorcycle Safety Foundation report, unhelmeted riders in Thailand are between two and three times more likely to be killed, and three times likelier to suffer a "disastrous outcome". Thailand's government introduced a "year of the helmet" in 2010 and is following up with a 100% helmet use campaign to highlight the danger of riding unprotected. Both schemes are part of an ambitious "master plan on road safety" aimed at hitting the UN target – set by the organisation's decade of action for road safety (pdf) – of fewer than 10 deaths per 100,000 people. Yet Thailand remains wildly off the mark; only 47% of those driving or riding pillion wear helmets. Official figures suggest neighbouring Asian countries fare little better, with motorbikes accounting for 61% of fatalities in Indonesia, 58% in Malaysia and 62.8% in Cambodia.