A bibliometric analysis of motorcycle studies in Asia: From 1971 to 2022

Abstract

Despite having the highest accident risk of all motorized vehicles, motorcycles are rapidly gaining popularity in Asian countries because of their affordability and flexibility. In response to this trend, many studies in Asian countries have examined the prevalence of motorcycles and assessed their impacts. In order to identify significant studies on motorcycles, this study conducts a bibliometric analysis of motorcycle studies in Asian countries. The data were gathered from Scopus and Web of Science databases over the entire publication period from 1971 to 2022. This study uses VOS-viewer and Biblioshiny to highlight important indicators, including source, authorship, country, institution, citation, co-citation analysis topic classifications, and keyword occurrences. A total of 2529 articles from journals and conferences were examined. The results reveal that published studies of motorcycles in Asian countries increased by an average of 22% after their initial appearance in 1971. Motorcycling studies in Asia have evolved from focusing on safety (1971–2000) to broader themes including emissions (2001−2012), the built environment's impact on energy (2013–2019), and recently towards advanced technology and urban sustainability (2020−2022). IATSS Research is ranked seventh with the most motorcycle articles. China, including Taiwan, has the most articles and citations among Asian countries. Based on the publication themes, the 51 years of motorcycle studies in Asia can be categorized into five clusters: accidents and human factors, traffic and policy, air pollution, motorcycle engineering and performance, and roads and technological innovation. Finally, eco-friendly fuels for motorcycles, diversity of motorcyclist behaviors in Asia, and technology-based driving safety are significant topics for future studies.