Iran formally allows women to ride motorcycles

Women in Iran can now formally obtain a license to ride a motorcycle, local media report, ending years of legal ambiguity surrounding two-wheelers and following the government’s bloody crackdown on anti-regime protests last month.

The law previously did not explicitly prohibit women from riding motorbikes and scooters, but in practice authorities refused to issue licenses.

Due to the legal gray area, women have been held legally responsible for accidents even when victims.

Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref signed a resolution yesterday aimed at clarifying the traffic code, which was approved by Iran’s cabinet in late January, the country’s Ilna news agency reports.

The resolution obliges traffic police to “provide practical training to female applicants, organize an exam under the direct supervision of the police, and issue motorcycle driver’s licenses to women,” Ilna says.

The change follows a wave of protests across Iran that were initially sparked by economic grievances but which grew last month into nationwide anti-government demonstrations.

Tehran has acknowledged that more than 3,000 deaths occurred during the unrest, insisting that most were members of the security forces and bystanders. Rights groups cite a higher death toll and say the true figure may be much higher still, in the tens of thousands.

Since Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, women have faced a range of societal restrictions, with dress codes posing a challenge for those riding motorcycles.

Women must cover their hair with a headscarf in public and wear modest, loose-fitting clothing, but in recent years many have defied those rules, with the number of women on motorbikes rising sharply in recent months.

This trend accelerated after the 2022 death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a young Iranian woman arrested for allegedly violating the dress code.

Her death sparked protests across Iran by women demanding greater freedoms.