Business

Pandemic surges food delivery orders in Turkey

Istanbul (Turkey), Jan 29 (EFE/EPA), (Camera: Sedat Suna.- The pandemic has boosted food delivery orders and, therefore, the work of delivery people, who are now under tremendous pressure that puts their lives at risk. FOOTAGE OF AND STATEMENTS BY TARIKCAN GEZMIS, A DELIVERY DRIVER FOR 12 YEARS. Translation:"My name is Tarikcan Gezmis. I have been working as a motorcycle delivery man in Istanbul for 12 years. As is well known, the motorcycle delivery service has skyrocketed during the pandemic as the demand for delivery has increased dramatically and this causes a lot of traffic flow. Fatal accidents can occur and we have had colleagues who lost their lives. May their souls rest in peace.Another problem we are uncomfortable with is that they see us as just a delivery person. They know we go out of our way for them, we are always in a hurry for their food delivery. However, sometimes it may not be possible. Traffic officers are much more vigilant about us. They put pressure on us because all eyes are on the motorcycles on the roads. They drag us into accidents. We are in a hurry and expect them to understand us. Especially when traffic officers stop us, they surely have an excuse to issue a ticket. We want our voice to be heard. We earn little and our employers do not pay these traffic fines. We need the government's support regarding this issue. Our work is very hard, especially in winter."