Delivery rider: heat, dust and irregular meals. How to cope?

If you ride for deliveries all day, three things you face every day are heat, dust and meals that never happen at the same time. Thai studies show how common this is. In a Chiang Mai University survey of 709 motorcycle food delivery riders, the median working week was 54 hours, 91.6% said they were exposed to heat and sunlight, 90.1% to exhaust smoke and 86.1% to dust. Four things are within your control: drink water at set times, fit meals into the quieter hours between rush periods, sleep at least 7 hours, and know when to stop and cool down.

This article is about riding for deliveries. For people who work outdoors in one place, such as farms or building sites, see Sweating all day working outdoors: what should I drink? For reading the daily dust numbers, see How do you read PM2.5 and AQI figures?

What do Thai studies show about delivery riders' working days?

Hours, orders and exposures

Reading these numbers

All four studies relied on what riders reported, and each covered one city or region. The three Chiang Mai studies come from the same university team over the same period, and two report on 709 riders, likely the same group, so they are not independent confirmations. The Chiang Mai and southern surveys were done during the COVID-19 period. Long days on the road appear in all three regions; heat and dust exposure was measured in Chiang Mai, and the "tired but still accepting jobs" answer comes from Bangkok.

How much should I drink when riding in the heat?

NIOSH's guide for work in the heat

Source: NIOSH heat stress recommendations.

Making it work on a motorbike

• Keep a refillable bottle where you can reach it at every stop, not at the bottom of the delivery box.
• Drink while you wait at the restaurant for an order, and refill when you can.
• NIOSH advises avoiding drinks high in caffeine or sugar while working in the heat, so keep iced coffee, cha yen and sweet drinks for after the shift and drink water during it.

For more about water, salt and the heat, see Sweating all day working outdoors: what should I drink?

What about the dust and exhaust on the road?

What riders actually breathe

Samana and colleagues fitted personal air samplers to motorcycle taxi drivers in six central provinces between January and March 2023. The highest average personal exposure was in Pathum Thani, at 410.9 µg/m³ of PM2.5. The authors noted that at some sampling points there PM2.5 was unexpectedly higher than PM10, likely because of the particular routes the drivers took, so this figure is not a typical value for all riders. They also found that the dust drivers breathed did not match the readings from air quality stations or area samplers. In other words, the number on your phone app may not match what you breathe in traffic. The study was done in the cool, dusty season and covered one type of rider.

Practical steps

• Check the PM2.5 level before your shift, and on high days consider shorter riding blocks. For how to read the numbers, see How do you read PM2.5 and AQI figures?
• In the Chiang Mai survey, 99.3% of riders said they wore masks while working. For what to do on high-dust days, see Is it OK to exercise outdoors on high PM2.5 days?
• Wait for orders away from the exhaust of queuing traffic when you can.

Protect your eyes from sun and dust

A third of riders in the Chiang Mai survey reported burning eyes. The US National Eye Institute advises wearing sunglasses that block 99 to 100% of UVA and UVB radiation, even on cloudy days, and safety glasses or goggles for some activities. A helmet visor or glasses also keep dust out. For eyes that itch and turn red in haze season, see Itchy, red eyes in PM2.5 haze season: what can I do?

How can I eat on time when orders keep coming?

Long hours and narrow diets

No Thai study we found measured riders' meals directly. Hu and colleagues studied 668 ride-hailing drivers in Beijing in 2024. 77.8% worked more than 55 hours a week, and 28.3% ate from fewer than 5 of 9 food groups in a day. Those working more than 55 hours had higher odds of eating from too few food groups (adjusted odds ratio 2.29). This is a Chinese study of car drivers and shows an association, but riders will recognise the pattern: a long day of orders leaves little time for a proper meal.

Plan meals around the rush hours

The NHS suggests eating regular meals and healthy snacks every 3 to 4 hours rather than a large meal less often. For riders, the rush hours decide when you can eat:

Food you bring from home

The seat box and the delivery bag get hot. The US CDC advises refrigerating perishable food within 2 hours, or within 1 hour if it is exposed to temperatures above 90°F (about 32°C), like a hot car. Food that does not need chilling, such as bananas and sealed UHT milk, is easier to carry.

How do sleep and rest affect safety on the road?

Short sleep and accidents

In the Chiang Mai study of 709 riders, 18.9% had been in a traffic accident in the past six months. Riders who slept less than 6 hours a day had higher odds of being in an accident (adjusted odds ratio 1.68). The study shows a link, not proof of cause, but tiredness on a motorbike is a safety issue, not only a comfort issue.

Protect 7 hours of sleep

The US CDC recommends 7 or more hours of sleep for adults, going to bed and getting up at the same time every day, and avoiding caffeine in the afternoon or evening. If you ride both lunch and late-night shifts, choose your sleep block first and log off on time.

Breaks for your neck, shoulders and back

Shoulder and neck pain were among the most common complaints in the Chiang Mai studies, and lower back pain was also common in one of them. Get off the bike during waits, stretch your neck and shoulders, and take at least one full day off a week.

If you feel too sleepy to ride

Stop somewhere safe and rest. An accepted order is not worth riding while you are fighting to keep your eyes open.

What are the danger signs, and when should I get help?

Signs to stop and cool down

The NHS lists these signs that the heat is getting to you: tiredness, dizziness, headache, feeling or being sick, heavy sweating, pale and clammy skin, cramps in the arms, legs or stomach, a high temperature, being very thirsty and feeling irritable. The NHS advises:

1. move to a cool place
2. remove unnecessary clothing, such as a jacket
3. drink plenty of water (a sports drink is also fine)
4. cool the skin with cool water and fan it

People should start to feel better within 30 minutes. Source: NHS.

Call 1669 straight away if

• the person has a very high temperature, or hot skin that is not sweating
• they have a fast heartbeat, or fast breathing or shortness of breath
• they are confused, or have a fit
• they pass out
• they are still unwell after 30 minutes of cooling down

See a doctor if

• aches in your neck, shoulders or back stop you working or do not settle with rest
• your eyes stay sore or your vision changes
• you feel tired for weeks even with enough sleep
• you take regular medicines and are not sure how they affect you in the heat (do not stop them on your own)