motorcycle killings

A spike of almost 30 percent in the number of traffic accidents recorded in Costa Rica during first eight months of this year prompted an increase in the price of the mandatory automobile insurance for 2017.

The death of a motorcyclist last weekend brought Costa Rica's traffic-related death toll to 356 this year, a figure that surpassed the 355 recorded in 2014.

The execution in the middle of rush-hour traffic was the latest suspected narco-related killing as the government searches for a strategy to tackle organized crime here.

A total of 294 people died in road accidents, up from the 253 traffic deaths recorded during the same period of 2014, according to the Traffic Police.

The U.S. citizen, who police said worked in real estate, was taken to the San Juan de Dios Hospital in San José for surgery at approximately 11:00 a.m.

According to OIJ Director Francisco Segura Montero, 45 people have been shot dead by motorcyclists since the beginning of 2014. Honduras, Guatemala and several other Latin American countries prohibit passengers on motorcycles. But it's unclear whether the rule has reduced crime in those countries.

Costa Rica's Roadway Safety Council, or COSEVI, is developing a "National Plan for Motorcyclists" that aims to reduce by 20 percent the number of fatalities in the next six years.

At least 1,111 Guatemalans have been killed by armed motorcyclists between 2011 and the first two months of this year, according to a report by the humanitarian organization Mutual Help Group (GAM in Spanish), published on Wednesday.

The deadline to pay the mandatory permit, or marchamo, is Dec. 31.

Motorcyclists blocked various routes throughout the capital on Tuesday, demanding a decrease in circulation permit costs.