Round town ride is extending my life span.
Discussion
Sheffield is getting more and more car unkindly and parking restrictions on the increase.
I can do several jobs by using bus lanes and pavement parking even when the lure of my car is strong the pay back is slow queues and parking stresses.
The little Vespa I use daily leaves me relaxed and always able to grab a sandwich, cost peanuts to run, no MOT or tax and cost me 40 quid to insure for the year with Carol Nash. I was running a 1977 BMW R100 as well but it just sat while the Vespa got the miles.
My laid back lunches and bakery shop visits on way home, always beating cars back to the suburbs feels like I'm extending my life span with totally uninhibited motoring. Not just a better way to live life in a city but no pressure on my heart rate.
Heir and a spare depending on the weather.
I can do several jobs by using bus lanes and pavement parking even when the lure of my car is strong the pay back is slow queues and parking stresses.
The little Vespa I use daily leaves me relaxed and always able to grab a sandwich, cost peanuts to run, no MOT or tax and cost me 40 quid to insure for the year with Carol Nash. I was running a 1977 BMW R100 as well but it just sat while the Vespa got the miles.
My laid back lunches and bakery shop visits on way home, always beating cars back to the suburbs feels like I'm extending my life span with totally uninhibited motoring. Not just a better way to live life in a city but no pressure on my heart rate.
Heir and a spare depending on the weather.
Agree, my scoot is my first mode of transport weather permitting.
Free parking at the railway station (otherwise £8 per day)
Free parking all day in my local town.
Other drivers are 99% courteous towards the bike (I don't live in London)
80mpg
Road tax gone up to £59 but still ok
The only problem nowadays, which I just have to live with, is now getting overtaken in 20 limits (no close passes yet)
Free parking at the railway station (otherwise £8 per day)
Free parking all day in my local town.
Other drivers are 99% courteous towards the bike (I don't live in London)
80mpg
Road tax gone up to £59 but still ok
The only problem nowadays, which I just have to live with, is now getting overtaken in 20 limits (no close passes yet)
Edited by Trevor555 on Friday 8th May 09:56
This is my Vespa ET2 50cc that I use for popping around town. I only live just over a mile from the centre of Cheltenham, so I can be in town in 5 minutes and use the free parking. Costs £2 a month in road tax and £80 a year insurance.
It was bought brand new by my girlfriends ex-husband in November 2004. He got bored of it after 3 months (my girlfriend says he was too scared to ride it!) and sold it to my girlfriends Mum who used it to ride to work and shopping. In 2022 my girlfriends Mum had a stroke and could no longer ride it, so she asked me to sell it. After doing quite a few small jobs on it for her, I knew it was in good condition so bought it off her. It had only done 4,800 miles from new and included every single service receipt/MOT certificate from the same garage.
I drove it on my car license but using it convinced me to do my CBT (Summer 2024) and full license (Autumn 2025). I test drove a new BMW F800GS this week and just trying to decide whether the purchase a 3 year old F850GS I've seen. But I'll still keep the scooter.
It was bought brand new by my girlfriends ex-husband in November 2004. He got bored of it after 3 months (my girlfriend says he was too scared to ride it!) and sold it to my girlfriends Mum who used it to ride to work and shopping. In 2022 my girlfriends Mum had a stroke and could no longer ride it, so she asked me to sell it. After doing quite a few small jobs on it for her, I knew it was in good condition so bought it off her. It had only done 4,800 miles from new and included every single service receipt/MOT certificate from the same garage.
I drove it on my car license but using it convinced me to do my CBT (Summer 2024) and full license (Autumn 2025). I test drove a new BMW F800GS this week and just trying to decide whether the purchase a 3 year old F850GS I've seen. But I'll still keep the scooter.
Timothy Bucktu said:
Yep...scooters for around town is the perfect, sensible and logical solution, just like they do in Europe.
We really need to get into this way of life in the UK. The fact that you can buy a 40+ year old bike, and ride it around for effectively free is a complete no-brainer.
I started a business 25 years ago based upon this theory. We really need to get into this way of life in the UK. The fact that you can buy a 40+ year old bike, and ride it around for effectively free is a complete no-brainer.
I was wrong.
Europe has better weather. Our weather acts as a handbrake to the adoption of two wheels.
Furbo said:
Europe has better weather. Our weather acts as a handbrake to the adoption of two wheels.
100% agree. When it's almost guaranteed to be dry for 8 months of the year then it's a much more appealing environment to use bikes/scooters daily. Even if it does rain in Central/Southern Europe, it's that warm and dry that within an hour the bike and the roads are dry again. Everything else - the licencing, insurance, security, tax etc etc is all secondary to how pleasant and convenient it is day to day. Trevor555 said:
Agree, my scoot is my first mode of transport weather permitting.
Free parking at the railway station (otherwise £8 per day)
Free parking all day in my local town.
Other drivers are 99% courteous towards the bike (I don't live in London)
80mpg
Road tax gone up to £59 but still ok
The only problem nowadays, which I just have to live with, is now getting overtaken in 20 limits (no close passes yet)
The whole idea is that there's no need to stay at 20 on a motorbike/scooter Free parking at the railway station (otherwise £8 per day)
Free parking all day in my local town.
Other drivers are 99% courteous towards the bike (I don't live in London)
80mpg
Road tax gone up to £59 but still ok
The only problem nowadays, which I just have to live with, is now getting overtaken in 20 limits (no close passes yet)
Edited by Trevor555 on Friday 8th May 09:56
That's why I miss mine. Motorbikes and scooters are exempt
Is yours a Yamaha 300?
croyde said:
Trevor555 said:
Agree, my scoot is my first mode of transport weather permitting.
Free parking at the railway station (otherwise £8 per day)
Free parking all day in my local town.
Other drivers are 99% courteous towards the bike (I don't live in London)
80mpg
Road tax gone up to £59 but still ok
The only problem nowadays, which I just have to live with, is now getting overtaken in 20 limits (no close passes yet)
The whole idea is that there's no need to stay at 20 on a motorbike/scooter Free parking at the railway station (otherwise £8 per day)
Free parking all day in my local town.
Other drivers are 99% courteous towards the bike (I don't live in London)
80mpg
Road tax gone up to £59 but still ok
The only problem nowadays, which I just have to live with, is now getting overtaken in 20 limits (no close passes yet)
Edited by Trevor555 on Friday 8th May 09:56
That's why I miss mine. Motorbikes and scooters are exempt
Is yours a Yamaha 300?
They now have six year warranty if you service with Honda.
Condi said:
Furbo said:
Europe has better weather. Our weather acts as a handbrake to the adoption of two wheels.
100% agree. When it's almost guaranteed to be dry for 8 months of the year then it's a much more appealing environment to use bikes/scooters daily. Even if it does rain in Central/Southern Europe, it's that warm and dry that within an hour the bike and the roads are dry again. Everything else - the licencing, insurance, security, tax etc etc is all secondary to how pleasant and convenient it is day to day. I travel a bit in Europe right now . Anywhere South of half way down France is significantly more bike centric than the UK . Last week in Toulouse huge amounts of bikes. Southern Spain in January bikes everywhere. Italy lakes in April, bikes everywhere. It's so noticeable back in UK we have a very short bike season. I ride all year, retired and just for fun , however many start in May and put it away again in October. It's easy to forget it was freezing in Nov and December and rained Jan ,Feb and March here . As a means of transport we have 5 or 6 months here I believe.
In Spain in November last year I looked at used bike prices, they are higher than here . I think because you can use them more.
I took my 1963 Lambretta Li125 out for the first time in years at the weekend and it scared the living daylights out of me! I'm used to big bikes and hadn't given it a run out since heaven only knows when. It was my Nan's, grandad purchased it new for her in 1963, trading in a LD model.
Anyway it was flipping slow and I kept reaching for the non existent indicators! before trying to remember all the hand signals.
Anyway it was flipping slow and I kept reaching for the non existent indicators! before trying to remember all the hand signals.
Electric mopeds have become really common in NL, we have several companies around here (Den Haag) renting them out by the minute via apps. Two up they're cheaper than taking the bus. We get more rain than London on southern England so it's not really the barrier people think it is.
But yeah motorcycle ownership is much lower here, mainly due to how bloody boring the roads are. I was on bike trip in Germany some years ago and the locals said they hate Dutch bikers because they go flat out on the straights and don't know how to go around corners
But yeah motorcycle ownership is much lower here, mainly due to how bloody boring the roads are. I was on bike trip in Germany some years ago and the locals said they hate Dutch bikers because they go flat out on the straights and don't know how to go around corners
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