Scooter Commuter

During transit strikes and when gas prices skyrocket motorcycle dealers say they sell faster than hotcakes. Scooters! They’re economical, practical, trendy, and automatic transmission. The hidden bonus: no motorbike license required.

Scooters have become popular in big cities where purchases are driven by trends and European influence. Drivers frustrated with traffic jams and elusive parking spots are snapping up scooters and turning their daily commute from a stressful, boring routine into a fun adventure. I went the retro, trendy route and chose a Yamaha scooter with European styling minus the hefty price tag. The salesman showed me how easy it is to operate the scooter and gave me a couple of pointers: “Don’t look down. Don’t drag your feet on the road.” He forgot to tell me not to transport a watermelon in the storage compartment and I learned the hard way how to ride while counterbalancing a heavy, rolling fruit. Motorbike helmets are necessary and I chose one with a face shield, the first defence against hundreds of bugs that are determined to commit suicide on my face.

Scooters are environmentally friendly, quiet, and create less pollution than a car. They average thirty kilometres per litre or nearly two hundred kilometres on a full tank of gas. I stopped driving my car and watched my monthly gas bill drop from two hundred dollars a month to twenty. Spent the savings at a spa.

Daily I hop aboard my scooter for a thirty kilometre ride to work. Part of my route takes me across the Fraser River via the Albion Ferry where motorbikes are guaranteed on the next sailing, bypassing the car line up, and shaving up to an hour off the commute. I often exit the ferry on my tiny red Vino dwarfed by a dozen big guys on big motorbikes. Rain, shine, freezing weather, I’m geared up and on my way. But where are these big guys when the weather turns bad? The motorbike section consists of myself and one other lady riding a scooter. We conclude it must be true that Harleys and Hondas melt in the rain.