I got an email from the Ride to Work Day people (as you may have if you are on their mailing list) about the Ride to Work Day on Wednesday (you know, the one where you wussed out because it was raining.)
Anyway, they had this bit in it:
A journalist sent Ride to Work a request looking for individual commuting stories for a book he is currently working on. If you are interested in helping him, please answer the questions below and then send your reply to ’email address’
So I did. Read on for the Q and A session.
My name is Chris Balish and I am a professional journalist in St. Louis, MO. I’m doing research for a book on transportation alternatives to the private automobile. One whole chapter of this book will be devoted to commuting by motorcycle and motor scooter.
Also, I am looking for real-life success stories from about a dozen people who regularly commute by motorcycle or scooter. Could you please forward this email to anyone around the U.S. who you know who fits that description and ask them if they could respond by filling out the following questionnaire. I would also like their permission to publish their comments in the book.
How often do you commute to work by motorcycle or scooter?
I commute almost every day starting when the ice is off the road in the spring until the ice starts forming on the road in the late fall. My general rule to determine if I take the motorcycle to work is: Is it pouring rain when I’m ready to leave? If it’s not pouring rain, then I ride the motorcycle. (No matter what the weather prediction is.) The way I look at it, a 60% chance of rain is a 40% chance of no rain. And I rarely get rained on.
What kind of bike or scooter do you use?
I have several bikes that I commute on. My primary bike is a 1993 BMW K1100RS. The other two bikes that I use are a 1982 BMW R100RS and a 1983 Kawasaki GPz305. I have also just added a 1981 Yamaha SECA 750 with a sidecar, but have not commuted on it yet (but plan to.)
How long is your commute?
About 13 miles one way.
Why do you commute by bike or scooter?
What are the benefits of using a motorcycle or scooter as daily transportation?
It’s much more fun to ride a motorcycle than drive a car. In addition, my motorcycles range between 50MPG to 35MPG. The best I get in my car is 30MPG and my van only gets 18MPG.
In my car I tend to drive the same, boring freeway route. On my bikes, I will explore other, more interesting routes. Taking a different route, where you see different things, tends to change your outlook on the day.
Are there financial benefits?
Certainly. Just the savings in gas alone would make it worth it. In a week I commute 130 miles. In my car that would use 4.3 gallons of gas. On my motorcycle, I would use 2.6 gallons. That’s a savings of 1.7 gallons a week. At current gas costs, that’s about $4.00 a week. It doesn’t seem much, but that will buy me lunch once a week. (Or a bottle of Scotch every 10 weeks.)
What is the total annual/monthly cost of using a motorcycle as daily transportation? (monthly payment, insurance, gas, parking, depreciation, repairs, maintenance, etc.)
How does this compare to the cost of using a car as daily transportation?
I’m not sure. I don’t really track these numbers. I do know that the insurance on my bikes is much cheaper than on my cars. The insurance for my car is about $800 a year. For my bikes it ranges from $200 to $80 a year.
Granted, one of the reasons my bike insurance is so cheap is because I insure my car and my bikes together.
As far as repairs, I do all of the work on my bikes myself. I take my car to the shop (it’s easier for my family to go without one of the bikes than without one of the cars.) So the repair bills for the car are much higher than the bike. In the past two years, I have probably put $3000 into the cars and $800 into the bikes in repairs.
For gas, well, I talked about it above. I probably commute 32 weeks of the year on my motorcycle (one of the disadvantages of living in Minnesota.) In those 32 weeks, I save about 55 gallons of gas. That’s about $127 at today’s gas prices. As gas costs go up, I feel better and better about riding a bike that gets a pretty consistant 50MPG. Even the bike that only gets 35MPG looks pretty good compared to my van that gets 18MPG.
All of my vehicles are paid for (one advantage of older vehicles) so I don’t have a monthly payment.
I don’t track depreciation on my vehicles, I drive the cars into the ground and keep the bikes running as long as possible. The bikes do tend to hold their value longer though.
A car from 1982 probably isn’t worth much, but my 1982 BMW R100RS would probably sell for around $2800. Considering that I bought it in 1988 or so for $3500, that’s not too bad.
Also consider that the car that I bought new in 1986 (the last car I bought new) died in 1997. I’m still driving the motorcycle that I bought used in 1988 (and it was new in 1982.)
I park for free where I work, so that’s not a factor. As a matter of fact, they have one slot marked ‘Motorcycles Only’, where I park.
How does this compare to the convenience of using a car as daily transportation?
As far as convenience, sure, a car is more convenient. You get in, buckle up and go. On a bike you have to suit up, put in ear plugs if you are going any distance (due to wind noise, not loud pipes,) put on your helmet and then go. Then when you get to your destination, you have to do the reverse. It takes longer.
It’s also more difficult to go shopping and cart stuff on a bike. Two of my bikes have nice big saddle bags, so I can cart a bunch of stuff, but I don’t do the weekly shopping run on them.
What are the lifestyle benefits?
It is much less frustrating to ride a motorcycle than to drive in a car. It’s more exhilarating to ride the bike. I not sure what kind of “lifestyle benefits” there are. Riding motorcycles is a big part of my life and has been and will continue to be for many years.
What do your family, friends, and co-workers think of your transportation decision?
They think it’s great. I have several co-workers who are starting to ride motorcycles now, partially due to my riding. My family thinks it’s great (one of my sisters used to ride), and my Mother can’t wait to have a ride in my new sidecar.
Is parking more convenient than with a car?
Definitely yes. You can fit into many small spots that a car can’t. You can also get two to four motorcycles into a standard car slot. There are many parking ramps that have small corners and such that you can park a bike in that a car would never fit into.
How did you first start commuting this way?
I’ve been riding motorcycles since 1982. I’ve been commuting on motorcycles since I started riding.
What do you do during fowl weather?
As I said above if it’s pouring rain when it’s time to go to work I take the car. If it’s just drizzling I’ll ride the bike. But if I’m at work and it’s pouring when it’s time to go home I put on my suit (an Aerostich – mostly waterproof,) and ride home. If I put on my suit and helmet before I leave the building I don’t even get as wet as my co-workers that have to walk to their cars.
If it’s cold, I have an electric vest that I wear. That, along with a polar fleece over it and my Aerostich suit keep me toasty warm down to about 32 degrees. Sure, the wind is a little chilly, but I live in Minnesota anyway, what’s a little cold?
When it’s really hot out, I sweat. But as long as I’m moving, the airflow keeps me somewhat cool. It’s the sitting in traffic that really kills you.
I have ridden when it’s snowing, and as long as the ground is warm and the snow is not sticking it’s no problem.
Do you also own a car or other vehicle?
Yes. I have four motorcycles, a car and a mini-van.
Please add your personal thoughts about commuting by motorcycle or scooter.
I love to ride my bike to work. On a motorcycle you are so much more a part of your surroundings. You can smell more things (good, like passing a bakery, and bad, like passing a garbage truck) that you don’t smell in a car. The wind blows you around. Other bikers wave to you (when was the last time someone driving the same car as you waved to you? And I don’t mean with one finger.) It’s easier to sneak through traffic. You don’t have to worry about being too wide when you meet a car on narrow streets. You can accelerate harder and brake harder than cars.
And, as a man with a family to look after, I frankly don’t get much time to ride that isn’t commuting. I would have to say that 90% of my motorcycle riding is commuting.
