A quick one today…

Tomorrow is the start of the bi-annual Paris motorbike and cycle show, and this got me thinking about motorbikes and scooters and CO2 emissions.

I have already mentioned in a previous article that bikes and scooters are not always as environmentally friendly as one might expect, with some generating a similar amount of if not more CO2 for their relatively small size. I therefore had the idea of conducting another Reduce Your CO2 investigation, this time visiting the sites of the major motorcycle and scooter manufacturers to see if any of them had anything to say about CO2 emissions and the environmental impact of two-wheelers.

Needless to say, I found pretty much no mention at all of emissions, in some cases a pity, as some models of scooter, for instance the Vespa LX, are already low on emissions of CO2 and other pollutants. When emissions were mentioned, it was only in comparison with the different European standards (Euro 1 - 6), which is not at all informative for most people. In fact, I can see a whole new opportunity for those manufacturers who do have ‘green’ models, as riding a ‘green’ scooter to work is far better than taking any car, although still not as good as a bicycle….

I am therefore not going to bother with a run-down of the different sites as it really is a matter of the same result every time. I do however want to mention another discovery that got me totally sidetracked, and also made me very happy.

Until three years ago I had a Vespa - not the greenest of motorbikes, which is one of the reasons that we parted company, but the ideal mode of transport for permanently congested London town. I adored it, and have always loved the Vespa and Piaggio brands. I was therefore very pleased to discover that Piaggio are almost certainly going to be the first manufacturer to launch hybrid scooters, both under the Vespa and Piaggio labels. They have already tested a prototype engine both with the Vespa LX and also the 3 wheeled Piaggio MP3, and mpg results of 140+ have been reported. Apparently these bikes will be in production around the end of 2008 and, I reckon they will fly off the forecourts.

Ok, so a bicycle is better, and there are also various electric scooters that are already available, but this is still an exciting move by Piaggio. I look forward to being tempted to buy one!