Despite the reputation, it's better, more practical transit than you might think.
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The case for commuting by motorcycle
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I've been riding for well over a decade with not a single accident. Regarding the comment on the ducati monster, my first bike was a monster 1100 EVO and it was perfect, 
But, given half the States don't allow filtering and to pass a driving test you have to do not much more than drive round the block, I'd probably give it a miss.
But, given half the States don't allow filtering and to pass a driving test you have to do not much more than drive round the block, I'd probably give it a miss.
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Yep, exactly this. I've been working on a way to incorporate one of those spinning 3d holographic displays onto a motorcycle to dramatically increase visibility, especially at dawn and twilight.
They are incredibly bright and the movement adds a lot to their visibility.
You'd think they shouldn't be needed but something about a motorcycles cross section when approaching a car at a 90 degree angle seems to make them invisible to many drivers.
Still working on air resistance issues. Not a complete solution but hopefully will increase a riders odds by increasing their visibility.
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Also, where I live motorcycles are not allowed to lane split, so I'd end up gridlocked with the cars... With a bike I can actually use biker lanes and can bypass all the cars stuck in traffic..
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It's really sad seeing how highly voted FUD is in this article.
When you look at the statistics for properly geared up, regular riders then compare that to "Sunday riders", the statistics look completely different.
At the very least, I would hope the people here would have the intellect to be able to leave the rhetoric behind and recognise that every cyclist on the road is a human being, and there's no need to project all your prejudice onto them.
The amount of times I've heard "Oh they were riding? Well they were asking for it" Turns my stomach.
No, nobody deserves to be rear ended at Red lights because they were on a motorbike.
I'm purposefully using language to evoke the concept of sexual assault, because it's the same energy. We as a society need to make it clear we're not OK with some road users bullying others because they're bigger.
You are not automatically an organ donor, an idiot, a hoon, because you can recognise the environmental of two wheels is exponentially lower than 4.
/rant
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Statistically, riding a motorcycle is more dangerous than driving. But what are you gonna do? Not ride a motorcycle? That’s no solution.
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Ok that's clearly not true. FWIW the rule I follow is, "Never ride in any storm that has a name."
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I've been commuting on a motorcycle since 1978. I ride year round road conditions permitting, snow. My four wheel vehicle goes less than 500 miles a year, my bike over 10,000. Just going to work in a driving rain storm can be an adventure, it makes my whole day. I tried to get to work during Sandy but had to turn around due to high water. A car wouldn't have helped. I guess it's not for everybody but it keeps me feeling alive. Good weather can be a little boring.
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I'm a lapsed rider. Despite learning every trick I could e.g. police roadcraft, watching car wheels instead of the drivers, etc. etc. it could still be sketchy. Obvious , really. You're sitting on an engine, with very little rubber on the road and a very high power to weight ratio.
I commuted all year round. I remember once falling on black ice leaving my side street, oncoming cars going sideways on the ice while trying to avoid me, before bench pressing 200kg of bike off of myself and then riding 40 miles to get to work on time. But by the evening, on the ride home, I was grinning like an idiot as I deliberately induced a full-lock slide on the same corner, in snow this time, as I rode home.
My life changing accident was just that. They still called it an RTA back then, rather than RTC. There was oil on the road. On a dry, dark summer night, right where I started to apply the brakes for a roundabout. Refined technique and adherence to the speed limit didn't save me. My youth and physical fitness, and the expertise of medical professionals did. It was always about risk vs. reward for me, and the risk was worth the reward. I prepared, I practiced, I rode many, many miles without incident. But in the end I'm very lucky to be alive.
I miss it every bloody day. I'd get another one tomorrow. I nearly pulled the trigger on a Norton Commando 961SP last month, and the year before. But today's roads are different. People are in such a rush, so self-centred, so sloppy. Crossing the centre line for no reason other than lack of care. Tailgating. Hesitating then cutting out in front of me. Entitlement, carelessness, whatever, it's nuts out there now.
So when my friends ask me to talk their children out of getting a motorcycle, I oblige, and encourage them to get an old scrambler for off-road, or go to a track, if they really can't let the dream go. But I'm a hypocrite. I would jump back on one right now if I had the chance. And I'll dream about it tonight. There isn't much like it. Only the thought of putting my family through hell again keeps me on four wheels instead of two.
Stay safe, everyone. Be alert. The world needs more lerts.
I commuted all year round. I remember once falling on black ice leaving my side street, oncoming cars going sideways on the ice while trying to avoid me, before bench pressing 200kg of bike off of myself and then riding 40 miles to get to work on time. But by the evening, on the ride home, I was grinning like an idiot as I deliberately induced a full-lock slide on the same corner, in snow this time, as I rode home.
My life changing accident was just that. They still called it an RTA back then, rather than RTC. There was oil on the road. On a dry, dark summer night, right where I started to apply the brakes for a roundabout. Refined technique and adherence to the speed limit didn't save me. My youth and physical fitness, and the expertise of medical professionals did. It was always about risk vs. reward for me, and the risk was worth the reward. I prepared, I practiced, I rode many, many miles without incident. But in the end I'm very lucky to be alive.
I miss it every bloody day. I'd get another one tomorrow. I nearly pulled the trigger on a Norton Commando 961SP last month, and the year before. But today's roads are different. People are in such a rush, so self-centred, so sloppy. Crossing the centre line for no reason other than lack of care. Tailgating. Hesitating then cutting out in front of me. Entitlement, carelessness, whatever, it's nuts out there now.
So when my friends ask me to talk their children out of getting a motorcycle, I oblige, and encourage them to get an old scrambler for off-road, or go to a track, if they really can't let the dream go. But I'm a hypocrite. I would jump back on one right now if I had the chance. And I'll dream about it tonight. There isn't much like it. Only the thought of putting my family through hell again keeps me on four wheels instead of two.
Stay safe, everyone. Be alert. The world needs more lerts.
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I will just respectfully note that not all motorcycle crashes involve hitting something something at high speed and coming to an immediate, lethal, stop. Indeed, helmets will not save your life if you high something directly at high speed. However helmets and leathers will definitely save your life and your looks/skin in most accidents involving "wiping out" due to excess speed, poor road surface, and/or stopping abruptly due an incompetent driver.Vast indeed:
View attachment 115753
While lethality of wiping out from a bike is lower vs a pedestrian being hit by a vehicle, the same power law applies, meaning the graph of serious injury and death will look very similar.
Edit: Source https://www.paho.org/sites/default/files/2018-SpeedRoadCrashes_ENGLISH_FINAL.pdf
There’s even better research out there but unsurprisingly all the graphs are in km/h and I didn’t want to open that can of
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Friend's mom does many of the autopsies and forensic postmortems for our city of ~1 million. After fentanyl, "motorcycle" ranks very high on the list of deaths she looks at in the summer, and those bodies aren't always delivered in one piece.
She has strong opinions about riding a motorcycle in the city.
She has strong opinions about riding a motorcycle in the city.
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Why is that? Because it says "people think it's unsafe, but they're total wrong" while seemingly pulling two really unsafe recommendations out of thin air, even though there's probably about 20 safer alternatives I can think of off the top of my head?
Nah... Can't be...
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I read somewhere about motorcycle commuters being a lot less likely to get into a crash and if they did, it wasn't as severe compared to weekend riders. Or heaven forbid, Harley riders with no helmet and plenty of alcohol in the system.
Being a long-distance bicycle rider and a motorcycle rider has taught me to keep my eyeballs on stalks 100% of the time. Gotta look out for some idiot cager out there who's playing with their phone while driving, some Tesla-nut deploying Autopilot while watching a movie, or a senior with seriously impaired reaction time in an Escalade.
My recommendations: get a bike that won't put you into a wall at 100 mph with a flick of the wrist (Ducatis over 900cc), ATGATT with CE2 back protectors, hi-viz stripes on your gear, don't ride like a bloody knob and if your spidey senses tingle, take the car or an Uber for the commute instead.
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15 years of motorcycle rising ended when I got rear ended by a car while I was stopped at a stop light. They were doing 35. I wore my gear, and my knees are still messed up.
I was a lucky rider. Those days are done.
I was a lucky rider. Those days are done.
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Speaking as a former rider, communting on one is not within my risk tolerance, largely because of highways and higher speeds. Most of the riding I did was "get out of town and find twisties" but I'd commute on it occasionally as well . . . that is, until I had three separate vehicles merge into where I was on the highway without looking - all within half a mile. Defensive riding saved me, but I decided I was done after that (there as a kid on the way at that time too).
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I laughed out load when I saw the first commuting motorcycle is a 111hp Ducati Monster.
Feeling validated by commuting with humble Aprilia Shiver with only 77hp that's faster than a mustang gt.
Riding motorcycles is something I love dearly but I would never recommend someone else to ride, my city is not feasible to commute by public transit and I can't recommend people to ride a bicycle when I stopped commuting by bicycle after I was hit by a car and I feel a lot safer on a motorcycle.
I recommend people to buy a electric SUV or a scooter, and please take care of pedestrian, cyclist and other road users. Be kind.
Feeling validated by commuting with humble Aprilia Shiver with only 77hp that's faster than a mustang gt.
Riding motorcycles is something I love dearly but I would never recommend someone else to ride, my city is not feasible to commute by public transit and I can't recommend people to ride a bicycle when I stopped commuting by bicycle after I was hit by a car and I feel a lot safer on a motorcycle.
I recommend people to buy a electric SUV or a scooter, and please take care of pedestrian, cyclist and other road users. Be kind.
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I have a 2012 Honda NC700X (700cc) that routinely gets 80 mpg at 65 mph in hot weather. Beats the heck out of my 2018 Niro HEV that maxes out at a smidge over 60 mpg at the same speed in the same weather.
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As someone who lives in Florida and is surrounded by snowbirds and Florida Man while on the roads, I'll pass...
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Kinda hard to take 2 kids to school on a bike. Plus, lots of times, especially lately, tired/burnt out from work. Hard to give 100% twice a day, 5 days a week for 20+ miles of constantly unpredictable traffic.
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I commute daily on a bike. Have for decades. Since I was 17. Rain or shine (but I don't live somewhere that gets snow). ATGATT. The running cost (including depreciated cost of bike, fuel, servicing, gear, etc.) is less than half the cheapest public transport. The commute makes me feel good, and forces me to be aware of my surroundings (also good). My modest BMW Boxer is still more performant than anything short of a true sports car.
Are there places I wouldn't/don't ride? Hell yes!
Have fun, stay vertical my friends.
Are there places I wouldn't/don't ride? Hell yes!
Have fun, stay vertical my friends.
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"because Canada" there's only (realistically) about a six month motorcycling season in most of the country.
I've got an Uncle who is an ER doctor, fair bit older than I am.
Every spring: his contribution to ensuring that younger family members didn't get motorcycles was to tell us at various family events about the "number of organ donors generated in the first weekend of fair weather with motorcycle related accidents" in his hospital.
A great combo -> roads that aren't cleared from salt sand used for recent winter driving management, First rides of the season, cars not used to motorcycles being out.
Nearly lost a fellow engineering school colleague to one of those.
after he got out of the hospital he brought his crushed helmet to one of our design engineering classes.
Design challenge -> what else might this helmet have needed to be done to meet the "weight vs safety vs temperature control vs visibility" trade offs. The helmet in question, withstood an F-150 driving over my student colleague's head
Weirdly, when asked, my ER doctor uncle never had the same anecdotes about folks on bicycles, but you'd have thought that the same sort of factors would have been involved... (fair weather? first excuse to be out for a pedal?)
Bicycles are generally not allowed on freeways / highways?
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I'm very late to this party, but on my F 900 XR I find I'm much more open to long commutes, trips to the next city over, shopping for anything I can fit in a backpack. It's not for everyone, I know. But it's been great for my mental health. It might not be great for my physical... Being alive, but I can't see trading it away.
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(Looks at people in passenger cars)
Those are rookie numbers. Try harder.
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It's less that the roads get slick in the rain and more that the paint on the road get's slick int he rain. You can hold a wet corner pretty well with good tires, but you run over a paint line or a tar-snake while doing that and you're about to have a near-life experience.
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As a kid I was clumsy and nerdy, and too afraid. Once I had a bit more confidence, and then a job, and then got married.. I couldn't do it to my wife / family. Plus, I've heard stories from various others who did ride bikes in my circles: the guy who had to lay it down on the freeway at 70 mph - IIRC, that was the end of his ownership. My BIL owned a goldwing for many years (no lane splitting, only 6 months riding in Canada) - and he's the only one I think who never had a serious accident.
Another friend of mine (played on competing church softball teams), his motorcycle cop father was riding on vacation with his wife - 18 wheeler ran a stop. IIRC he lost both his parents (dad for sure) in his teens. Kid was a shell of his former self for years. Another acquaintance was selling his bike, took it out for a loop to "warm it up" for the buyer, old lady backed out without seeing him.. Was out for 6+ months from pick-up floor hockey, IIRC. His face will never be the same. etc, etc..
I doubt traffic is that much different, SoCal to NorCal - I see the lane splitters every day. I've also seen a car lightly tap a bike while changing lanes in traffic, I saw one car not brake in time / didn't see the splitter and bumped his rear tire causing the bike to rise a bit in the front - luckily the rider held it together!
But I'm sure you're a better rider than all the others, and nothing bad will ever happen to you..
(there are the odd idiot riders going 30-40 mph faster than the average speed in traffic, but overall, I'm way more upset about the way bicyclists ride here - as if ZERO street signs apply to them, and I have a waze-like app to warn me they are coming from my blind spots and am expected to move over for them..)
Another friend of mine (played on competing church softball teams), his motorcycle cop father was riding on vacation with his wife - 18 wheeler ran a stop. IIRC he lost both his parents (dad for sure) in his teens. Kid was a shell of his former self for years. Another acquaintance was selling his bike, took it out for a loop to "warm it up" for the buyer, old lady backed out without seeing him.. Was out for 6+ months from pick-up floor hockey, IIRC. His face will never be the same. etc, etc..
I doubt traffic is that much different, SoCal to NorCal - I see the lane splitters every day. I've also seen a car lightly tap a bike while changing lanes in traffic, I saw one car not brake in time / didn't see the splitter and bumped his rear tire causing the bike to rise a bit in the front - luckily the rider held it together!
But I'm sure you're a better rider than all the others, and nothing bad will ever happen to you..
(there are the odd idiot riders going 30-40 mph faster than the average speed in traffic, but overall, I'm way more upset about the way bicyclists ride here - as if ZERO street signs apply to them, and I have a waze-like app to warn me they are coming from my blind spots and am expected to move over for them..)
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Then pay attention? People not paying attention are the most dangerous obstacles on most of my rides. I've already had at least two SMIDSY's this week.
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Ballsy moveI've been riding for well over a decade with not a single accident. Regarding the comment on the ducati monster, my first bike was a monster 1100 EVO and it was perfect,
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I rode a motorcycle to commute regularly until smartphones became common, it was hard enough to stay alive before smartphones, now you couldn’t pay me enough to ride a motorcycle on public roads.
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GandalfDDI
Smack-Fu Master, in training
Ahh ... All the comments from the masses that never have and probably never will ride a Motorcycle. Comments about how dangerous Motorcycles are as heard from their friend who had a Uncle's Best Friends sister's ex-Husband who worked in ER & saw the accidents. You don't and will never ride, why did you even bother to comment? Bored?
Spoiler alert - ER sees the small percentage of Motorcyclists that were in the worst accidents, not the vast majority that have ridden for years and never been hurt. I have ridden for over 12 years, still riding. No broken bones or dire emergencies. As Kyle Hyatt says "you can do a lot to mitigate your risks and make riding much safer". Riding a motorcycle is ALL about risk tolerance. And ATGATT - All The Gear All The Time. I don't know what to say about the squids riding in shorts, tee shirt, flip flops and no helmet pulling wheelies down the street, they made a choice I wouldn't make.
Rather than comment on a random article on ars TECHNICA just because you are bored, how about becoming a little informed first about the subject matter? Try taking a Motorcycle MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) class. Maybe THEN you will figure out why I ride. Hint, it isn't for the "individual freedom or identity", It is about getting into my Zen, connecting with nature and the road. Why I ride:
gandalfddi.z19.web.core.windows.net/motorcycle_experience.html
Spoiler alert - ER sees the small percentage of Motorcyclists that were in the worst accidents, not the vast majority that have ridden for years and never been hurt. I have ridden for over 12 years, still riding. No broken bones or dire emergencies. As Kyle Hyatt says "you can do a lot to mitigate your risks and make riding much safer". Riding a motorcycle is ALL about risk tolerance. And ATGATT - All The Gear All The Time. I don't know what to say about the squids riding in shorts, tee shirt, flip flops and no helmet pulling wheelies down the street, they made a choice I wouldn't make.
Rather than comment on a random article on ars TECHNICA just because you are bored, how about becoming a little informed first about the subject matter? Try taking a Motorcycle MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) class. Maybe THEN you will figure out why I ride. Hint, it isn't for the "individual freedom or identity", It is about getting into my Zen, connecting with nature and the road. Why I ride:
gandalfddi.z19.web.core.windows.net/motorcycle_experience.html
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Yup. Because data is good, here's access to NZ's transport statistics tool.
For 2023, compared to being in a car you are:
35x more likely to die on a motorcycle per km ridden,
59x more likely to be seriously injured per km ridden,
14x (only) more likely to have minor injuries per km ridden.
Mean distance travelled per leg of journey by car was 10 km and motorcycle 14 km (survey data, 2023-2024), so clearly a lot of commuting in both pools. Motorcycle usage was about 0.75% of car usage.
Been in a crash, rolled a 20 on the saving throw vs death, don't really want a repeat so eventually sold the (replacement) bike.
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Sad that this turned into an advertisement. A mass shift to smaller personal transportation has a case, and I had hoped, from the headline, that this article would make that case. Alas, consumerism.
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You're glad that the American roads are so dangerous you can't use a motorcycle.
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I've been riding over 35 years, over 300K miles in L.A. county alone. I've had a couple of low-sides (not involving other vehicles) but nothing that's done any permanent damage.
I love it! It's saving me at least 1.5 hours in my daily commute. It also helps that it gets almost 70 miles per gallon.
But I'll admit it's not for everyone. The key is it requires a certain amount of awareness-- you'll do good if you're good at predicting traffic almost 2 steps ahead. Most drivers only notice their immedient traffic state. (I'll know that self driving vehicles have arrived when it can successfully ride a motorcyle to lane split human traffic!)
I love it! It's saving me at least 1.5 hours in my daily commute. It also helps that it gets almost 70 miles per gallon.
But I'll admit it's not for everyone. The key is it requires a certain amount of awareness-- you'll do good if you're good at predicting traffic almost 2 steps ahead. Most drivers only notice their immedient traffic state. (I'll know that self driving vehicles have arrived when it can successfully ride a motorcyle to lane split human traffic!)
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jm_leviathan
Ars Scholae Palatinae
I rode a succession of motor scooters as my primary mode of transport for perhaps a little over a decade, commuting in all weather. The last and best was a Honda Forza 300, though I also have fond memories of the sofa on wheels that was the Yamaha Majesty 250, and the multicoloured delight that was Honda Dio SR 50.
In that time I was involved in two significant accidents, both involving vehicles that pulled out directly across my lane of travel without seeing me. The first resulted in a collision at 20-30km/h, the second I locked the front brake and went sliding down the road. The immediate lesson from the latter accident was the importance of ABS brakes, leading to the Forza. Fortunately neither accident resulted in serious injury and both were accepted as "not at fault" by the insurers.
I have a car and an eBike now. I'm still occasionally tempted by motor scooters. If I were to buy another one, the choice would be between a tech-laden BMW C400 GT and the classical elegance of a Vespa GTS. But I'm in no rush, and the safety aspect of things is certainly a relevant consideration.
P.S. Riding a PTW for recreation is all well and good, but arguments that boil down to not actually riding in circumstances that would be entirely practical if in a car (weather, time of day, type of road) are far from convincing as to their broader utility.
In that time I was involved in two significant accidents, both involving vehicles that pulled out directly across my lane of travel without seeing me. The first resulted in a collision at 20-30km/h, the second I locked the front brake and went sliding down the road. The immediate lesson from the latter accident was the importance of ABS brakes, leading to the Forza. Fortunately neither accident resulted in serious injury and both were accepted as "not at fault" by the insurers.
I have a car and an eBike now. I'm still occasionally tempted by motor scooters. If I were to buy another one, the choice would be between a tech-laden BMW C400 GT and the classical elegance of a Vespa GTS. But I'm in no rush, and the safety aspect of things is certainly a relevant consideration.
P.S. Riding a PTW for recreation is all well and good, but arguments that boil down to not actually riding in circumstances that would be entirely practical if in a car (weather, time of day, type of road) are far from convincing as to their broader utility.
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Yeah, but 2 wheels always trumps 4 wheels in commute times, fuel economy, acceleration and fun
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