Wanted - Scooter Tutors

I'm sure you're familiar with the step through scooters becoming so common on our streets and roads of late. I even saw a couple riding one between Danville and Avon on a very cold and rainy day last week. These things get fantastic gas mileage and literally flew off the showroom floors this summer as gas prices loomed close to $5.00 per gallon. I'll even bet many of you reading this right now bought one or at least know of someone who did. I'll take a step further and bet that most of you didn't take lessons on how to ride one. Because there is no clutch to operate and because they seem small and harmless, people are buying these for commuting, for transportation if they have lost their license for any reason, and for their children to ride to school.

The state of Indiana considers any motorized vehicle with a motor smaller than 50cc's that travels a maximum of 25mph a "motorized bicycle" and as such does not require license registration (plates) or even a permit to operate. This is why they are popular with the non-licensed crowd. However, there is little to no difference between many of these and their larger displacement brothers regarding appearance. This makes it virtually impossible for law enforcement to identify which ones require plates and which ones do not. Some people are taking advantage of this and using the larger 200+cc scooters without getting plates for them. They are also removing governors and increasing the speed of the 49cc models.

These practices are creating many issues on the street. I think the most noteworthy is the lack of training associated with their operation. Many people are getting injured and even killed on these "small motorcycles" because they are ignorant of the dangers associated with them. People that would otherwise avoid owning and operating a motorcycle are eager to buy these bikes and wrongly think there is nothing dangerous about them. In fact they have many safety issues that should be addressed before riding them. An even greater concern is the number of 12 to 18 year old kids riding them with no training.

I personally believe that any vehicle operated on public roads should be licensed. I don't necessarily have an issue with the operator holding a license, but I do feel that proper training is crucial to safe operation. ABATE of Indiana is working to incorporate some form of scooter training in their current Basic Rider Course for motorcycle operation. Anyone can register for these classes online at abateofindiana.org.

I am interested in what people think about this issue and how it should be addressed so I welcome any comments you might have.