Motor Scooters Help New Yorkers Get Around Transit Strike: “NEW YORK, Dec. 21 — As the City struggles to cope with the impact of its first MTA transit strike in 25 years, many New Yorkers are finding creative ways to skirt the train crowds and HOV car restrictions. They’re taking to the streets on motor scooters.
Scooters, like the iconic Vespa, already saw a huge surge in sales in 2005 thanks to soaring gas prices. Here are quick figures on scooter growth in the US:
* Scooter sales (estimated at 86,000 in 2004 in the U.S.) have
doubled since 2000
* Some scooter dealers have seen a 300 percent sales increase
since 2004
* Scooters retain gas mileage at 50 to 70 miles to the gallon and
take approximately $5 to fill the tank (compared to $50 for an SUV)
Now faced with the transit strike, New York’s scooter riders are saving more than dollars. They are saving time and stress — flying into the City around lines of cars and making quick time across the five boroughs and beyond.”
22. December 2005 at 10:38 pm
As a New York City press photographer, I logged 4 days of coverage, with 90 percent of using my Bajaj scooter to skirt the traffic and other delays caused by the strike. It was cold as I’d ridden in, leaving before sun up but I got the job done. I was able to hop on and off when photo opportunities presented themselves.