TheScooterScoop

Rhode Island news | projo.com | The Providence Journal | South County: “BLOCK ISLAND — Gas prices spiked in the days after Hurricane Katrina pummeled the Gulf Coast.

Correspondingly, scooter sales soared nationwide as motorists searched for more economical ways to get around. Not so at Javaspeed Scooters on North Main Street in Providence. Customers walked away after learning they had to take a motorcycle driving course and get a license before they could hit the road on two wheels in Rhode Island, says Patrick Engeman, a co-owner of the business.

‘There were no sales at a time when scooters were selling out across the country,’ he said.

House Majority Leader Gordon Fox last week sponsored legislation intended to update laws governing the licensing of motor scooters and mopeds to reflect new technology and ease the way for those looking to travel by scooter. The bill exempts drivers of mopeds and scooters with a certain engine size from having to get a motorcycle license.

‘Scooters and mopeds are not glorified bicycles anymore, but they’re not motorcycles either. However, under our laws, there’s no in between. If you can’t pedal it, you need a motorcycle license,’ Fox, a Democrat representing District 4 in Providence, said in a statement.

The issue arose last fall when the Division of Motor Vehicles notified police statewide that people driving motor scooters, regardless of the engine size, must hold a motorcycle license. Only motorized bicycles with pedals did not require a special license.

This proved problematic for Engeman and for five so-called ‘moped’ rental companies on Block Island. For decades, thousands of tourists have viewed the island by scooter, most without a motorcycle license.

The businesses sued the state Department of Administration and the Town of New Shoreham in the fall over their interpretation of the state law. Washington County Superior Court Associate Justice Allen P. Rubine ruled in the state’”

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