by "lecrab" (superservaas)
Published 05/21/2017 at 12:58
by "lecrab" (superservaas)
Published 05/21/2017 at 12:58
Tags: car
; Motorcycle
STARS: 0
Hello friends!
It has been a while I have posted here blah blah blah.
Here’s the thing.
I commute in the very busy area called “Randstad” 4 days a week. I park at exorbitant prices, and I have to walk over 15 minutes from the car after I parked it (paid) to get to work. Now, bare in mind that I am a freelance technician, I can afford all of this. But the traffic is killing me. I do 55 km’s one way, and it often takes me 1.5 hours. It is just horrible.
Not too long ago, I stumbled upon a nugget of information about a certain motorcycle. I am not a motorcycle enthousiast. In my country, I would need a different license to drive one. And then there is the weather.
But...
Here is something else:
The Piaggio MP3 yourban. It is a bit different, and its’ looks are just the start. First of all, I am allowed to ride this with my current car permit. That’s a plus. Second, the two front wheels have a stablising system that holds this motorscooter standing at traffic lights and parking. Third, unlike my car, the company I do work for (I am self employed but working for a large financial company currently) allows me to park it inside, as it is a motorcycle. Most companies over here do that: drive a car, they’re sorry, drive a motorcycle, come right in!
Dutch law allows me to split lanes, thus passing traffic jams, the same jams that cost me so much time. The company allows me to park inside, thus killing parking expenses (we’re talking about 150 euro monthly here).
Blankets and other add ons are sold for this scooter, and there is enough storage space inside it for my backpack without any additional storage boxes, which are available if needed. A used Mp3 scooter goes for anything from 3500 euro to 6000 euro. A new one goes from 7500.
There is just the weather. But I could take the car when the weather is horrible, and be happy with the days I rid the scooter.
Quite the conundrum. But as the time passes, I am more and more considering this seriously.
Waddayathink?
"FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem" (fuelstratifiedinjection)
05/21/2017 at 13:02, STARS: 1
Not all that bad. A friend of my mother has a similar scooter and drove his from Germany to Naples two years ago (he survived lol).
"Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell." (oppisitelock)
05/21/2017 at 13:04, STARS: 1
Solid idea in my mind (biased, decided to properly take up riding this week after wanting to for ages). A big draw for me is dealingg with traffic and the general freedom over a car.
"BvdV - The Dutch Engineer" (dutchengineer)
05/21/2017 at 13:06, STARS: 1
I like the idea of them, and I’m sure it makes sense when commuting in the randstad, but please do suit up while driving it. Last week I saw a guy driving it in nothing but a t-shirt and some jeans, and it just looked wrong. Also I don’t know what was wrong with his MP3, as it seemed a bit nervous, maybe he needed to get an alignment.
"Hoccy" (Hoccy)
05/21/2017 at 13:18, STARS: 1
I’d give it a try, but probably move up to something else after getting a motorcycle license and some experience
"Bluecold" (Bluecold)
05/21/2017 at 13:57, STARS: 1
Sure you could ride a three wheeler with your car license, but the permit rules are there for a reason and a loophole does not circumvent the reason. So do everyone a favour and learn to opearate the machine before taking it on the open road.
and a motorcycle looks cool, a tricycle scooter does not.
"Leon711" (leon711)
05/21/2017 at 14:18, STARS: 1
I used to have a Vespa, it was peanuts to run. Good fun too.
"lecrab" (superservaas)
05/22/2017 at 03:03, STARS: 0
Yeah, well, probably not for me, however, one never knows.
"lecrab" (superservaas)
05/22/2017 at 03:05, STARS: 0
I am obviously taking a few lessons, dealers offer those here, and from what I have read, Piaggio tells dealers to offer lessons to anyone, especially car drivers.
"lecrab" (superservaas)
05/22/2017 at 03:06, STARS: 1
Yep, if one is bought, a proper protection suit will be bought as well. I am not going on the open roads in a t-shirt.
"lecrab" (superservaas)
05/22/2017 at 03:07, STARS: 0
I like sitting in a car. You can sit, don’t need a big heavy suit, and so on. But the traffic is just killing me. Also, there are financial advantages for me as a freelancer over driving a car.