Washington Area Residents Increasingly Turn to Motorcycles to Save Gas and Time
By Jonathan Mummolo
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Long associated with counterculture, risk and rebellion, the motorcycle is being embraced by a growing contingent of Washington area drivers for, of all things, its practical benefits: high gas mileage and a speedier commute courtesy of the region's HOV lanes.
They're such riders as Chris Watson, an information technology worker from Alexandria who commutes by motorcycle to his job at a D.C. nonprofit organization.
"As soon as [gas] hit about $3.50, it was no longer really affordable," said Watson, 27, who recently bought a 2002 Kawasaki KLR650 for $2,600, took a rider training course and started commuting via motorcycle two weeks ago. He gets to work in as little as 15 minutes, compared with the hour it could take in his 17-miles-per-gallon Jeep Liberty, thanks to the HOV lanes on Interstate 395. His bike gets about 50 mpg.
"I love it," Watson said.
It's a long way from the image of rebel bikers rolling into town on growling speed machines branded into the American consciousness by such outlaw films as "The Wild One" and "Easy Rider" and by the bone-crushing stunts of Evil Knievel.
But as commuters seek relief from rising fuel costs and worsening congestion, what might have seemed like a foolish risk of youth -- braving highway and rush-hour traffic on two wheels -- might seem like a worthwhile trade-off.
Motorcycles make simple economic sense, riders and advocates say. A new, stripped-down motorcycle cost an average of $8,290 in 2007, and motorcycles typically get 40 to 60 mpg, said Mike Mount, spokesman for the Motorcycle Industry Council.
In recent months, motorcycle rider training schools in the region have seen enrollment soar beyond the normal warm-weather highs, and classes are booked months in advance. Program coordinators said a sizable number of students cite high gas prices as the reason they signed up, and some motorcycle dealers, typically tasked with selling the dream of the open road, are now emphasizing fuel efficiency.
Such benefits have not immunized the motorcycle market from the economic downturn; nationwide, sales of new motorcycles were down about 11 percent in the first quarter of this year, Mount said. But that doesn't account for people dusting off machines that sat idle for years or those looking to save cash by opting for a used bike.
Motorcycle registrations have continued to climb. As of May 31, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles recorded 44,304 new registrations in fiscal 2008, about a 3.5 percent increase over the same period last year. By June 5, total motorcycle registrations in Maryland for fiscal 2008 had risen about 8 percent since the end of fiscal 2007, according to the state Motor Vehicle Administration.
At Heyser Cycle in Laurel, which features a gas mileage savings calculator on its Web site, sales of larger, more expensive bikes are sluggish, but it's tough to keep smaller, fuel-efficient models in stock, salesman Chad Miller said. "The Honda Rebel, the Ninja 250, we don't have any more," he said. "That is unusual. . . . I just sold a 500 [cc bike] to a guy that we had to go to New Jersey to get because we didn't have one. He said, 'I want a 500. I'm using it to drive to work and I don't really care about motorcycles. I want to save on gas.' "
Even such high-end dealers as Harley-Davidson are looking to cash in on the trend.
"Something we're really pushing is you can get an average of 54 miles per gallon riding a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, and that's on the low end," said Tammy McClanahan, marketing director for Harley-Davidson of Washington, DC, in Fort Washington and All American Harley-Davidson in Hughesville. "We're using that as a huge approach for how to sell our bikes."
Jimbo Wheeler, sales manager at the store's District branch, said customers are coming in "several times a week" asking about bikes for commuting, a once-a-month occurrence in years past.
"A lot of them are putting the saddlebags on" to carry items for work, he said.
As of late this month, enrollment at Apex Cycle Education training school was up nearly 50 percent over the same period last year at the school's three locations in Fairfax, Manassas and Fredericksburg. About 25 percent of students cite high gas prices as their reason for taking the course, said Linda Grambow, who runs the school with her husband, David Hepburn.
"This spring it's like the lid's just blown off," Hepburn said. He offers a three-day course for $349, and riders receive a temporary motorcycle license upon completion. "We're seeing about 100 students a weekend in all our locations, and as quickly as somebody cancels, somebody is taking a spot."
Apex student Jim Smith, 35, of Woodbridge recently bought a Yamaha sport bike to commute to work. Smith, an information technology worker in Fairfax City, said it costs $60 to fill his Chevy S-10 pickup, which gets 16 mpg. He can fill his Yamaha for $15, and it gets about 60 mpg.
Gas prices "just kept building, building, building, and I finally said 'That's it,' " Smith said. "It doesn't look like it's going to stop. It's just going to keep going up. . . . I probably never would have [gotten a motorcycle] if gas prices didn't go up."
Pinning down just how many Washington area residents are commuting on two wheels is difficult.
According to the 2006 American Community Survey by the U.S. Census Bureau -- the most recent data available -- fewer than 1.5 percent of commuters in the District, Maryland and Virginia got to work by "taxicab, motorcycle or other means." When the numbers are crunched for 2008, that will likely change, said transportation expert Alan Pisarski, author of "Commuting in America."
"People were relatively comfortable with $3-a-gallon gasoline," said Pisarski, who lives in the Falls Church area. "They gritted their teeth and took it. But $4 is really pushing people to make those changes. We haven't seen people who use motorcycles, motorbikes as an economic efficiency tool in probably 30 years. It's obviously going to be a very different cohort, if you will, more people who are opting for this vehicle."
Software engineer Hector Malpartida chose the used bike route after landing a job in Bethesda that tripled his commute from Springfield.
Malpartida, who recently bought a Suzuki SV650 for $2,800, plans to take it to work twice a week after he has gotten used to his new route. His wife, Sarah, a nurse, does the same about once a week on her Harley. Malpartida's bike gets 60 mpg, and even his tiny Mazda Miata (26 mpg) can't compete with that.
"It came with new tires, and my insurance was 260 bucks a year," he said. "That's nothing. Compare that to a car. . . . Buying a hybrid for $30,000 to save gas makes no sense."
There is a downside to having more motorcycles on the road. In 2006, the number of motorcycle fatalities nationwide continued its steady climb and increased 5 percent over 2005, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Last year, Virginia topped 1,000 road deaths for the first time since 1990, due partly to a spike in motorcycle deaths, which totaled 126, according to the Department of Motor Vehicles. In Maryland, motorcycle-related fatalities also have been rising steadily, with 96 in 2007, up from 87 in 2006, according to the State Highway Administration.
The need for caution has not escaped such new riders as Watson, who said he still repeats lessons from his training course in his head as he makes turns. (" Slow, look, press, roll.")
On a recent morning, he took extra care during his new routine: He zipped up his padded mesh jacket, fastened a yellow reflective vest, slid on gloves, squeezed into a helmet and strapped on a backpack carrying his BlackBerry, a fresh undershirt and a change of socks for when he arrives at work.
"Now I can get away with sleeping in a bit," he said.
Staff researchers Meg Smith and Julie Tate contributed to this report.
View all comments that have been posted about this article.