On your bike

26 June 2020

The perfect social distancing measure.

As most of Australia heads back to work, the inevitable will occur – gridlocked roads, crowded public transport and an end to the social distancing that has been keeping almost all of us safe during the coronavirus situation.

Unfortunately, there simply is no viable answer to some of these problems. When Australia’s workforce is largely back in the office, the workshop, or worksite, tens of thousands more people will be packing into buses and trams and trains, and driving down once lonely roads.

But one piece to the puzzle that seems to have been forgotten is the positive role motorcyclists and scooterists can play in keeping some semblance of social distancing in place.

There are almost 900,000 registered motorcycles and scooters on Australian roads. They are used in different ways – on farms, off-road recreation, and for weekend escapes. But there is also a dedicated core of motorcyclists and scooterists who use their vehicles to commute to work – and for those meal delivery services that are super popular at the moment.

We should all be glad that they do, because the alternative ­– having tens of thousands more cars on our roads – would be unthinkable.

Motorcycles and scooters keep our roads, streets and carparks clearer than they otherwise would be, while also being quite cost-effective compared to other vehicles. So, as far as forms of personal transport go in our country, there’s a lot to be said for the two-wheeled kind.

Words: VACC CEO, Geoff Gwilym. As featured in the Herald Sun 26 June 2020.

Share your thoughts! E: ceo@vacc.com.au