The vibe was casual, as jeans, leather jackets, beards and tattoos set the scene in the massive Jacob K. Javits Convention Center last Friday, as riders mingled with industry reps for the 28th annual Cycle World International Motorcycle Show. Sponsored by Toyota, the show visits 13 cities across the U.S., and features the latest in on and off-road motorcycles, scooters and ATVs, from most major manufacturers.

Unlike flashy, over-the-top auto shows I’ve covered, the bike show was decidedly low-key, both in terms of attitudes and presentation. There were no multi-story faux rock outcroppings for SUVs to scale, or multi-million dollar displays with lights, sounds and moving parts. Even the babes on hand to hype various brands seemed a little less fake than the “actors” at other trade shows.

I didn’t quite fit in among the bike enthusiasts and motor journalists — a bike fanatic friend in college gave up teaching me how to ride his crotch rocket when I dropped it in the parking lot one too many times — but I know a thing or two about green transportation. I missed the world debut of the Vectrix Vx-1E electric urban commuting model (I had transportation problems of my own getting to Javits), and I didn’t see the BMX stunt show, either.

But I did spend some time learning about the latest offerings from Vespa, a brand long admired by my Bohemian neighbors in Greenwich Village. Some 17 million Vespa scooters have been made since 1946 by the 7,000-employee Italian company Piaggio Group. If you didn’t know, Vespa means “wasp” in Italian.

Kevin Andrews, Vespa America’s brand manager, told me that sales of the iconic, classic scooters exploded last summer, on the heels of record high gas prices. “We sold everything we had,” Andrews said. In the last quarter of 2008 sales were flat versus 2007.

“Some people look at [a Vespa] as an economic purchase, and others look at it as a luxury purchase,” said Andrews. “A Vespa can’t totally replace a car, but it can replace a lot of car miles.” Andrews added that the company has been steadily adding dealers in the U.S., despite the economic downturn, and that the customer base keeps broadening.

Andrews stressed that all Vespas sold in America since 2001 have come with four-stroke engines, which burn much cleaner than the two-stroke engines still used by many scooters around the world. Plus, up to 7 Vespas can fit neatly into one full-size car parking space — something that can go a long way to helping reduce sprawl and congestion. In fact, in some towns commuters have to endure extremely long waiting lists to even be eligible for a parking space at the local train or bus station, and even then the expense can be considerable.

As population continues its march upwards, we need to find more ways to get people out of their cars, and clean, efficient scooters can be part of the solution.

At Cycle World, Vespa announced the launch of the new 2009 Vespa S 50 and the GTS 300 Super. With an MSRP of $3,199, the S 50 offers better power and handling than other 50cc scooters, according to the manufacturer, due to engineering advances that reduced weight and improved performance. The S 50 can do about 4 horsepower and a max speed of 39 mph, with a reported 70 to 80 mpg. It comes in red, black, orange and Montebianco.

If you want more power and cargo capacity, the 278cc GTS 300 might be for you (MSRP $6,199). This scooter can hit 80 mph, and gets fuel economy in the neighborhood of 70 mpg (at least according to one reviewer). It comes in black or white.

The CEO of Piaggio Group America, Paolo Timoni, told journalists at the show that the scooter market is bigger than the motorcycle market in Europe — which is reversed in America, a land of daredevils and lovers of wide open road. “Americans spend $1.5 trillion a year to get around,” said Timoni. “It costs Americans $650-850 a month to own and operate a car, not including parking. It costs only $150-180 a month for a scooter. A lot of people are going to look at this and think it’s a good idea.”

Timoni added that in December 2009 or January 2010, Vespa will be releasing a hybrid scooter. “It will have the latest technology, but it will be expensive,” he said, with a price premium of two to three thousand dollars. “With a hybrid scooter a user might use about $3 a week in gas, instead of $8 a week,” added Timoni.

Timoni said his company has considered purely electric scooters, but that they haven’t been satisfied with the quality of batteries currently available, and the resultant range. “For many people, it’s a psychological thing [having a reduced range],” Timoni said. He pointed out that even though studies show 90% of people primarily use their vehicles for short commutes, they are still uncomfortable buying something that can’t go hundreds of miles without a refill/recharge.

There’s no denying that Vespas are hot, or that the design is enduring, like the original Jeep, Pez dispensers, Coca-Cola or the Gibson guitar. Like many iconic items, Vespa scooters can retain good resale value. And as Andrews points out, “With the all-steel chassis, Vespas can last a really long time.” That’s good for the environment.

Scooters aren’t necessarily for everyone, but they can be part of the transportation mix that helps us use less gas and reduce congestion.

SOURCE: THE DAILY GREEN.COM

Back in the old days, when kids wanted to go somewhere, they jumped onto their bicycles and off they went. They didn’t know — and didn’t care — that they were using the “greenest” mode of transportation available.

Those kids are grown up now, battling traffic in their gas-guzzling SUVs. A run to the office or around town on errands covers mileage only a Lance Armstrong could achieve without a motor.

Nowadays riding a bicycle is simply out of the question for most. Because of the distances involved, it might as well be uphill both ways.

There has to be a greener, more efficient way to get around that’s like the good old bicycle — healthy, cheap and more exhilarating. Could the scooter, extremely popular in Europe and Asia, bring back that free feeling and rush of adrenaline without damaging the environment?

Maybe not.

“In general, scooters are not as good a deal for the environment as they seem to be because of how much they pollute,” says Bryan Welch, publisher of Mother Earth News, an environment-minded monthly magazine.

So how can such a zippy little machine that gets double the mileage of cars and triple that of SUVs be a bad deal?

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, most people who think scooters and motorcycles are less polluting than four-wheelers fail to take into account the sophisticated emission controls found in most cars today.

“Because of the size and design of scooters, you can’t have the catalytic converters and emission controls that you can in a car,” explains the EPA’s Cathy Milbourn. “Scooters produce fewer greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2), but produce significantly more hydrocarbons (HC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx).”

According to current EPA standards, cars are allowed to emit 0.16 grams of HC and NOx per mile. Scooters can get away with emitting 1.3 grams per mile — more than eight times the amount of cars.

HC and NOx are precursors to ground-level ozone and ultimately smog, a serious problem in cities across the United States. Ground-level ozone is formed in sunlight by reactions that include HC and NOx.

Ozone has been known to cause health problems such as lung damage, difficulty breathing and poor cardiovascular functioning. Some hydrocarbons can cause cancer or other health problems. And scooters are most likely to be used in warm weather, when ozone levels are already high.

Then again, smog and ozone, longtime bugaboos of the environmental movement, have taken a backseat to a new, more pressing problem — carbon dioxide-induced global warming.

“Ozone is more of a concern closer to the source of output such as urban settings. Globally it’s less of an issue,” explains Welch, “But ozone is not a top priority right now. What is most important is burning less fossil fuel.”

Burning less fossil fuel directly lowers the amount of CO2 put into the atmosphere, cutting back on a major greenhouse gas. It also would reduce our dependence on foreign oil producers.

Piaggio Group Americas, Inc., stateside subsidiary of the Italian maker of the iconic Vespa scooter, makes its case very plainly.

“If Americans used a Vespa for 10 percent of their everyday travel,” the company declares, “they could reduce national fuel consumption by 14 millions gallons per day and decrease CO2 emissions by 324 million pounds per day.”

Since scooters made after 2006 produce, on average, 72 percent less CO2 than the average car and 78 percent less than the average SUV, things are looking greener.

“At the end of the day, it would be a net gain for the environment if more people would ride scooters,” says Welch. “A good rule of thumb is to go on how much fuel you burn — if it burns less it’s better for the environment.”

SOURCE: FOXNEWS