Motor Scooter (Atlanta, Alpharetta, Mableton: home, buying, high school)

[Chris_Davis]

I am relocating to Atlanta in 6 weeks. I'll be living in midtown Atlanta commuting to Pebblebrook High School in Mableton... luckily it's against traffic. I am seriously considering buying a motor scooter for the commute because of the rising cost of gasoline. Not being from the area, I was hoping to get some insight from the locals... do you think it would be safe on a scooter or would it be a white knuckle ride everyday?

[atlantagreg30127]

Are you religious? Very religious? Because you will need to believe there is an afterlife waiting for you if you ride the scooter here.

Buy a Hybrid Honda instead.

Seriously, if you were talking about just scooting around short distances on intown streets I'd say "maybe", but to even consider interstate/highway driving here on one? Even going against traffic? No.

[Chris_Davis]

Originally Posted by atlantagreg30127

Seriously, if you were talking about just scooting around short distances on intown streets I'd say "maybe", but to even consider interstate/highway driving here on one? Even going against traffic? No.

I won't be on the interstate... I'll be travelling on 70 to Bankhead Hwy / Veteran's Memorial Hwy... should have made that clear in my original post. Would that still be dangerous? I really don't know the area very well.

[plessthanpointohfive]

If you're not on the interstate but you're going to be on some highways then I'd recommend you get a 250cc scooter. You will have to get a motorcycle lisence and register the bike but it's a better sized bike for when you need to go 45mph or more.

I have a 150cc and it will get up to 55 but that's running high.

You should be okay. There are a lot of scooterists now adays because of gas prices.

It would still be good to have a car because of the occasional inclement weather.

[Chris_Davis]

Originally Posted by plessthanpointohfive

It would still be good to have a car because of the occasional inclement weather.

Thanks, Pless. I do have a car but it's a Jeep Wrangler (not the most fuel efficient). I'm able to afford the gas now because I live in NYC and rarely use it as the transit system is large and relatively cheap but when I move I need to look at alternatives even for the 16 mile commute I'll have. I also want to do my part and be good to the environment.

[plessthanpointohfive]

I hear you, which is why I bought my scooter and why I also bike to work (only 3.5 miles).

I think if you get a 250cc bike (scooter or motorcycle) that would be powerful enough for the highways.

It's always dangerous to be on the road in anything other than a car (including a bicycle) but if you're a defensive driver you can really minimize your risk.

Once you're experienced you won't even have a problem riding in inclement weather.

[Chris_Davis]

Originally Posted by plessthanpointohfive

if you're a defensive driver you can really minimize your risk.

I'm definitely a defensive driver but being from New York City I've learned to be a pretty good offensive driver too!!! LOL

[plessthanpointohfive]

We got that here, too.

[little nell]

i drove a 250cc scooter to work everyday but it was a short commute..from buckhead to cnn center BUT i came home for lunch everyday to let the dogs out. i loved it, it was refreshing and economical. but ya gotta be in the mindset that people were out to kill ya.
be sure to take the Motorcycle Safety Course. i took both beginners and advanced and took the advanced several times as a refresher. don't take it once, keep taking it every few years, especially if you drive in a city like atlanta. good luck!

[vecchio]

I rode a Vespa 150cc, on local roads in Alpharetta, for a 7 mile commute, from Ootober until December 27, 2006. On December 27, a 16 year old kid in an Infiniti failed to yield the right of way to me and wiped me out by left turning to t-bone me. He was going MAYBE 15 MPH when he struck my Vespa (which was a 2004 GT-4 in perfect repair - brand new condition, actually). I was also traveling at about 10-15 miles per hour, and was in complete control of the scooter right up until he hit me.

I won't go into TOO much detail, but I will tell you that almost every bone along the right side of my body was broken or shattered. My helmet (full-face style) was cracked in half like an eggshell. My right knee was shattered so badly it could not be reset
properly. I got osteomyelitis in the bones in my leg and almost faced amputation. THE SCOOTER GAVE ME ZERO PROTECTION IN THIS HIGH ENERGY CRASH.

Now it is 18 months later. My medical bills have exceeded a million dollars. I STILL walk with a limp and a cane, and half of my leg is now titanium and plastic - a fact for which I an GRATEFUL, since prior to this my leg was FUSED STRAIGHT, and it was only the expertise of a doctor in San Diego that saved my leg from amputation.

I have had ten surgeries on my leg. I have such extensive nerve damage to the leg that it is possible I may never work again - I have to take handfuls of pain medication just to keep the pain down to a manageable level - and for me, that's a three or a four on a 1 to 10 scale.

Please don't expose yourself to this risk. These cars and SUVs don't even NOTICE scooters, and you will not be safe. It will likely not be your fault
- but you may not survive a crash. My entire life was turned upside down by one stupid decision - ride a scooter for a few months to save money on gas instead of driving a car.