Should we encourage motorized two-wheelers to reduce pollution?

Traffic jams are the leading cause of pollution in major English cities. A study encourages abandoning cars in favor of motorcycles or scooters.

It took until 2023 for the issue to finally emerge in a politician’s mind: “What if using a two-wheeled motorized vehicle, rather than a car, could help reduce traffic congestion, pollution, and public space clutter?” A study initiated by the UK road users’ association, IAM RoadSmart, has just been published across the Channel, and its conclusions are illuminating.

The exercise first focused on the popular perception of motorcycles regarding their ability to improve air quality in the city. Only 22% of the 2000 people surveyed are convinced… and therefore not the remaining 78%. In reality, a motorcycle pollutes as much as a car at a steady speed, but its average travel time naturally reduces its CO2 emissions during a trip when it avoids traffic jams.

The association points out the lack of incentives from public authorities to motivate drivers to switch to a two-wheeled motorized vehicle (not to be confused with a bicycle!) on a daily basis. In the same study, 42% of respondents acknowledge, however, that two-wheelers help reduce traffic congestion. In practice, the simulations are telling: if 10% of vehicles switched to motorcycles, London’s congestion and pollutant emissions would decrease by 40%! And this hypothesis is based on the use of petrol-powered two-wheelers. The figure could be even better with 100% electric models.

The UK government has not yet responded to this study, sticking to its traditional stance: encouraging the British to abandon individual modes of transportation in favor of walking, cycling, or public transit. The City of Paris holds the same position despite glaring gaps in public transport: policies discouraging automobiles and two-wheelers through endless traffic jams and increasingly handing parking violations to private companies, constant violations of cycling and scooter regulations, etc. Meanwhile, pollution has not decreased despite traffic reduction efforts, the population is declining, and many businesses are closing in restricted zones.

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