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| modep user |
The sun is shining, and as we put away our heavy winter
jackets, many people are taking things out of storage that they use during the
warmer months; cleaning the grill, opening and prepping the pool and getting
set to ride some variation of a two wheel mode of transportation; which might
be a bicycle, a motorcycle or a moped. A
“bike,” and by whatever means it’s propelled, may not be your speed – so to
speak – but any driver on the road must be certain not to completely disregard
them either. They’re out there; ignoring
them also means ignoring state and municipal traffic laws, which is not only
illegal, but it recklessly endangers the lives of the people you’d just as soon
pretend aren’t there, who are just minding their business.
As an owner and driver a moped myself, I can attest to the
importance of observing and respecting others out and about. Some traffic laws differ by state (which is
an excellent reason to utilizing our written exam review program, Road Rules;
which comes free with SimuRide Home, or can be purchased separately from our
online store); in the state where I live, mopeds are classified as “a motor
vehicle with the engine as an integral part of the vehicle,” that does not
exceed a 50cc engine. The term scooter and
moped are also used interchangeably by the state’s definition. Mopeds, being registered motor vehicles, and
requiring drivers to be licensed and are subject to all traffic laws; are
entitled to a full lane of traffic on most public roads. Despite this, I have witnessed firsthand
people disregarding traffic laws, passing me on the wrong side of the road
(from the right), sometimes in zones that are marked as no passing; each time
as I drive the speed limit.
I mean, I get it; my moped tops out at 40 mph; which is best
achieved if I’m going down a hill, with the wind at my back. So there’s invariably a mindset about mopeds
that suggests to people they are somehow less of a real vehicle that doesn’t
deserve the same courtesy extended to other motorists – but they do. I may not be able to keep pace with you on an
interstate where the speed limit is 65+ per hour, and I wouldn’t try; in part
because such roads, being restricted access, are among the only roads (along with
any road where they’re expressly prohibited) that mopeds are not otherwise
allowed to drive by law. Driving down a
regular city street where the posted speed limit is 25 mph, where I and others
on mopeds can easily keep up with traffic, means pretending like they’re
anything less than any other vehicle on the road is wrong.
#DriveSafe
This entry was posted in Driving Safety.
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