When most people consider their transport options, there often isn’t a huge amount involved in the actual consideration. Realistically, we all default to the same thought: if you have a family and need your own transport, then you’re going to choose a car every time.
Realistically, this seems like the sensible choice. Cars offer a range of benefits to families, with the most obvious being their ability to transport several members of the family at once. Cars are the best choice for doing your weekly shop, and they can even be used to provide a vacation method should you wish to try a family road trip. Overall, it’s easy to see why cars have their place… but is there an option that we may all be overlooking?
Motorcycles and families
Superficially, the idea of a family using a motorcycle is… well, it’s outright odd. All of the benefits of a car — the ability to transport loads and carry numerous passengers — are immediately ruled out. Motorcycles transport one, maybe two, people, and realistically can only manage a few shopping bags per trip. These restrictions, combined with the unfortunate reality of how damaging a motorcycle crash can be, make many families outright dismiss these vehicles entirely.
If you’re expecting that this post is going to begin to explain why motorcycles are great for families and that the aforementioned concerns are invalid, don’t worry: that’s not going to happen. Motorcycles are not a sensible choice for a primary family vehicle; but that doesn’t mean they can’t find a place in your home.
The benefits of a motorcycle
Despite their reputation, motorcycles do offer a number of benefits that make them worth considering. For example, motorcycles are considered to be more environmentally-friendly than their four-wheel counterparts, and they’re generally more cost-effective to run.
Of course, these small benefits do not override the downsides we discussed earlier— but this is where you may need to alter your thinking a little. While motorcycles are unlikely to be suitable as your primary family vehicle, they do make an excellent secondary vehicle. This is especially true when compared to a car as a secondary vehicle.
- Motorcycles are cheaper to run than a second car. The insurance is cheaper, the gas expenditure is lower, and the maintenance costs are more reasonable.
- Motorcycles also require less space than a second car would; you won’t need an extra parking space, a small, narrow area is more than sufficient.
- As motorcycles are more fuel-efficient, they make a more affordable, eco-friendly choice for quick errands that don’t require the transport of goods. Plenty of journeys currently conducted by car don’t actually need all the space and expense involved in running a vehicle, and a motorcycle is a viable alternative for these instances.
In Conclusion
Ultimately, two wheels are not going to be better than four when it comes to running a family vehicle. However, as a supplement to your main car, motorcycles may offer more to the average family than you’d expect. If you have been considering buying a second car, or just want to improve the transport options available to your family, a motorcycle could be a far more reasonable and beneficial contender than you may have initially thought.
