Motorcycle Mania - China's Mechanized Cash Crop

Driving a motorcycle in China can be deadly.  Above a motorcyclist in Shang Di District lays helpless after on an accident.  But last year on a trip to Henan my colleague and I saw two dead motorcyclists lying unnaturally motionless across their motor bike.  Seconds earlier the two riders had collided with a blue farm truck. Neither rider was wearing a helmet. 

But with the right regulatory framework motorcycles, especially electric powered, could be used to curb pollution, reduce gasoline consumption, and ease traffic. Taiwan is a good example where thousands of scooters share the roads with cars.  Imagine the traffic jams if every scooter rider in Taipei were driving a car!  In Beijing, millions of new middle class car drivers, construction and transport trucks, and low-income motorcycle riders share the same roads.  But motorcyclists are restricted from many areas of the city. 

Despite the large motorcycle riding population in China, driving a motorcycle in the country carries enormous risk, especially in the southern city of  Shenzhen.  After a series of crimes were committed by thieves using motorcycles, the Shenzhen government confiscated nearly 600,000 motorcycles since 2003, and publicly destroyed 14,000 last year.  This would be unthinkable in Taiwan, for countless people use motorcycles and scooters as their primary transportation.  But at the same time that China is destroying motorcycles at home, the country's motorcycle production continues to grow.  The Chairman of China's giant motorcycle firm Lifan states that the company is seeking to use China's rural stimulus support to expand motorcycles into the countryside.  Also global exports continue to rise.  In 2008, according to China Economic Net nearly 90 Chinese firms exported over 9.7 million motorcycles.

According to the China Daily, in 2006, China was already the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer - producing half of the world's motorcycles. However premium motorcycle firms like Ducati have not entered Mainland China, although Ducati is present in Hong Kong.  Most large motorcycles are banned in Beijing, and nearly all foreign motorcycles have been brought into China illegally and are using falsified registration and fake license plates. The photo above shows a Ducati dealership in Taiwan.

Driving a motorcycle as a foreigner is especially challenging. The China Transportation authority does not provide a traffic rule book in English, so a person must go to FESCO and purchase a traffic manual that has been translated into English for $22. You must also have copies of your home license, and a document that translates this information into Chinese, along with passport size photos on a white background. The traffic exam is 100 questions in English with a 45 minute time limit.   Many foreign citizens have been seriously injured in motorcycle accidents, and are consistently questioned and even pursued by police.

Soon it may be time to hang up the helmet. Below is a clip of what driving my Ducati is like on the commute to work in Beijing.