Photo
Motor scooters for sale at Cars Plus on Center Ave.
Kyle Geissler talks with Janesville Gazette reporter Shelly Birkelo about the popularity of mopeds.
Motor scooters for sale at Cars Plus on Center Ave.
Cars Plus on Center Avenue in Janesville sells mopeds, but hasn’t been able to keep them in stock because they’re selling so fast. On Friday, Cars Plus owner Thomas Gustafson said his dealership had only two left from a recent shipment of eight mopeds.
JANESVILLE — Kristin Lucian used to spend $70 a month for gas to drive her Pontiac Grand Prix to and from work.
But since buying a moped at the end of May, she has spent no more than $25 a month for gas to get to work.
"I fill my moped on $3.68," the 26-year-old Janesville woman said.
With that, she can make the commute to Beloit two or three times "depending on how much I have to throttle."
She's not alone.
Mopeds are selling as fast as Cars Plus' owner Thomas Gustafson gets them in.
Gustafson tries to order 20 mopeds at a time. But when his order arrived two weeks ago, he received only eight. All but two quickly sold.
"By this weekend, they'll be gone," he said Friday morning.
"You just can't get 'em. It's all due to supply and demand," he said.
Traditionally, mopeds had both a motor and pedals. Modern mopeds usually are more like small motorcycles with an automatic transmission and no pedals, according to the state Department of Transportation.
A valid drivers license is all that is needed to drive a moped with an engine of 50cc or smaller. Mopeds with larger engines require an additional license.
Gustafson began selling mopeds in 2001, and sold more than 45 that year. Sales since have averaged about 60 a year. In August 2006 alone, Cars Plus, 1600 Center Ave., sold 40 mopeds to college students.
That doesn't surprise Lucian, who sees as many as four mopeds a day during her commute.
Lucian said her $2,100 investment—cost of the 50cc moped, title, tax and license—was well worth it.
"The money I'll save in gas will pay for it," she said.
That's why her boyfriend also bought a moped in March with his income tax rebate.
"We go all over the place and have a little cargo carrier. So whatever we buy at the store, we can put in there," Lucian said.
Dennis Turner, 58, Janesville, this year bought three mopeds—two with 50cc engines and one with a 150cc motor.
"All I wanted it for was to scoot around town—go to the grocery store, visit my mom plus to have friends come over and go for a ride," he said.
Turner and his youngest sister, who also has a moped, ride together a couple times a week.
"She gets around 80 miles to the gallon. I should be getting up to 100 miles to the gallon, but haven't gauged it," Turner said.
"It's very economical,” he said, in comparison to his 1996 four-wheel drive extended cab pickup that gets 14 miles per gallon.
"It's therapeutic,” Turner said.
He has enough strength to ride a moped, he said, but not a motorcycle after being severely injured a 2003 vehicle crash.
"If you drive cars that are gas hogs, it'll save ya money," Lucian said.
Although the majority of the Cars Plus moped customers are teens who take them to college, Gustafson said customers come in a variety of age groups
"We had a 78-year-old male who bought a pair of mopeds for himself and his 82-year-old wife.”
MOPED RULES
Licensed drivers only
Generally, anyone with a valid drivers license may operate a moped. However, it is not legal to operate a moped with only an instruction permit. Your nearest drivers license examination station can give you details.
Registration
You must register your moped and obtain a certificate of title. If you buy from a dealer, this will be taken care of as part of the purchase transaction. But if you buy from a private party, make sure you obtain a title from the seller signed by all owners and from which all loans have been cleared by the lending agency.
Traffic laws
Mopeds are subject to all traffic laws just like any other motor vehicle. You must obey traffic signals and stop signs, yield to pedestrians in crosswalks and slow in school zones.
On roads where the speed limit is 25 mph or less, two mopeds may operate side-by-side if both riders agree. On roads where the speed limit is more than 25 mph, mopeds must ride single file. On roads with two or more lanes in each direction, mopeds must operate in the right lane except when turning left.
Restrictions and entitlements
You may ride your moped on any road except freeways or roads where mopeds are specifically prohibited. You may not operate a moped on sidewalks, along fence lines or off the traveled surface of the roadway.
Mopeds are entitled to a full traffic lane but may not impede traffic. Mopeds may use bike paths if signs permit them or where they are required by local law to use bike paths. Mopeds may park in spaces designated for other motor vehicles, in bicycle racks or on sidewalks, unless otherwise prohibited. Avoid riding on sidewalks or interfering with pedestrians.
Mopeds are designed for only one person. It is illegal to carry a passenger on a moped.
Safety and equipment
Mopeds must meet federal emission, safety and equipment standards in effect at the time of manufacture. Brakes, lights and turn signals must be maintained in safe working order.
Wisconsin does not require moped drivers to wear helmets, but be aware that a moped offers the rider almost no protection in case of a crash. Even at relatively slow moped speeds, head injuries in moped crashes are common.
Mopeds must use headlights when driving at night, but unlike motorcycles, there is no requirement for headlight use during the day. Headlights turned on during the day, however, can improve moped visibility to other motorists. So it is a good safety practice.
Source: Wisconsin Department of Transportation