This story is about emissions. More specifically, it’s about the surprising level of emissions spewing from on-road motorcycles and scooters. In California, such bikes make up 3.6 percent of registered vehicles and 1 percent of vehicle miles traveled, yet they account for 10 percent of passenger vehicles’ smog-forming emissions in the state.
In fact, the average motorbike is about 10 times more polluting per mile than a passenger car, light truck or SUV, according to a California Air Resources Board comparison of emissions-compliant vehicles.
I’ve been hearing from an increasing number of readers who want to know if two-wheelers, which consume far less fuel, are also smog busters. Because scientific questions tend to come with complicated answers, I thought I would do my best to explain what pollutants a gas-powered motorbike emits and why.
Tom
