Cycle sales help Honda cope with down economy

I came across this article (Cycle sales help Honda cope) that, in summary, states that Honda is expected to post a significant profit largely due to its motorcycle sales. It goes on to state that most of these sales are in southeast asia where motorcycles are used for everyday transport and while the $20,000-30,000 Honda car and SUV sales have plummeted, sales of relatively affordable motorcycles have held strong.

“Motorcycles are more resilient against a recession than cars because these products are used in Asia for people’s main mode of transport,” said Makoto Haga, president of Tokyo-based hedge fund Wing Asset Management Co. “Motorcycles give Honda an advantage over its rivals.”

What are the implications for the rest of the world? What if cash-strapped Americans were to turn to efficient and affordable motorcycles as a means of everyday transport? What would it take to make this happen? In my opinion, safe motorcycle infrastructure is needed, the riders will follow.

Motorcyclists celebrate opening of London bus lanes

Autobloggreen reported on the opening of London's bus lanes to motorcycles. "Looking to ride safely while saving a little time and using a bit less fuel", there was definitely cause for celebration within the London area motorcycle community as described in the following post:

Posted Jan 8th 2009 at 8:02AM by Jeremy Korzeniewski. To celebrate Transport for London's recent decision, a group consisting of local Honda motorcycle dealers, members of the Motorcycle Industry Association, the Institute of Advanced Motorists, the British Motorcyle Federation and the Metropolitan Police BikeSafe squad decided to take a first commemorative ride through the city, ending at the historic Ace Café in Wembley.

Pro-motorcycling groups have created a Code of Conduct that all cyclists are urged to follow while using the bus lanes. As it is, just 5 percent of London's roads are made up of red bus lanes, but the impact on the city's traffic should be much larger. It's hoped that if things go well over the 18-month trial period that the Mayor of London has instituted, other London boroughs may make similar allowances for bikers.