How 'green' are bikes?

I keep hearing about how the most polluting vehicles will be taxed more than the 'greener' alternatives......but where does that leave bikes?

With Euro 3 exhausts in on the new bikes, where does that leave older ones? Does this mean I will be paying more on tax for having a K3 bike? Does that mean I need to have a 125 with a 'bulbous' exhaust to pay the least?

If anyone can enlighten me on this I would be most grateful.......

[Luckypants]

I suspect that two strokes will be worse off than four strokes, in the same way that diesel cars are more heavily taxed due to particulate emissions.

Bikes are actually not very green - especially when you consider the passenger miles per pollution stats....

However as there are not that many bikes, the collective pollution is way below cars - hence why bikes are usually excluded from most enviro legislation.

Also bikes are not very congesting, which is why they are excluded from congestion charges (well, that is not the real reason - it is simply political).

[Stu]

Originally Posted by Bullwinkle

I keep hearing about how the most polluting vehicles will be taxed more than the 'greener' alternatives......but where does that leave bikes?

With Euro 3 exhausts in on the new bikes, where does that leave older ones? Does this mean I will be paying more on tax for having a K3 bike? Does that mean I need to have a 125 with a 'bulbous' exhaust to pay the least?

If anyone can enlighten me on this I would be most grateful.......

Who leaves a Euro 3 exhaust on their bike?

Kawasakis can be very green.















I'd better get my coat.

[TSM]

Originally Posted by Stu

Who leaves a Euro 3 exhaust on their bike?

Euro 3 is not just the exhaust, its also better combustion/timing/Air fuel mix etc. So removing the exhaust will increase emmissions but it will be lower that a similar bike only to Euro 2 spec or carb bikes.

*puts on "professional" hat*

Although in pure mpg terms a bike often doesn't fare as well as its engine size might lead a non-biker to expect, there's a bit more to it than that.

Like most in the business, we find that areas with the highest concentrations of airborne pollutants sourced from road traffic need three things:

1. A reasonable traffic flow
2. Vehicle queuing
3. Buildings close to the road

All three of these are needed in one place for there to be the potential for a problem, i.e. exceedence of a health-based air quality standard. Congestion is a huge factor and that's where 'bikes have a huge advantage in pollution terms in the modern bike vs modern car comparison and, for example, why 'bikes are exempt from London's Congestion Charge. There wouldn't be anything like the air quality problems there are if everyone rode 4-stroke 'bikes or scoots.

Whether you can say "bikes are green" is doubtful - they have tail-pipe emissions after all - but there's little doubt that a modern bike pollutes a lot less on congested roads than a modern car.

*takes hat off and goes for lunch*

Originally Posted by Stu

Who leaves a Euro 3 exhaust on their bike?

What's euro3

[Biker Biggles]

I bet you would get some very different figures if you factor in the overall emissions and environmental costs of manufacture and disposal of road vehicles.Greenness is not just what comes out of the exhaust,but is a vastly complex subject.Electric cars as an example require the energy to be generated by a power station which usually means burning fossil fuels.

and the amount of time most cars spend in traffic jams. Nothing beats a small car with 4 people on a motorway for greeness, but bikes beat most cars with one driver in around towns and cities because of congestion.