London Bike and Scooter

London Bike and Scooter has been set up to provide those fed up with public transport or unable to drive into London with the most comprehensive information to ease the conversion to two wheeled transport.

It also caters for those already on two wheels as it gives information on where to park, dealers and tips and advice.

If you're thinking about trading the travel card for a scooter or motorbike, this site will save you time, money and improve your motorcycling experience.

We encourage motorcycle and scooter owners to contribute to this unique online community for London two-wheelers - helping build a highly useful, fun, professional and beneficial site that ultimately is ridden by you. If you like it then please tell someone...

about the founders

London Bike and Scooter is the brainchild(!) of Roger Holden whose experiences are likely to be typical of the people who will be using this site. Working closely with Simon Knowles, the LBS was concept was born. The rest is history...

Roger Holden writes:

"I was a thirty year old male, living in Kingston (Surrey) and commuting into Holborn (City of London) almost every working day. The season ticket was outrageously expensive (£1,280 per year) and the trip to work on a good day would take around one hour and ten minutes and on the way home, anything up to an hour and a half.

"I was totally at the mercy of public transport. My train each morning was constantly crowded and jam packed by the time it reached Waterloo. Annoying people would rabbit incessantly and loudly on their mobile phones and others trying to escape other's noise would annoy everyone else with their own noise in the form of "personal" stereos. on arrival at Waterloo I'd join the back of a huge queue to get on a bus that would crawl over the river and around the Strand to get to my destination in Holborn.

"I was completely sick of it and desperate for an alternative so looked at biking.

"I didn't know where to begin. I used to ride a bike about ten years ago but never got around to passing my test and I knew that loads had changed since then. Furthermore I could find no web site that would answer all my questions so hence the inspiration for London bike and scooter.

"I did my own research, bought a Piaggo Typhoon 125 cc scooter from Metropolis in Vauxhall with whom I also did my cbt. My awful journey was now cut down to around 40 minutes each way which meant a time saving of at least 40 minutes a day but more realistically an hour. Or put another way, I'd gained between 3 and 5 hours week to do what I wanted to do, not stuck on trains.

"6 months later I was no longer a scooter rider - I was hooked and wanted something bigger. I took a Direct Access course, passed the test and gained a full bike licence and bought myself a Honda CB600 Hornet ( I now have a Yamaha Fazer 600).

"I have, therefore, experienced both biking and scootering and know the pros and cons of both. I have to say, I vastly prefer the bigger bike, it's faster, safer and gives me a far greater range. However, this site remains (largely) impartial and lets you make an informed decision.

"Remember, I am just a normal person who was fed up with the daily grind of London public transport. I do not consider myself a "biker",I do not spend my weekends at Box Hill and do not spend all my spare time tinkering with engines and reading Motorcycle News. I am now free, I can go anywhere in and around London I chose (Plymouth being the furthest!) and have got so much more out of London now I have a bike."