City Riding Pros and Cons: Bicycle vs. Scooter vs. Motorbike

City Riding Pros and Cons: 
Bicycle vs. Scooter vs. Motorbike 

Bicycle--25 years riding
Pros:

• Silent
• Out-maneuver traffic (no jams)
• Secondary benefits to travel time: exercise/zen time
• Free parking
• Get exercise/cardio/always fit for ski season or other activities
• Feels like a skill to be a good rider
• Arrive everywhere pumped full of endorphins
• Stay warm every season (moving)
• Can carry a lot of stuff of unusual dimensions (eg. vaccuum cleaner on a rear rack)
• Zero-emissions
• Way more stealth
• Bicycle-culture very creative/casual/low-cost
• Very very fun
• Can actually drink coffee while riding
• Can do most of maintenance yourself
• Less gear than motorized bikes
• Can wear almost anything/almost nothing
• Other cyclists wave
• Can use almost any roadway/shoulders of highways
• No insurance! No licence!
• Can ride year-round, even in snow

Bicycle Cons:

• Have to allow longer travel time
• Always arrive sweaty/tendency to develop low-maintenance cyclist 'look'
• 100% exertion
• Difficult at times to carry as much as you need without over-exertion
• Require 'bicycle-recovery' time
• Have to mess around with headlamps/rear lights/batteries etc.
• Over-use injuries 
• Less likely to go out if tired
• Safety factor in dark/rain
• Safety factor on streets without bike lanes
• Still a lot of gear to haul around (rain gear/helmet/locks)
• More susceptible to theft

Scooter (Honda Ruckus 50cc/4-stroke)--5 years riding (36 000 km)
Pros:

• Actually pretty quiet
• Can sneak around traffic (somewhat illegally)
• Can park in triangle zones/motorcycle parking almost always available
• Zero exertion
• Can carry A LOT of stuff in panniers/through underseat to foot-well
• Low emissions/low cost for gas
• Get a lane! (Feel safe)
• Full face helmet is good for incognito effect/singing en route
• Faster than a bicycle (60 km top speed)
• Other bikers wave (even 'real' motorbikers)
• Has built-in lights so don't have to mess with detachable lights!
• Can ride almost year-round  (about 1 1/2 months of ice here)
• Very very fun
• Friendly/cartoon factor--all ages/everyone will approach to talk about your ride
• Low theft-factor.
• Soooo easy to ride around town (automatic)
• Insurance is cheap
• Don't need a motorcycle licence (just a driver's licence)

Scooter Cons:

• Get cold in off-season! Have to layer up/wear wind & rain gear/use hotshots
• Shop costs/finding private mechanics who are available when you need them
• Not much scooter-culture unless you chopper your bike/not inclined to partake
• Doesn't feel like a real skill (doesn't require that much co-ordination/courage/fitness)
• Have to wear anti-road-rash gear
• Can compress vertebrae on bumps (all weight on tail bone)
• Slow on hills/have to watch/deal with overtaking traffic
• Not allowed on high speed highways (not necessarily a 'con'...)
• Have to pay insurance
• Can't carry a passenger (weight restriction)
• Messin' around with oil n' gas

Motorbike (Kawasaki Ninja 250cc)--3 months riding

Pros:

• Fast (100km/hr)--can go on highway...can go places!
• Arrive everywhere pumped full of adrenaline
• Can't multi-task: pure focus/zen
• Big Big Big Bliss-Factor
• Riding position is better for bumps (can stand on foot pegs)
• Probably more cool
• Feels like a real skill to learn to ride
• Other bikers wave
• Still very cheap on gas and insurance
• Anti-road-rash gear may be the same as on a scooter but feels more legit

Motorbike Cons:

• Loud
• Need a licence (a good thing, but time/money)
• Arrive everywhere feeling like a Stormtrooper
• Can't carry items of unusual dimensions
• Not as easy to ride in town as a scooter--have to constantly change gears
• Still can't carry a passenger--feels too dangerous
• Feels like a luxury/not entirely practical (depending)
• Feels less safe than bicycle/scooter in heavy rain
• Definitely have to wear anti-road-rash gear
• People actually less likely (than scooter) to approach and chat about ride!..maybe because this bike is pretty generic?
• Motorbike culture more exclusive/expensive
• Shop costs!!
• Fast factor--higher risk
• Can't ride year-round