Behaviour in traffic, environment and fuel-efficient riding
This domain blends conduct with economy: how you ride among others, how you keep noise and emissions down, and how you actually save fuel on a motorcycle.
Conduct in traffic
- Ride so your intentions are readable: position, indicator, a glance. Do not weave through gaps to gain a few metres.
- Keep clear of blind spots; overtake with a margin, especially beside lorries and buses.
- In a group ride staggered, and drop to single file in bends, before overtaking and in poor visibility. Nobody should have to ride beyond their own judgement to keep up.
- Show consideration for cyclists, pedestrians and residents; aggression is a hazard, not a style.
Environment and fuel
- Ride anticipatorily: read the road, roll off early, use engine braking (Schubabschaltung cuts fuel on the overrun), avoid hard acceleration and late braking.
- Shift up early; a high gear at moderate revs uses noticeably less than holding a low gear.
- Correct tyre pressure, a clean air filter, a correctly tensioned chain and fresh oil all reduce consumption.
- Never warm an engine up at standstill - ride off gently instead; short cold trips wear engines and use disproportionate fuel.
- Switch the engine off when waiting; avoid unnecessary revving, especially in residential areas. German environmental-zone sticker rules include statutory exemptions for two- and three-wheeled motor vehicles; an ordinary A2 motorcycle is not required to carry a green sticker under that system. Other applicable traffic restrictions must still be observed.
Worked example
A 20 km daily commute at 6.0 l/100 km costs 1.2 l per day. Anticipatory riding - earlier upshifts, steady throttle, no late braking - brings it to 5.0 l/100 km, i.e. 1.0 l per day. Over 200 commuting days that is 40 litres saved. Using the stated illustrative factor of 2.4 kg of CO₂ per litre gives about 96 kg; a monetary saving would need an explicitly supplied fuel price. The same style also means fewer brake pads, longer tyre life and less fatigue.
Traps that cost marks
- Believing a lower gear always means better control and ignoring the fuel cost.
- Warming the engine on the stand, or blipping the throttle for its own sake.
- Side-by-side group riding in bends or while overtaking.
- Assuming that every vehicle needs a green environmental-zone sticker: check the statutory vehicle exemptions and any separate applicable restriction.