Times are tough with soaring fuel prices, and more and more people are using motorcycles and scooters for commuting. That's true in the US, but also in other countries.

In the UK, the Motorcycle Industry Association (MCIA - www.mcia.co.uk) have asked companies to provide better facilities for their employees who ride their motorcycles to work.

According to Craig Carey-Clinch of the MCIA “There are clear indications that people have had enough of sitting in traffic jams, getting nowhere very fast. Petrol and diesel prices are unlikely to drop significantly, journeys are long and stressful and cars are difficult and often expensive to park in town centres or at rail stations."

“Public transport is not a cheap alternative, is often inconvenient and the experience frequently unpleasant. A commuter bike saves time, is low cost, better for the environment and easy to park. It’s also unlikely to attract a work place parking tax that local authorities are now threatening”

MCIA are therefore asking the companies to provide good parking spaces for motorcycles, preferably covered and secure. If the employers would also provide changing rooms, so much the better. This would encourage employees to take a motorcycle in instead of a car, resulting in improved productivity (they arrive on time), and higher employee moral (we all know how it feels riding a motorcycle).

Unfortunately not all UK based companies think so. Last year Johnson Controls banned employees from riding a motorcycle on company business. This year Magnox Electric Ltd, a UK nuclear power firm told its employees “The use of motorbikes for traveling on company business is prohibited with immediate effect”.

Despite rising fuel prices, productivity and employee moral, some companies just don't get it. And don't tell me it's an insurance issue, since any insurance issue can be worked out.

There are over 1.6 million motorcycles in use in Britain, traveling over 3.2 million miles a year.