Plenty of people get into the two-wheeled life out of concern for the environment — surely a smaller, lighter vehicle is better for the world than a big car — only to learn that motorcycles are actually worse for emissions than their four-wheeled alternatives. Electric motorcycles offer a solution here, but until now no training course has made them available to beginners looking to get their start on two wheels. Finally, environmentally conscious would-be riders can get their license on an all-electric bike — provided they live in southern California.
The electric rider training initiative comes from a LiveWire dealership out in Marina Del Rey, a part of the California coastline that I can say is in Los Angeles because none of the Jalopnik Angelenos are yet awake to nitpick. While the effort starts at the single dealer, though, it’s backed by LiveWire corporate — the company plans to expand it out nationwide in due time.
Just like a standard course
The LiveWire course operates like any typical California rider school, granting those who pass the class a waiver exempting them from a DMV road test — the same as MSF courses across the country, forming a framework that LiveWire can use in its expansion plans. Hopefully the California start proves the concept, and LiveWire starts shipping its school-ready S2 Mulholland and Alpinista bikes to every Harley dealership that offers rider training.
Electric motorcycles not only deliver on the environmental promise of smaller two-wheeled vehicles, but open up the world of motorcycling to all manner of riders who can’t accurately operate a clutch or shifter. The two-wheeled world only benefits from adding EVs into the mix, and bringing these bikes to newcomers stands to broaden space-efficient transportation’s appeal. Now, if only those bikes were actually affordable for beginners looking to get their feet wet on two wheels.