The scooter is the nerves and veins of taiwanese society: the strings that keep the Island alive and functioning.
When I first arrived in Kaohsiung I was amazed and dumbfounded as I stood at the traffic lights in what had been an attempt of mine to get to the other side. I reached the crossing and looked around, looked at a wasp¡¦s nest of little two wheelers and buzzing machines going in every direction possible! How on earth was I supposed to get across the road, how was anybody ever supposed to cross a road in Kaohsiung?

I am talking about the scooter, the moped, the Italian style Vesper and the light two wheeled and low powered motorbikes that have become the way of life for all ages - the means to get around for most of Taiwan¡¦s population.

At no time in the minutes that I stood there with my mouth open did the crossing become even remotely clear of the buzzing creatures. At no time did I feel safe or secure in the prospects of crossing that road. The motorbikes were just everywhere like locusts in a field. Other pedestrians I eventually noticed where crossing this melee without ado, looking at me with my mouth open rather than the traffic ahead. But they all managed with no mishaps and so I followed timidly in their footsteps.

The ¡¥swarm of bees¡¦ no longer frightens or shocks me and I understand the system completely. To cross the road wait until the road parallel is flowing with traffic (green light ahead) and then just step off into the road, close the eyes and walk quickly across.

Their use and Function in Society Mopeds provide the means to a way of life for about 90% of people living in Taiwan. The ten percent that does not use a moped are people like me who are too afraid or those rich enough to have a car. Mopeds are the means through which gas bottles are delivered to the doorstep, chickens are taken to the slaughterhouse; the mail arrives in the letter box; through which Policeman patrol the streets. Mopeds are used to go to work, to visit friends and to do the shopping. Mopeds are used to snatch handbags from pedestrians and used to make the getaway after the bank robbery. Mopeds are used to collect the children from school or to go on a family outing and they are used to collect garbage and recyclable goods by the scavenger. Mopeds pull stalls of all shapes and sizes to and from markets and mopeds pull trailers bowed under with wood or bags of cement. Mopeds are used for everything that can possibly be dreamt up and dreamt of.

The rubbish collection lady tinkles down our street every morning, slowly and bowed under with goods she carefully navigates her way along. She has the moped completely covered in plastic bottles of all shapes and sizes. Anywhere that a bottle can be tied or a plastic bag can be hung then there is one. The moped itself could not be seen, so complete was the job that she had done. But should we have a plastic bottle to give or an empty container to get rid of she will always find space and along with a toothy grin she will start up and chug off, completely obscured by empty milk cartons, egg boxes and containers of colors galore.

Another is the Live Chicken delivery boy who is seen every morning on his way to the market. His black smoke belching and struggling moped always has six large size crates stacked up on the rear and filled to choking with live chickens. At the front are another three crates and these are always filled with fresh eggs. Wobbling and belching along he faithfully zooms to the market with his load leaving me with visions of the mess left behind should he have an accident.

Yes, motorbikes are used for everything and in most cities push all other means of transport into the background. Bus systems are more or less useless for the average person! Considering a moped journey of twenty minutes, it could take two buses or more to cover the same trail and take well over an hour. Buses are unreliable and far and few between, they do not go where you want them to go and they are typically old and falling apart. Taxis are okay and plenty of them but are generally too expensive for everyday use. Bicycles are too dangerous and cars are only for the rich.

As there are so many of the machines (often three or more per household) every single available space outside of houses, buildings, apartments and office blocks is covered in parked mopeds. Car Parks everywhere are stuffed to over flowing with the two wheelers, most in use but some having been forgotten about or just left to waste in preference for a newer model. Mopeds are parked everywhere and anywhere that pedestrians ever thought of walking on. Pathways and walkways, pavements and curbs are all festooned with parked two wheelers and the pedestrians come second, forced onto the roadside to join the mass of moving vehicles and the dangers involved their. Walking people like myself are far and few between and are generally the last to be thought of when roads and paths are designed.

The Bikes Themselves A typical off the shelf Scooter costs upwards of 30,000NT dollars. That is about 600 UK Pounds or 900 US Dollars. So large is the market, thus so cheap they cost to buy. A teenager¡¦s first priority is the moped. As soon as they are sixteen a moped comes into every conversation until the mother, tiring of having hers used all the time, persuades the father to buy one. Teenagers go to school on them and in this way they have become a status symbol. Adverts on the television use sexy woman to push forwards the usefulness and need to have a moped. Adverts use fashion and self-importance to promote the ownership of a moped and so the end result is that if you have a moped you are ¡§hip¡¨, and if you don¡¦t have one then you are not worth talking to. They are more important than a mobile phone.

Mopeds come in all shapes and sizes. The sleek Italian Design to the ¡¥odds and ends¡¦ wreck that is home built. They are driven by people of all shapes and sizes from rather large persons who drape themselves over the seat and potter along at a curvy pace, old ladies who could walk faster, teenagers who zoom along and secretaries who are followed by admiring gazes. Some bikes groan as they are pushed to their limits and other bikes seem to stifle the power that they possess. Some bikes are used as human transporters, father driving with the mother behind, two kids standing in the well at the front and one kid holding on for dear life at the back. Others still puff out a horrendous cloud of white smoke signaling that a repair is needed to all but the drivers themselves. Some bikes weave uncontrollably as the driver

Many bikes can¡¦t be started as batteries run down. Petrol stations are filled with callers for more juice and proud people wash their bikes down, buffing up the seat that they spend so many hours sitting on. Dogs ride in the wells as their owners take them out for a walk, children sit on specially designed seats fitting snugly into the well and electricians keep there tools all over the bike as they attend to some call or other. Ladies try to keep their skirts from billowing up and showing to the world the color of their underwear. Food falls out from the front basket as the wind catches it, another drink is dropped as it rolls from between the feet of a forgetful driver and yet another kid nearly falls off the back as his mother guns the throttle in excess.

People struggle to find parking spaces, whilst others scratch their heads over how to extract their moped from the pack. Others still annoy taxi drivers as they cut across them and yet another pedestrian gets in the way. Passengers stepping off a bus narrowly escape being mowed down as a moped scrapes past and yet another driver parks his machine in the middle of the road thus causing a bottleneck to occur.

The Dangers of Driving It is dangerous on the roads, there is no doubt about that and one of the reasons why I have refused to drive or even consider taking command of one. Only yesterday I witnessed a Fire Engine sitting peacefully at the traffic lights and a moped just drove smack right into the bonnet. I know that this is a stupid accident but ¡K¡K amazing to see. The more common occurrences are the car and the moped meeting at the crossroads and the bike going down. Often with the driver of the car being physically abusive to the poor moped driver who has cuts and bruises all over his body at the minimum.

Taiwan law states that at any accident the vehicles must remain in the accident position until the Police arrive ¡V which means that traffic flow is seriously disrupted for another two hours or so.

Accidents are common and no Moped Driver has escaped the turmoil of being knocked off his seat. Some with broken legs and arms put it down to experience and climb warily into the saddle others just laugh their cuts and bruises off and carry on driving recklessly until the next fall. Kids are the worst, they scream around the roads regardless of any safety rules and regulations and regardless of traffic lights and pedestrians. And they get away with it all! They are the ultimate in danger yet the Police just watch them zooming by probably knowing that they could not catch them but doing nothing all the same.

One of my favorite accidents was where the Policeman swerved around the corner on his moped in chase of a poor woman who had run a red light! But in doing so the Policeman ran headfirst into this other poor lady whose shopping went flying all over the road and the Policeman fell off his bike.

The other day a woman and her kid did something wrong, maybe turned the corner at the wrong time or did not stop at the red light. Mr. Policeman happened to be standing nearby with his pumped up chest and I am ¡§king¡¨ attitude. Seeing what he saw he majestically clicked his fingers and through sign language told the woman to pull over beside him. She was only going slowly, was not far away from him and obviously saw what he wanted. Back home one would pull over ¡V don¡¦t mess with the law, but this lady just looked at him, smiled politely and slammed the throttle to full. She was gone before the Policeman could think about what to do next. I saw his hand going to his radio, then it went for his notebook, then he started towards his own moped and then he just sank into himself. Nothing he could do, she was out of sight and what information had he to pass across, what was that damned license plate number again?

Helmet wearing is now law and enforced as far as they can do it. Most people do wear helmets and those without are easy for the Police to pass the message along. They have this habit of hiding behind signs and around corners and taking photographs of the criminals and thus catching them that way. There is no rule about using the side mirrors that all mopeds come equipped with. Most mopeds seem to have had these removed either personally when they bought the bike or through accidents along the way. In fact many mirrors just hang sadly neglected downwards but saying to the world, ¡§I am here but nobody is interested in using me¡¨. And along with this lack of attention to using mirrors comes the typical and forceful manner of driving in Taiwan. Drivers look forwards, they do not look backwards. The rear is the responsibility of those behind and absolutely nothing to do with those ahead. Should the person ahead wish to move out of lane and turn a corner, what happens behind is of no consequence and should a faster driver be coming up and into the path of the one ahead, well that is their problem. Simply put, mirrors are not required and in fact are so ¡§Not hip¡¨.

The Lone Pedestrian Mopeds are the distribution system, the veins and arteries of society that keep it functioning, in motion and fed. Mopeds are the means to conduct business, to do the shopping, to get around and to be free. They are the lifelines for a whole society and one that without would just cease to function. Mopeds are the bread and butter for an entire culture.

For me as the lone pedestrian I am assigned to the road to join the melee, forced to sit on buses for endless hours and induced to spending large sums of money on taxis. For me, as the odd one out of millions, I am looked upon as ¡§weird¡¨ and receive strange looks from the masses. I as the pedestrian fight against society to live on my own two feet and find it hard. I as the odd one out am thinking of riding a moped! If you can¡¦t beat them join them.

Then again I may wait for the Underground system that is now being built in Kaohsiung ¡V should I find the courage to wait the estimated eight years it will take to complete!

About the Author

Ieuan Dolby, a Scottish Marine Engineer has sailed the world for Fifteen Years on Merchant Vessels. Now drying out ashore he writes numerous Travel and Marine Based Articles on cultural diversity, weird happenings in foreign lands and anything else that springs to mind. Many works are displayed on his site of http://www.seadolby.com