Does motorcycling have a future?

On the face of it times are tough for the motorcycle industry, with stagnant sales, dealers closing and the riding community getting older as new riders feel priced out by the cost of licensing, insurance and kit. Meanwhile, as car world commits to electrification and decarbonisation bikes feel left behind in the race for sustainability.
In this context heading up the Motor Cycle Industry Association doesn’t sound an especially cheery job. But the organisation’s head, Tony Campbell, thinks there are opportunities yet, and that motorised two wheelers have a key role in our future mobility. We spoke with him ahead of the MCIA’s Motorcycle Live, which opens at the weekend with aims to showcase a world of motorbikes beyond the stereotype of grey-haired blokes living out their mid-life crisis fantasies. You can read more about the show here, but first to Tony’s appraisal of the struggles facing those selling motorbikes.

“There is some bad news at the moment,” he accepts, “but I don’t think it’s an out and out reflection of the market.” He points out that although overall bike sales have taken a dip this year the figure is still ahead of 2019, which he refers to as “the last normal year” before the turmoil of Covid and the wild fluctuations it unleashed in both supply and demand.
After initial panic, and once people realised riding a motorcycle was a self-isolating, head-clearing delight among lockdowns and other restrictions, sales of bikes and kit soared, and those with stock were able to reap the rewards. The inevitable realignment since is, says Tony, “nothing we haven’t seen before” having gone through good times and bad in his previous career in motorcycle retail.

There are some bright spots in the sales figures as well, adventure models continuing to do well while the arrival of newly affordable single-cylinder bikes like the Triumph Speed 400 and Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450 we’ve ridden recently have seen a spike in ‘modern classic’ style machines. For £5,000 or less these combine rookie-friendly performance with the cool looks to appeal to both younger folk looking for their first bike as much as older riders rediscovering the innocent fun of smaller machines like the ones they started out on. Royal Enfield is just one brand reaping the rewards of appealing to both ends of the age spectrum, its global monthly sales now near enough matching the number of bikes sold in the UK in a whole year!
Much of that is down to the popularity of bikes among younger riders in markets outside of northern Europe, the demographic issue seen here something Tony accepts needs addressing. “While the test pass figures are encouraging and the growth is in younger riders we need to double or quadruple the numbers, given the average age of existing licence holders is in the mid-50s,” he says. Events like Motorcycle Live with its various opportunities for non-riders to try motorbikes for the first time is an essential tool for helping the bike-curious get a first taste. One that may just encourage them onto the path to getting a licence and owning a bike themselves.

Which is one area where electric motorbikes provide an opportunity. We’ve had mixed experiences of them here, having been frustrated by range and charging on an otherwise impressive Zero DSR/X adventure bike when trying to use it like a regular combustion machine but won over by the retro appeal of the British-designed Maeving as cool urban transport.
As reported in our Sustainability Newsletter, Tony sees opportunity with collaboration with non-automotive industries like aviation, where the technical challenges of batteries and suchlike are actually more alike than they are for cars. And he thinks concentrating on electrification for where it works best will help drive innovation.

“Manufacturers have been brilliant at keeping the existing customers happy, and following their tastes as they’ve evolved from sports bikes, to adventure machines and now modern classics,” he observes. Where he sees opportunity is in the world of lower-powered bikes, scooters and mopeds that suit electrification better than ‘big bikes’ and appeal to younger riders. This may require regulators to look again at the rules governing things like e-bikes and e-scooters, given the legal grey area between these and proper electric motorbikes.
“One of the things I’m actually enthused about is the enthusiasm for e-scooters and e-bikes,” says Tony. “The regulation needs sorting out because we have a number of people using them illegally, but that tells me there is an audience that doesn’t need a big nudge.” He makes the point a ‘proper’ electric moped needn’t cost any more than an electrified bicycle, but has much better performance and reliability.

Which brings us back to Motorcycle Live, and its evolution from a trade show preaching to the converted and into a more family-friendly experience catering to riders and non-riders alike. “The established crowd just need to know the date and they’ll turn up,” he laughs, “but we realised we needed to put a lot more effort into new features, like riding experiences, stunt shows, live music, higher quality food, live music and more.”
From our chat with Tony it’s clear there are challenges ahead. But also plenty to look forward to, not least in the coming days at the NEC!