The cycle of choice preferred by the masses in Gibraltar has to be the motorcycle. They are everywhere. Parked in every little scrap of space at the side of roads, even on pavements at times. 

As a pram pushing mother of small children they were the bane of my life, finding myself in the middle of a road with a pram and unable to access the pavement because of a row of motorbikes tightly packed together and parked at right angles to the kerb.

I can see the merit of having one though, it takes relatively little space to park, and you can dodge traffic jams pretty effectively. 

For some motorbike riders though, as they don their helmets they lose all common sense. They speed, overtake and undertake with scant regard for their or any other road user’s safety. I have heard them described as “insects” and it’s such an accurate metaphor, from the noise they make to their swarming habit (especially at traffic lights).

I’ve lost count of the number of motorbike accidents I have seen happen here, fortunately they were all minor. Amazingly the riders involved (who are usually young men) appear to walk away from their scrapes relatively unscathed, a few bruises and grazes and perhaps their pride dented. Tragically, though, we are well aware that these accidents can be fatal. 

I have to admit, that I do rather like these bright Vespas, but I dread the day one of my boys comes home with one….