In his latest speech on Sunday night, UK Prime minister Boris Johnson announced that he is relaxing some of the lockdown restrictions.

From Wednesday 13th May, motorcyclists and scooterists alike will get some of their freedom back in England thanks to these eased restrictions.

Dos
• Workplace travel: If you can’t work at home, and your workplace is safe to return to then you can travel to your place of work via motorcycle/scooter.
• Public transport: Travel via motorcycle is preferred over public transport which is being discouraged currently due to the difficulty in maintaining social distancing.
• Motorcycle travelling: You can travel to any open public space in England, so long as you maintain social distancing as requested by the Government.
• Pillion Passengers: You may only carry a pillion passenger if they are a member of your household.
• Riding in a group: Group riding is for members of the same household only.
• Meeting with other motorcyclists: You may meet with another individual from a different household in an open space so long as you maintain social distancing guidelines and travelled on separate motorcycles.
• The importance of social distancing: Social distancing very much remains an imperative restriction to abide by currently. We must all continue to maintain social distancing when in public areas and around others who are not a part of our own household.

Don’ts
• Currently these eased restrictions apply to England only, those in Northern Ireland, Wales & Scotland must continue to follow the restrictions in place for their own country. Following on from this if you are in England, you are not allowed to travel to Northern Ireland, Wales or Scotland.
• Pillion passengers cannot be a member of another household.
• You cannot visit family or friends at their own household.

Though these restrictions are being eased in the UK, as announced during Boris’ speech, this is simply one step on a road map to try and beat this pandemic. What we do now as a nation will either help this recover or see a possible return in higher numbers of covid-19 cases. So, although we have some freedom back, it’s important we all abide by government guidance and social distance. At the end of the day, if we see a spike in covid-19 cases and an increase in the R rate, then our motorbikes may again be confined to being parked up for a long time with increased tighter restrictions.

We all need to maintain a cautious and considered approach to any journeys we may take. Though we are all tempted to go straight back to normal everyday motorcycle rides and group riding, we need to refrain here for the greater good. Enjoy what eased restrictions we have but respect that we are in this together, and it is only by us all taking the same measures that we can beat this pandemic. So let’s be cautious and optimistic!

We know as motorcycle and scooter owners we have one of the best modes of transport available, but now we have the added bonus that they provide great social distancing for commuters too!

Make sure to spread the word with family and friends who might be looking for alternative social distance friendly transport! We have many blogs and videos for those wanting to start off on two wheels including our popular CBT Guide video.

Please stay tuned and abide to the latest government guidelines available at gov.uk/coronavirus.