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Justin Coffelt makes his way home from a trip to a convenience store on Commercial Street in St. Joseph Wednesday. ‘Beats the heck out of my truck,’ he said later, referring to his gas guzzling pickup. Mr. Coffelt’s scooter gets 150 miles per 1.5 gallon tank. Scooters are an ever more popular form of transportation in St. Joseph because of record high gasoline prices.

In a society influenced by high gas prices many are turning to scooters as a new means of travel.

Scooters, like all other vehicles, come with a set of laws. But the St. Joseph Police Department says those laws aren’t being recognized by scooter riders.

Along with national and state regulations, the city of St. Joseph has several sections of laws written specifically for scooters and mopeds.

Officer Wayne Byrom said there are three major laws that the department usually sees being broken.

“The driver has to have a valid driver’s license, meaning be at least 16 years old. The scooter or moped can not travel more than 30 mph on flat ground and the scooter has to be under 50cc,” Mr. Byrom said.

Any scooter or bike that has an engine size larger than 50cc is classified as a motorcycle and falls under a different set of laws and regulations, Mr. Byrom said.

Anything under 50cc must have a seat height of 25 inches to be legal on the street, which excludes some mini-bikes.

While Mr. Byrom says helmets are not required for a scooter, they are strongly recommended. Vehicle licensing and insurance also are optional when it comes to a scooter.

Sturgis Leather located on Frederick Avenue has seen an increase in scooter sales as the price of gas has risen.

“Ever since gas went to $3.50 a gallon it’s been crazy,” said Naveed Mughal, owner of Sturgis Leather.

During the beginning of this month the shop sold up to two scooters a day, Mr. Mughal said.

Justin Coffelt is one St. Joseph resident taking advantage of all a scooter has to offer. He purchased his new 50cc scooter three weeks ago. Since then he has driven more than 1,000 miles on it.

“If I put $2.50 in gas in my truck, I don’t get to the next gas station — $2.50 in my scooter will get me 100 miles,” Mr. Coffelt said.

Mr. Coffelt has ridden his scooter to places as far as Atchison, Kan., and Maryville, Mo. Although he doesn’t wear a helmet, he makes sure to take the back roads to his destinations.

According to Missouri law, it is illegal to operate a scooter on an interstate or business loop interstate system. For residents of St. Joseph this means driving a scooter on Belt Highway or Frederick Avenue is illegal.

Mr. Byrom said he has responded to several accidents involving scooters but doesn’t see their popularity diminishing any time soon.

“I think we’ll see an increase in scooters with the increase in gas prices, which is fine as long as they are legal,” Mr. Byrom said. “And helmets are always a good idea.”

Scooter regulation information can be found at the city of St. Joseph’s Web site www.ci.st-joseph.mo.us or at www.ameca.org.

Megan Tilk can be reached

at megantilk@npgco.com.