Francistown — Due to escalating fuel costs, more and more people are turning to other options. While others are buying smaller and fuel-efficient cars, others are turning to the much-feared motorbikes.

According to Mrs Pereira, Director of Motorcycle Repair Centre, the main attraction to bikes is the fuel consumption. "A 50cc scooter goes up to 50km per liter and a 100cc delivery bike can travel 30km with just one liter," she said. "Also because the bike has only two wheels, it makes it much cheaper to maintain than a car. Even though we still have people who are afraid of motorbikes, more and more are enquiring about motorbikes. The sales have gone up 20% and the most popular are the delivery bikes bought mostly by businesses."

A bike rider who delivers mail and invoices to over 30 places in town said that his delivery bike, which has an eight liter tank, can go for a day and a half. He said that though people think bikes are not safe, they are very safe if you ride carefully.

Bikes are also cheap to buy and maintain. Pereira said that a brand new 100cc delivery bike costs as little as P9 300 while a 125cc scooter is only P11 000. Service is also very low at P165 for a minor service. Delivery bike tyres cost only P165 while a scooter's tyre is P1 300.