Engine and rider average age

Motorcycles and their riders are aging. This is glaringly obvious when you look at the CBS figures. Who is turning the tide. Which brand is making motorcycling hip and happening among young people? Or does it have to do with the fact that people up to about 40 have other priorities. That they have a family with additional costs and accountability.

How many motorcycles in the Netherlands?

According to CBS, at the beginning of 2023, nearly 691 thousand motorcycles were registered in the Netherlands. So it’s safe to assume that by now there are more than 700,000. In any case, they are 7 percent more than in 2019. Over 97 percent of the motorcycles were in the name of a private owner, half of whom were over 50. 1 in 10 motorcycle owners was under 30 years old. The number of motorcycles owned by those over 65 grew by more than 9 percent to nearly 99 thousand motorcycles on Jan. 1, 2023. Compared to four years before, this is almost 41 percent more.

Motorcycles by age of vehicle

Not only did the number of motorcycles with an older owner grow, but the motorcycles were older as well; by early 2023, more than 1 in 3 motorcycles were 25 years old or older, 30 percent of motorcycles were between 15 and 25 years old, and 11 percent of motorcycles were less than 5 years old.

Motorcycles by province

In early 2023, there were 39 motorcycles per thousand inhabitants in the Netherlands. In Drenthe, motorcycle ownership was highest at 55 motorcycles per thousand inhabitants. Friesland ranked second, followed by Zeeland, with 49 and 48 motorcycles per thousand inhabitants, respectively. South Holland had the fewest motorcycles: 31 per thousand population.