The T: Bloggers are just whiny carpers

1. Scooters don't melt. You can leave them on the street when it's raining. If you want to keep your scooter in tip-top shape, you can throw a tarp or cover over it. They're fairly cheap (to the tune of about $20) and very portable.

2. I presume by asking what I do when it snows, you mean "What do you do with it during all the wintertime months? Does it get buried by snow plows?" Personally, I have off-street parking. As long as you live in a place with even the tiniest yard, you can stash it back there with the tarp you bought for when it rains. Yes, you should push the snow off the cover during the wintertime. For people who have absolutely no space outside their building, (i.e. people in Back Bay or the North End) maybe they can leave it at a friend's place or bring it inside. Some basements have storage areas. Don't forget- unladen, a scooter weighs only 200-225 lbs; two people should be able to get it where it needs to be. In the worst case, it could be stored in your apartment or for around $40 per month, in a self-service storage facility if your space situation is super-tight.

3. There's no such thing as having "no place to park it," at least during the non-winter months. You can stick a scooter on the street in between just about any two cars in your neighborhood. When coupled with a parking permit, you'll never have to worry about not being able to find a spot or putting money in a meter. See #2 above for what to do with it in the winter.

No, it's not a perfect solution for everyone. Nothing is. However, Boston isn't a huge city. A scooter or small motorcycle really can be a huge timesaver and convenience for those who don't like the T.

I haven't even started talking about benefits outside of commuting. You can park literally anywhere between two cars. When I'm riding around, I don't start to look for parking until I'm within sight of my destination. There's always a spot to slide it into fairly close nearby.

Gas mileage. If your scooter gets less than 50 miles to the gallon, get a tune-up. You can get as high as 80 mpg! Heck, my 20+ year old motorcycle used to get 50 mpg before I started messing with the carburetor last year. Now it's a bit less efficient, but that's my own fault :)

Convenience. How many times have you wanted or needed to get something from the store, but you didn't want to wait for the T or bus? Well, strap on your helmet and away you go! No more wondering, "Did the bus just go by? Will it show up? How long has it been since the last train came through?" This is doubly true on the weekends when the T reduces service. On occasion, I've waited over 30 minutes for the "privilege" of packing myself into an overstuffed Green Line trolley. That kind of "service" is for the birds.

The downside: some people feel they're unsafe because you don't have the cage around you that car drivers have. The way I look at it, if you're paying attention to your surroundings, you should be ok. Not only do I make myself seen with reflective gear and bright colors, but I do stuff like wave at car drivers. When you interact like that, you wake them from autopilot. That way they know you're around, and besides, it's also good karma to be nice to people. Waving, especially at children, tends to brighten people's mood. :)

I'm glad I can help; if anyone else has questions about these topics, feel free to shout them out!