Vehicles of St.Bart’s

The roads in St. Bart’s are steep, twisty, narrow and a patchwork of concrete. However the local government is working at fixing them up a little bit at a time. They are slightly widening them, adding sidewalks and beautiful rock work along the edges; so in a few more years they will be greatly improved. However this post isn’t about the roads it’s about the variety of vehicles you see on the island. There are a lot of electric vehicles and for the most part cars and small suv’s are used. When it rains you need 4X4 to get up the hills as the concrete get’s very slippery. The first picture is our Suzuki Jimny we rented from Europcar, it’s much better shape than last years.

For years the island vehicle was the Moke or Mini-moke, you still see a few around and most have been restored, I don’t believe you can rent them anymore. Next are a few random images of a selection of island transportation.

Finally, one unwritten rule of the road in St. Bart’s is that some motorcyles, scooters and quads are exempt from all road regulations; including no passing on corners, no passing at the crest of a blind hill, no passing on the left, no passing on the right towards oncoming traffic, etc. You can also expect to have a motorcycle cut in front of your vehicle at any moment then wave and grin. Also expect to see 2 or 3 people riding a motor scooter rated for a single rider, or if you are fortunate you can see the ladies riding with their small dog, groceries or other packages sitting on the scooter floor area. For sure any use of common sense does not apply to operation of these vehicles. Helmets are not required but a surprising number of riders wear them.