Blood Bikes Cumbria: Riding to Save Lives, Powered by Local Support Category: Charity Spotlight | Region: North West Blood Bikes Cumbria is a registered charity run entirely by volunteers, providing a free, out-of-hours emergency transport service for the North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust and the Great North Air Ambulance Service. Their fleet of motorcycles and cars deliver blood, plasma, breast milk and urgent medical supplies across the region—365 days a year. This vital service is funded solely through public donations and community-led fundraising. From supermarket collections to bike shows and charity walks, every pound raised helps keep their bikes on the road and their mission alive. How You Can Help Whether you're a rider, fundraiser, or simply passionate about supporting your local NHS,

Spain has a long history of building off-road bikes, especially trials machines, but now GasGas, one of the most successful, is to relocate production to Austria. GasGas was founded in 1985 after Bultaco closed, and ex-employees Narcis Casas and Josep Pibernat decided to strike out on their own. Concentrating on trials bikes at first, the new venture did well, expanding through the 1990s and early 2000s into the enduro and motocross markets, but financial problems saw it taken over by KTM in 2019. KTM’s own financial tribulations of recent years, which saw it pause motorcycle production in 2025, is behind the news. KTM says it will transfer production of GasGas motorcycles to its own factory in Austria, though the plant will

The Auto Cycle Union (ACU) is working to prevent a rash of fake helmet approval stickers, which were being offered for sale online. The ‘ACU Approved’ gold stickers, which are required on helmets for racing and track days in the UK, are usually applied to approved helmets when they are new – riders don’t need to add them later. Supported by Trading Standards and legal partners, the ACU has had over 5000 fake stickers removed from the market. “This is a serious issue for rider safety,” said Matthew Edwards-Wear, CEO of the ACU. “Anyone using a helmet with a fake or tampered sticker is putting themselves in serious danger.” The genuine stickers bear the words ‘British Motorcycle Sport’ and the ‘ACU

British motorcycle manufacturer CCM Motorcycles has entered administration, marking the end of a legacy spanning over five decades. The Lancashire company’s remaining motorcycle, parts, tooling and factory assets are now being auctioned through a timed online sale hosted by Gateway Auctions Limited. Founded in 1971 by Alan Clews, CCM (Clews Competition Machines) became renowned for its lightweight, hand-built motorcycles and its strong connection to British motorcycling heritage. The company developed a cult following through models such as the Spitfire series and the Heritage ‘71. Despite this reputation, the company faced mounting financial difficulties in recent years. On 26 June 2025, CCM Motorcycles formally entered administration following a significant drop in production which had reportedly fallen to around 150 bikes annually - down

Free weekend at the National Motorcycle Museum 'LIVE'  Saturday 25 & Sunday 26 October Calling all riders, families and motorcycle fans of every age to get ready for an action-packed weekend at the National Motorcycle Museum (near Birmingham) where entry is completely free giving you full access to their unrivalled collection of bikes, live talks, fire-ups and star guests (remember your ear plugs as it will get noisy on those fire -ups) What’s happening • Two big stage shows each day, hosted by TT-winner Steve Plater, featuring master-builder Guy Willison (“Skid”) and bike-crafter Allen Millyard. • Road-racing legends John McGuinness and Dean Harrison join the guest line-up, sharing stories and meeting fans. • A special live interview with Jenny Tinmouth , currently female lap-record holder at

Waymo, the US autonomous vehicle (AV) company, has announced that it will launching a pilot scheme of driverless taxis in London next year, and says the cars are already on their way to Britain. This would make London the first European city to offer Waymo taxis – the company has been running AV taxis in US cities such as San Francisco since 2020. Uber and UK tech company Wayve will also be trialling driverless cabs in the capital next year. But the Waymo ‘driverless’ taxis won’t be without a driver, having a “trained human specialist” on board ready to take over in case anything goes wrong. These are public trials, but once the Autonomous Vehicles Act comes into operation in late 2027,

Richard Holden MP, the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, is in favour of giving bikes blanket access to bus lanes in London. Speaking to MCN, he said: “I drive to my constituency through London, and you see bus lanes which often have no people or vehicles in them, and you’ve got motorcyclists being forced to weave through traffic.” He added: “It takes a moment’s lapse of concentration from a driver for that to be a real issue. It’s not about apportioning blame; it’s about getting to a situation which is safer for motorcyclists....It really struck me that one of the most sensible things you can do is where possible open up bus lanes as the basic standard.” Current government policy leaves

Indian Motorcycle is set to enter a new chapter as Polaris Inc., its parent company since 2011, prepares to sell a majority stake to U.S. private equity firm Carolwood LP. The landmark move, expected to finalise in early 2026, marks a strategic shift for both companies while reaffirming Indian’s commitment to quality, performance and rider support. Polaris will retain a minority interest in Indian, allowing the new company to operate independently while still benefiting from Polaris’ engineering legacy. The transaction includes the full transfer of Indian’s design, engineering and manufacturing operations, which will continue from its U.S. base in Spirit Lake, Iowa, and Monticello, Minnesota, along with its European R&D centre in Burgdorf, Switzerland. A Proven Legacy, a Confident Transition Since acquiring Indian

The Police National Computer (PNC), which acts as a central database of vehicle and driver information, will finally be switched off in March 2026, after 52 years of service – it went ‘live’ back in 1974 and currently holds 13 million person records and over 60 million records. It’s being replaced by a new database, the Law Enforcement Data Service (LEDS), which will provide the police with a broader spread of data. In practice, that should mean easier, quicker access to drivers’ insurance status (by connecting with the Motor Insurers Bureau), road tax (the DVLA) and MOT (DVSA). Dr Ken German is probably Britain’s best-known expert on vehicle crime – he used to work for the Met Police Stolen Car Squad –

Yamaha has announced a new anti-theft feature for its four-stroke off-road bikes – an app on the rider’s phone enables only the authorised user to start the engine, after entering a password. Yamaha describes the anti-theft app as an ‘industry first.’ Available as standard on all of its 2026 full-size four-stroke off-road bikes – that’s the road legal enduro WR250 and 450F, and the off-road only YZ250 and 450F – the app allows the user to communicate with the bike, and all they have to do is install it on their phone. The bikes’ existing CCU (communication control unit, a small black box which communicates between the ECU and outside world) can disable the ECU if needed. It does this by Wi-Fi,

Too quiet? Too smooth? That’s the reason given by some motorcyclists who swear they would never forsake petrol power for electric. We’ve reported before on bike manufacturers whose answer is to produce fake engine noises or even a fake gearbox, but now Yamaha has gone one step further...with a fake petrol engine. In a patent filed with the World Intellectual Property Organisation (an agency of the United Nations), Yamaha describes an electric bike which also has what appears to be an air-cooled four-stroke single, complete with crankshaft, piston and valves (but no fuel supply). Basically, the electric motor, as well as doing the real work of powering the bike forwards, turns the crank, which drives the piston. The sound waves of

The number of traffic police patrolling UK roads has fallen radically in the past ten years, according to figures revealed by the RAC. In 2015, 5237 traffic officers were employed by 43 forces across the country – in 2025, the equivalent figure was 4149, a cut of over 20%. The biggest drop was in traditional traffic units – 3889 now, compared to 5005 in 2015. Specialist officers working with casualty reduction partnerships have fallen from 186 to 144 over the same time period – these are often police involved in speed camera enforcement programmes. Although it’s true that the number of deaths and serious injuries on the roads has also dropped over the same decade, RAC head of policy Simon Williams pointed to the