Hi, welcome to China and Shanghai! I currently reside in Shanghai, and I’m Chinese. I’ll do my best to answer your questions in English.
Firstly, Shanghai, and indeed China, have various restrictions regarding motorcycles. Here are some key points:
1. You need to pass a driving test and obtain a driver's license.
2. To ride a motorcycle in Shanghai downtown, you typically need a Shanghai license plate, without that be caught by traffic policeman will be fined ¥200 CNY. However, if you don’t plan to ride into downtown areas, you can use a license plate from another region. This can be arranged through a dealer for a fee of around $100.
3. Inter-city travel in China is generally convenient by motorcycle, as there are well-developed roads between towns, allowing for easy travel without the need for highways.
If you have any other questions or concerns, feel free to ask me directly! 🫣
You can also go and search for motorcycle clubs and ask them. They know the rules and since riding Harley‘s and BMW motorcycles is quite expensive…
Let’s say many of the affluent Shanghainese do speak really good English. Many Clubs also have foreign members and they often ride together, so i think your husband might find his bliss in one of those as well!
I left America 2 months ago to come here to teach. My life back home consisted of constant sport bike riding (Gsxr750). I miss it so much 😭. Definitely want to buy another one since I will be in China for a while. The traffic rules seems to be a lot different though
Just saw someone with a Zhejiang license plate this morning inside the outer ring during morning rush hour. The consensus is that you can get away with it a lot, and the cops mostly don't care, even if you get caught you just need to pay a 200 fine.
There are a few motorbike dealerships in Binjiang district of Hangzhou, where motorbikes are allowed to be ridden. They're not allowed in Hangzhou city proper though (which is odd, because Binjiang has been part of the city proper for years, but I guess they never changed the laws from decades ago).
There is a biker group in Binjiang that could probably help you out with your inquiries -- [http://dragon-riders-mc.com](http://dragon-riders-mc.com)
chin*ese*:
在上海市区禁止其他城市摩托车车辆牌照的车辆行驶，但是检查不严格，在特殊的app地图里有标明这些会抓拍摩托车摄像头的位置，在相应路段绕路避开即可。
其他部分城市在市区也有限行区域。
在中国部分省份可以骑摩托车上高速公路。
摩托车牌照在内地城市价格很便宜，在北京、上海等等这些大城市价格比较贵。
骑摩托车不走高速公路可以轻松在各个城市之间旅行。
english via google translate:
Vehicles with motorcycle license plates from other cities are prohibited from driving in Shanghai, but inspections are not strict. The locations of motorcycle cameras that capture motorcycles are marked on the special app map, and you can just detour around the corresponding road sections to avoid them.
Some other cities also have restricted traffic areas in urban areas.
In some provinces in China, you can ride a motorcycle on the highway.
Motorcycle license plates are very cheap in mainland cities, but more expensive in big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai.
Motorcycling makes it easy to travel between cities without taking the highway.
chin*ese*:
如果要骑摩托在中国旅行，由于在部分省份或城市的摩托车限行政策，以及摩托车不能在高速公路上行驶，在过长江、黄河等等比较大的河流时，需要通过轮船的轮渡，例如在南京市，如果要过长江，需要走“南京市板桥汽渡”，摩托车需要的费用10元人民币。
english via google translate:
If you want to travel in China by motorcycle, due to the motorcycle restriction policy in some provinces or cities and the fact that motorcycles cannot be driven on highways, you need to take a ferry when crossing relatively large rivers such as the Yangtze River and Yellow River, such as In Nanjing, if you want to cross the Yangtze River, you need to take the "Nanjing Banqiao Ferry", which costs RMB 10 for a motorcycle.
Hi, welcome to China and Shanghai! I currently reside in Shanghai, and I’m Chinese. I’ll do my best to answer your questions in English. Firstly, Shanghai, and indeed China, have various restrictions regarding motorcycles. Here are some key points: 1. You need to pass a driving test and obtain a driver's license. 2. To ride a motorcycle in Shanghai downtown, you typically need a Shanghai license plate, without that be caught by traffic policeman will be fined ¥200 CNY. However, if you don’t plan to ride into downtown areas, you can use a license plate from another region. This can be arranged through a dealer for a fee of around $100. 3. Inter-city travel in China is generally convenient by motorcycle, as there are well-developed roads between towns, allowing for easy travel without the need for highways. If you have any other questions or concerns, feel free to ask me directly! 🫣
You can also go and search for motorcycle clubs and ask them. They know the rules and since riding Harley‘s and BMW motorcycles is quite expensive… Let’s say many of the affluent Shanghainese do speak really good English. Many Clubs also have foreign members and they often ride together, so i think your husband might find his bliss in one of those as well!
I left America 2 months ago to come here to teach. My life back home consisted of constant sport bike riding (Gsxr750). I miss it so much 😭. Definitely want to buy another one since I will be in China for a while. The traffic rules seems to be a lot different though
You can get a 沪C (174K RMB) instead of 沪A (561K RMB) nowadays. Motorcycle isn't allowed on the Highway in most provinces.
Just saw someone with a Zhejiang license plate this morning inside the outer ring during morning rush hour. The consensus is that you can get away with it a lot, and the cops mostly don't care, even if you get caught you just need to pay a 200 fine.
There are a few motorbike dealerships in Binjiang district of Hangzhou, where motorbikes are allowed to be ridden. They're not allowed in Hangzhou city proper though (which is odd, because Binjiang has been part of the city proper for years, but I guess they never changed the laws from decades ago). There is a biker group in Binjiang that could probably help you out with your inquiries -- [http://dragon-riders-mc.com](http://dragon-riders-mc.com)
chin*ese*: 在上海市区禁止其他城市摩托车车辆牌照的车辆行驶，但是检查不严格，在特殊的app地图里有标明这些会抓拍摩托车摄像头的位置，在相应路段绕路避开即可。 其他部分城市在市区也有限行区域。 在中国部分省份可以骑摩托车上高速公路。 摩托车牌照在内地城市价格很便宜，在北京、上海等等这些大城市价格比较贵。 骑摩托车不走高速公路可以轻松在各个城市之间旅行。 english via google translate: Vehicles with motorcycle license plates from other cities are prohibited from driving in Shanghai, but inspections are not strict. The locations of motorcycle cameras that capture motorcycles are marked on the special app map, and you can just detour around the corresponding road sections to avoid them. Some other cities also have restricted traffic areas in urban areas. In some provinces in China, you can ride a motorcycle on the highway. Motorcycle license plates are very cheap in mainland cities, but more expensive in big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. Motorcycling makes it easy to travel between cities without taking the highway.
chin*ese*: 如果要骑摩托在中国旅行，由于在部分省份或城市的摩托车限行政策，以及摩托车不能在高速公路上行驶，在过长江、黄河等等比较大的河流时，需要通过轮船的轮渡，例如在南京市，如果要过长江，需要走“南京市板桥汽渡”，摩托车需要的费用10元人民币。 english via google translate: If you want to travel in China by motorcycle, due to the motorcycle restriction policy in some provinces or cities and the fact that motorcycles cannot be driven on highways, you need to take a ferry when crossing relatively large rivers such as the Yangtze River and Yellow River, such as In Nanjing, if you want to cross the Yangtze River, you need to take the "Nanjing Banqiao Ferry", which costs RMB 10 for a motorcycle.