Traveling around town on his scooter

NEWPORT — With the cost of gas, many people are looking for a more affordable form of transportation. Riding a scooter is an economical way to get around, but it can also be a fun form of transportation. If you see someone making their way around Newport on their scooter, it is most likely Robert Thacker.

Thacker, who owns Myers Diversified Recycling, enjoys riding his scooter around town. The scooter can go as fast as 28 mph. He said that the owner’s manual says that one charge can travel as far as 30 miles, but he said he wouldn’t try to travel that far. The farthest he has traveled on the scooter has been about two miles, he said.

“I really enjoy riding it,” Thacker said. He explained that he will jump on the scooter at his business and ride it to the other side of town to pick up his big truck when it is getting serviced. He said he can then just throw the scooter in the truck and head off to wherever he needs to go.

He can often be seen riding the scooter through town to West End Baptist Church on Tuesdays to attend the Kiwanis Club of Newport meetings.

The scooter was initially purchased to get around campgrounds, but Thacker has seen its possibilities and enjoys making his way around town on the battery-powered scooter.