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If you're still driving a four-wheeled vehicle to get around, you should probably step up your awareness of the two-wheeled variety in traffic.

The rough economy has coupled with leapfrogging gas prices to churn out record numbers of motor-scooter and motorcycle riders, and the trend may be just getting started.

"It's exciting. It's a bit of a roller-coaster ride," said Shelby Stirratt, owner of Scoot Over Inc., 4534 E. Broadway.

While Stirratt was out delivering two scooters Wednesday afternoon — after delivering three the previous day — business at her store was jumping.

Kathy Robbs, 48, had driven in from Willcox to shop for groceries and scooters.

She's always wanted a scooter, she said, but was afraid if she got one her sons would want a motorcycle.

Now that they're 22, 19 and 15 years old, "I don't need to worry about protecting them anymore," she said. "Now part of the extra draw is the gas prices, of course."

Brandon Owens, a Scoot Over salesman, said that's fairly typical. Almost everyone who walks through the door mentions gas prices, he said.

And while business has gradually increased as gas prices have approached $4 a gallon, April was a banner month, he said.

"April got really big, and that seemed to be a nationwide event," Owens said.

Scoot Over's most popular model is the Genuine Scooter Co. Buddy 125, which sells for $2,800 and gets 90 to 100 miles per gallon, Owens said. He estimated it accounts for about 75 percent of sales.

Compared with motorcycles, scooters generally have smaller motors and wheels and a step-through frame.

Customer Alex Parrish, 27, has been riding a scooter since her husband bought one for her at Christmas. When asked the best part about her scooter, she didn't hesitate to laugh and respond, "80 miles per gallon."

Her insurance is $25 a month for full coverage, she said, and annual registration is around $50.

Stirratt estimated her sales for the month were up 30 percent over last year.

"I would say 80 percent of my customers are commuters. They're looking for reliability. They're looking for affordability, and the low insurance rate is sweet on top of their gas mileage."

Nationally, sales of name-brand scooters such as Honda, Yamaha, Vespa and Suzuki rose 24 percent in the first quarter of the year, said Mike Mount, spokesman for the Motorcycle Industry Council trade group.

But the boom in sales for smaller scooters isn't transferring through to bigger models. Mount said sales of small and medium-sized motorcycles rose 7.5 percent in the first quarter, but sales of larger, more-expensive motorcycles were down 11 percent.

Overall business is down at RideNow Powersports on Ina, 4375 W. Ina Road, but the market for scooters and 650cc to 800cc motorcycles is up at least 15 percent to 25 percent compared with this time last year, said sales manager Ryan Bonner.

"It's opening up to a whole new market. More women riders than before. Older riders. People that haven't been riding in a long time are now coming back to ride again," Bonner said.

Scooter and motorcycle dealers aren't the only ones benefiting from the high gasoline prices.

Team Arizona, a state-authorized motorcycle-driving tester that offers motorcycle driving classes in Tucson, Fort Huachuca, Gilbert, Glendale and Prescott, is continually adding new classes to keep up with demand, said Jack Frost, director of student services.

"We've had an unbelievable increase ever since the gas prices went up," he said.

Statewide, motorcycle instructional-permit applications in March were up 9.8 percent over last year. In April, the spike was more pronounced: 1,574 permits issued, compared with 1,222 last April, for an increase of 28.8 percent, according to the MVD.

It's not just scooter riders, said Mark Kingsley, general manager and co-owner of Musselman Honda Center, 2302 N. Stone Ave.

"In some cases, you can get more motorcycle for less money," he said.

For instance, an 80cc scooter on his showroom floor with a top speed of 40 to 45 miles per hour costs $2,532 including taxes and registration, while a 250cc motorcycle that goes 70 to 72 miles per hour isn't much more, at $3,457.

Musselman has carried scooters for only five or six months, after a showroom remodel opened up space to carry them, Kingsley said.

Even so, he said he'd fielded four scooter inquiries before 2 p.m. Wednesday.