Vespa: The scooter with a sting

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‘Roman Holiday’ the US romantic comedy film from 1953, starring Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck and of course the Vespa 98 cc - Serie 0, number 3, built in 1946. Numbers one and two are long lost, leaving number three with the title of world's oldest Vespa. rue Des Archives/rda

Other famous people like Swiss actor Ursula Andress, were willing to be photographed for advertising purposes. London, July 17., 1967. Pierluigi Praturlon / Reporters Associati & Archivi / Mondadori Portfolio

Lily Blank, of Vespa Club Bern (VCB), takes part in training for the Europe Vespa Championships in 1962. courtesy of VCS

Pope Pius XII blesses 20 Vespa in the Vatican's Courtyard of St. Damasco, June 1953. The scooters were a gift from the city of Turin to Dutch Caritas. The aim was to make it easier for social workers and caregivers to work in the areas affected by flooding. Keystone

The Singing Nun’ was filmed with the US star Debbie Reynolds in 1966. Her character; Sister Ann, drove around on a Vespa singing. Courtesy Everett Collection

Taken from the 2010 film 'Brighton Rock', depicting the 1960's subcultures in Britain. Credit: Tcd/prod.db / Alamy Stock Photo

Ferdinand "Ferdi" Kübler was a Swiss cyclist who won Tour de France twice, changes his wheels for a photo opportunity, date unknown. Keystone / Str

Two wheels, four passengers - no problem. Tehran, 1997. Abbas/magnum Photos

Vespa celebrated 50 Years of style with the British youth culture. England, 2001. Camera Press

French motorcycle racer, Georges Monneret on the road from Paris to the Sahara and back. April, 1959. rue Des Archives/agip

Competition of motor elegance: Paris, bois de Boulogne, in June 1951. Roger-viollet

Swiss delegation of the European Championships, in Namur, Belgium in 1962. courtesy VCS

Our photo department tried to guess the model and thought it was a Vespa Rally 175, circa 1970. We'd love to hear from you, if you can tell us the exact model. courtesy of Helen James / swissinfo.ch

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Seventy-five years ago the first Vespa was presented to the public in Rome. Since then the zippy motor scooter has become synonymous with freedom and fashion on a global level – and Switzerland received its own special model.

During summer months, these iconic vehicles can be spotted all over the Alpine country. “Switzerland became a hot spot for Vespa hobbyists because of the proximity to Italy – the country has a huge community of second-generation Italians who have certainly infected the Swiss with this virus,” says Silke Küste, member of the Vespa Club Zurich and designer of its magazine.  

Robust, affordable and easy to ride: those were the main specifications for a small motorbike that Enrico Piaggio gave to engineer Corradino D’Ascanio. It also had to keep the rider’s clothes clean. Piaggio had inherited an aeronautical company, but when this was destroyed by Allied bombing during the Second World War, he looked for a plan B. Sensing demand in a battered country for a certain sense of freedom, he decided to make a personal – and cheap – form of mass transport: a motorised scooter.

The innovative Vespa scooter, designed by Corradino D’Ascanio, an engineer from Popoli, Italy. wikipedia.org

D’Ascanio achieved this by using light but solid materials – originally built from spare parts from Mussolini’s planes – and combined the popularity of two-wheeled transportation with the comfort of a car. Because of its unique design, notably the handlebars, and its unmistakable sound, the scooter was named the “Vespa”, Italian for wasp.

It was an immediate hit. Teenage boys (and older men who still lived at home) were able to take their sweethearts somewhere private, and more women took to driving a Vespa as no heavy leather suits were necessary. What’s more, it could be easily repaired.

Vespas in Switzerland

The concept of the new Vespa scooter spread like wildfire, with Switzerland taking up the trend by hosting the first International Vespa Rally in Geneva in May 1951External link.

More than 500 vehicles from all over Europe took part and, following that success, the Vespa Club of Switzerland was founded in 1952.

“Switzerland was the first country to import Vespas,” Silke Küste points out. “The Vespa Rally 175 model, built between 1970 and 1973, was especially made for the Swiss market to conform with road tax laws in Switzerland.”

By 1960, global sales had risen to two million. Vespa had become a lifestyle and was grabbing attention as a prop for film stars and as the vehicle of choice for the Mod subculture in Britain. Since then, millions more have been manufactured and exported around the world, including for use in campaigns by fashion labels such as Agent Provocateur, Vivienne Westwood, Givenchy and Dolce & Gabbana.

Küste estimates that Switzerland is today home to 50 official clubs with more than 1,000 members as well as 30-40 unofficial clubs. The next annual meeting of the international Vespa organisation (Vespa World DaysExternal link) will be held in Switzerland but has been postponed due to the pandemic until 2023.