moped/motorcycle licensing?

[Leicester Thumper]

hey all,

 

this month I will be applying for my provisional license to allow me to learn to drive a car. this I Believe, will allow me to ride a moped/learn to ride a motorbike.

 

I'm 18 will be nineteen on the 15th and am very confused over this. I have read up on all sorts of stuff and its too boggling. (personally I think the DVLA make it too complicated but anyway, back on topic)

 

I Really just want a moped to nip around on for the time being, can help with work and stuff like that but I don;t want a cr**y rev and go plastic heap cause i hate the damn things and they are all built like scooters, which i don't like the feel of. I ideally want something like an old Raliegh Runabout or Mobylette or something like that.

 

My dad, who is being a grumpy old such and such today can't seem to be bothered in helping me understand the regulations even though he has riden these things for years. hence why asking you cause you never know, one of you might work in the right area or have the experiance to know.

 

so i just need it clearing up. If i need to take more tests and tosh just to ride an historic 50cc then the DVLA can shove it up their exhaust manifold for the time being cause it will work out better to just get a car etc. so i'm just seeing what the regs are and what would be more logical.

[Coombe Barton]

You will probably get the advice you need somewhere like here - http://www.leicestermotorcycletraining.co.uk/

[chriswright03]

Not too sure where you have been looking that is complicated. Copied from the DVLA web site.

 

When to complete a CBT course

You will need to complete a CBT course if you want to ride:

 

• a moped
• a motorcycle

A moped has:

 

• an engine no bigger than 50 cubic centimetres (cc) capacity
• a top speed of no more than around 32 miles per hour, which is 50 kilometres per hour

Many experienced car drivers who take up motorcycling find that CBT is an eye opening experience which increases their awareness of hazards

 

 

If you have a car driving licence

If you passed your car driving test on or after 1 February 2001, you must complete a CBT course to confirm your full moped rights.

 

If you passed your car driving test before 1 February 2001 you don't need to complete a CBT course to ride a moped. However, the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) recommend that you do. Many experienced car drivers who take up motorcycling find that CBT is an eye opening experience which increases their awareness of hazards.

 

If you want to ride a motorcycle you must apply for a provisional motorcycle licence and then complete a CBT course.

 

 

When CBT is not needed

You don't have to take CBT if you have a:

 

• full moped licence from passing a full moped test after 1 December 1990
• full motorcycle licence for one category and want to upgrade to another

 

 

 

You will need to do your Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) and then you can ride a moped as defined. That is it.

 

Hope this helps

 

Chris

[Leicester Thumper]

thanks for the responses, followed coombe's link, I forgot about those guys, Also remembered Shires too, but I think they are more expensive, shall remember though!

 

it's just the insurance, as usual, which will kill it.

[Kenton]

I still think it is confusing as the summary is incomplete.

 

When CBT is not needed

You don't have to take CBT if you have a:

 

- full moped licence from passing a full moped test after 1 December 1990

- full motorcycle licence for one category and want to upgrade to another

 

or you passed your car driving test before 1 February 2001 and only ride a moped.

 

Am I the only one who sees the CBT as another compulsory scheme to create "jobs for the boys" a piece of red tape that you have to pay for that actually gives nothing - to get a full license you still need lessons and pass a test just like you did before CBT was introduced?

 

Note: this is not being critical of the skill imparted during the CBT just that the certificate seems a waste - a bit like giving a certificate to drive a car after completing say 10 lessons.

 

I have always thought it wrong that anyone with a full driving license can ride a motorbike without passing an appropriate test. But then I have also always thought the age to ride a motorised bike should be the same as for 4 wheels.

[chriswright03]

Kenton I didn't bother copying and pasting the entire page but I fail to see how it can be confusing that the OP needs to do a CBT as he does not meet any of the other criteria.

 

As regards the CBT well no it isn't just a piece of red tape or jobs for the boys. Having been a CBT instructor I can tell you that it does actually ensure that riders know how to handle the machine BEFORE riding on the public roads where they can be a danger to themselves or others. Many moons ago when I purchased my Lambretta the only thing I had to do was learn how to use the controls which I did by watching my mates. None of them taught me how to brake properly or how to plan ahead so that I was in a better position to react to danger.

 

Don't forget that two wheel users are at far greater risk in an accident and at least now before they go out on the road someone has taught them the basics. As regards having to pass a test later if they want a full licence well many never bother and just like the OP use it until they can afford to drive a car.

 

Also don't forget a learner in a car has an Instructor often with dual controls sat beside them. On two wheels they are on their own.

 

I can also say from my Police days that any training that stops a young bobby from having to knock on a parents door and give them the worst possible news is worth it's weight in gold.

 

 

Regards Chris

[Kenton]

Kenton I didn't bother copying and pasting the entire page but I fail to see how it can be confusing that the OP needs to do a CBT as he does not meet any of the other criteria.

 

and as the OP had been answered by your post I was expanding the topic to those of us who do not need to do a CBT ... apparently

 

Having been a CBT instructor I can tell you that it does actually ensure that riders know how to handle the machine BEFORE riding on the public roads where they can be a danger to themselves or others.

 

Despite the apparent difference of opinion - I was actually agreeing that there should be some form of training and test before anyone is allowed on the road on their own (just as with a motor car); also that the age to do so should be the same as with a car; also that those of us who have an old license should not be considered as not needing training. It is certainly not the training I object to, it is the half-way trained certification process.

 

Though in many respects I see the motor vehicle driving license to be a half-way trained certificate.

 

So I am all for more training for all people who take a wheeled vehicle on the roads. I am also one of those who does not believe that the more miles you drive the better a driver you are.

[skipepsi]

I think its the same as 'I am a fast driver' does not mean 'I am a good driver' substitute rider for driver and the same applies.

[bertiedog]

Not a recommendation, but the other exception are electric bikes, which in the simplest legal form are free from both license or taxation. They may be very practical if the journeys are short and regular to work. Longer trips are out though.and style is not exactly an option, but then you do mention a Mobylette!

Stephen.

[Lady_Ava_Hay]

You cannot drive a moped or a scooter limited to 30mph on a car provisional licence. If you apply for a moped licence you can take the CBT and then drive under L Plates. it used to be ad infinitum but I believe that provisional licences now only last two years.

 

The DVLA have tried hard over the past few years to both increase their income and to stop the 'licence for life' syndrome.

 

It relies on policing and there just isn't time to do that. I do find that i get very rusty if I don't drive a type of vehicle for a year or so but the necessary skills do come back very quickly. at the same time the desire to operate a vehicle that is 'exciting' soon palls as you get older and both comfort, automation and longevity without major problems are the watchwords.

 

Both mopeds and pedal cycles, even electric ones, suffer from exposure to the weather and inability to keep out of harms way using adequate speed.

 

I do hold a full motorcycle licence, was a courier for 4 years and also hold and have used a full PCV licence.

[darren01]

HI

What ever bike you get make sure you get some good bike clothing ,seen to many lads on their scooters just wearing a T shirt and jeans .

Not fun when you come off and have to have half of the road removed from your body

Good luck

[froobyone]

Just to clarify, as there is some erroneous information posted here.

 

At 16 you can ride a moped on a provisional licence after passing the CBT (DL196 certificate), this lasts for two years. There is no such thing as a provisional moped licence, it's a car licence. All car licences have moped entitlement.

 

Full car licence holders need to validate the full moped licence by completing a CBT, if they passed after 1st Feb 2001, this means they can ride without L plates and carry a pillion. Ones that passed before 1st Feb 2001 don't need to.

 

After 17, providing you have requested catagory A on your provisional licence, you can then ride up 125cc with a power output of no more than 11kw (approx 12bhp). Category A lasts for two years, after which you lose the entitlement, unless you have passed either of the two motorcycle tests.

 

The motorcycle tests consist of the "light motorcycle test" A1, which is a full licence, but restricted on the power output of the bike you can ride. Up to 11kw. You can do the test on your own bike.

 

The other option, if you are under 21, is the full motorcycle licence A. This allows you to ride a motorcycle up to 33bhp for two years, then it automaticaly turns into an unrestricted licence.

 

If you are over 21, then you can do "Direct Access" test and which you are trained, usually on a 500cc (at least 35kw) motorcycle. Then you have an unrestricted licence.

 

Hope this clarifies things.

 

And if you want to know how I know this, I'm a fully qualified CBT1C and DAS instructor. (CBT1C allows me to train instructors)

 

To answer some of the other points made on here. CBT saves lives. If you saw the ability of some of the 16 year olds I've instructed and then imagined them heading out on a brand new Peugeot Speedfighter, which can do 0-30 in a little under half a planck second, then it would make your skin itch.

 

Even after 3 hours doing off road area work and then a two hour classroom lecture, some of them still don't grasp it. So I fail them and they have to come back for extra training.

 

I know there are people alive today, that wouldn't be if they hadn't have spent a day with us learning the how to control a bike and be safe on the road.

 

The amount of car drivers that came in for DAS courses who didn't even have the most basic grasp of road signage/markings/rules. Terrifying. Ask most of them what the right hand lane of a dual carridgway is actually for and they look at you blank...

 

The government don't make a lot from CBTs, most of the money you pay is to the training school. We, in the industry, have been calling for years to have the CBT as a pre-requisite to having any type of licence.

 

The roads can only be a safer place.