UK Moto Licensing

[Isleoman]

Gaining a motorcycle licence might be about to get easier

Gaining a motorcycle licence currently is a drawn-out, expensive, and complex task, although it might be about to get a bit more simple

www.visordown.com

"Compared to learning to drive a car, passing your full motorcycle test can also be prohibitively expensive, not to mention time-consuming. Estimates from various training bodies we spoke to placed the cost of gaining your bike licence at anything from £800 to £1,200. These are all factors that current motorcyclists, and lobbyists like the Motorcycle Action Group (MAG), think needs to change"................................


Not sure I could go through what rider's endure in the UK to get a license. Not suggesting training is a bad thing.

I looked for per capita comparisons between the UK and the Wild West (USA) related to Moto safety and couldn't find them. UK is a more densely populated country so might not be a perfect comparison.

Would you go through a tiered licensing process like the UKs if you had to do it again? I guess my vote would be "only begrudgingly".

Comes down to ...........If you need insurance to protect your assets, then your wasting your money on it with no license.

 

[Klurejr]

I would like a tiered system in the US similar to what Australia has - but not exactly like it.

There is no reason an 18 year old kid should be allowed to go take a quick and easy written test, get a permit and then go buy a 200hp Sport Bike.

I think some reasonable limits to engine size and experience on a bike can be put in place.

But that will never happen because MERICA and FREEDOM.

 

[Isleoman]

Klurejr thanks for your comments.

I'm unabashedly Pro America and Pro Personal Freedom, which is not to say I couldn't get behind an MSF style training session in between a written permit and a full license.

I looked into the Australia system based on your input and from what I read it seems to be what I've outlined above, please correct me if I missed what's good about Australian system

What I especially don't like is a system that requires the purchase of multiple bikes of increasing capacity to get to the Freedom to buy what you want. Very time consuming and very expensive.

All of my early motorcycle mishaps were the result of alcohol (I'm now 50 years sober) and youthful stupidity. No amount of training would have impacted those results. Stopping me from getting a license till I was 25 might have helped me, but would be totally unfair to those without demons.

Back to MSF training .....it was a requirement to be able to drive onto the military installation where I worked. Held each summer it use to garner 15 to 20 students, some with many years of experience and some new bees. Of the 15 in my class 5 dropped their bikes with resulting damage during the training exercises. One trainee was a 50 something engineer with a prosthetic leg. He had been driving for decades with no incidents but managed to drop his small bike three times during the advanced skills training. Training on base was free, the damage was your responsibility.
At the same time Harley use to sponsor MSF training and would issue their smallest bikes as loners for the class which is applaudable. By the way the HD class was acceptable to the military for base access, but it cost about $150.

My preference would be for Insurance incentives to promote training when it can be proven the training works and produces the desired results.

 

[bunk]

There is no reason an 18 year old kid should be allowed to got take a quick and easy written test, get a permit and then go buy a 200hp Sport Bike.

Remember when kawasaki would sell you a bike soo long as you had life insurance, didnt even need motorcycle insurance.

I believe in natural selection. If a 18 year old has the means to get a 200hp bike let em. If he lives, he will be a better human as a result.

 

[Klurejr]

I believe in natural selection. If a 18 year old has the means to get a 200hp bike let em. If he lives, he will be a better human as a result.

I certainly see that side of the argument.


Here is why I favor something more like the Australian system where you need some time under your belt before you move on to a bigger displacement bike.


I started riding dirt bikes when I was 15. When I was 18 I jumped on a Katana 600 for a quick spin with no M1. I scared myself so bad I stayed away from street bikes until I was in my 30's.

When I went to get my M1 I took a private lesson with a retired CHP Motorcycle officer - he spent time with me to get me up to speed on how to pass the Practical riding test - the program even let me use the bike he trained me on.

During the time we worked together he told me some interesting stories and facts about his time in the CHP. He told me the accident and death numbers of Motorcyclists are really skewed because a big part of those numbers are very young and inexperienced riders solo crashing from running off the road over a cliff, into a mountainside or across the doubles into traffic. He had no reason to make that up and it makes sense with my own experiences. Young men feel invincible and push themselves when they don't have experience. Heck they could push themselves and crash and die on a small displacement bike as well, but it takes much more skill and control to ride a slow bike fast.

I do think the Australian method is too strict and the fact that insurance is based on the engine size is a crock - but there is some merit to having a brand new rider start small before they get something so fast.

Heck - make it where you can get those restrictions lifted if you take a safety course or something else to prove you have some hours under your belt. Getting your permit is pretty dang easy - at least the M1 has a practical exam.


Being able to legally ride a superbike with just a permit is a bit strange. At least when getting a permit for driving a car you have some restrictions in place to make sure you are not out hooning in the canyons one your first day driving.

 

[bunk]

Dang, i talked to my buddy in the uk yesterday and getting a mc license/endorsement there is a chore. For good reason IMO, i believe the uk is the center of the motorcycle universe.