Fed up with “L” plates? want to carry a passenger? want a bigger bike? If the answer is yes to any of these questions then it time to think about taking the practical test. So what’s involved? How old do I have to be to ride a big bike? Is the new test as difficult as people say? Do I have to do a theory test? The answer to all these questions and more can be found by following the link.
Like car drivers all riders who wish to take the practical test will have to take the theory test specific to motorcycles.
Your age will dictate which bike test you can take.
16 moped only
17 to 21 A2 restricted license.
21 and older A2 restricted or full Motorcycle license
The new motorcycle test is broken down into two parts or modules.
Module 1 is an off road riding exercise lasting around 10 minutes
Module 2 is an on road ride followed by the examiner to demonstrate your abilities to ride on the public roads safely.
Module 1 is what all the fuss has been about and whether we like it or not its here to stay. So is it as difficult or as dangerous as has been reported? Of course not. Do you seriously think the government would introduce a procedure that has the risk of litigation?
The difficulty has arisen over the training schools lack of available space to practice the required moves. Training areas are typically car parks or school playgrounds. Prior to the introduction of module 1, training schools only used their training area for CBT’s and an introduction to the larger bikes before to going on the road.
It is interesting to note that the minimum size approved by the DSA for a CBT site is 80ft by 30ft ie about the size of a tennis court. Now with module 1 we need enough space to get up to 32 mph to do the braking exercise and accident avoidance manoeuvre. It is not surprising therefore, there have been crashes! Most schools do not have the space to practice at full speed.
Yes they can hire the DSA sites (when the DSA are not using them) but for only 15 minute slots, barely enough time for a single student to have one try, let alone repeated practice.
We at RiA have a huge size with more than enough space to practice all the manoeuvres over and over again until the student is fully confident in what has to be done. Take a look at the video below to see the avoidance manoeuvre at full speed and ask yourself does this look dangerous? You can also see part of our site, giving you an idea of how much room we have.