A lot of people are calling this "money making" I will leave this here, saves me replying the same thing. Whenever anyone says "its to make money" I have to point this out. Of the say £700-800 people pay to do a licence, only £100 goes to the gov in test fees. I really do not think it is making anyone enough to make that argument, many pay more than that monthly in tax opposed to once in a lifetime. The people making the most money is the schools and the examiners being paid to do the tests. For this reason I do not buy in to their idea being to "make money" because it isn't making anyone but the schools money and they do not make the rules.
The schools pay tax on the extortion money they charge so its a loop of the schools make money and so do the government on top of the £100 you mentioned the government get.
and what does the current govt take/collect from the current CBT fee... how many 2year periods would a rider have to retake cbt and ride legally to get to £100level that the govt now gets after 2 years only???? it needed for a true comparision to what you stated... (EDIT) btw the way i passed before any off this stuff came in so i have no vested interest personally
I’m so glad I was born in the 60s, things were so much simpler, when I did my test an examiner told me to go around the block on my Honda superdream and take the next available right turn, I went down the street and he jump out in front of me for an emergency stop. Im in my 60s now and love motorbikes as much as I did as a lad. Big smile on my face when out on my triumph tiger 900.
Haha.....my experience was the same. I got lost at one point one left turn too many. I passed on my RD250 then sold organized bought an RD400. Enjoyed it and riding will never be like it was
Superdream … nice bike. Remember them well. Tiger’s very nice, too. A couple of mates have one. Similar experience at 17, in 1981, on Dad’s CG125, I think … went round a few cones in Writtle one day, went round the block in Southend-on-Sea the next. The examiner was so far away when he stepped out for the emergency stop I had to accelerate towards him for about 50yds before braking. Got myself a Yamaha RD 250 shortly thereafter. As a ‘born-again’ biker I’m loving my new Super Meteor 650.
Same for me. I was on a Vespa, it had crap brakes but I Managed to stop because I saw him from a hundred yards away. I’m pretty sure he made sure I saw him and can’t blame him for that. Bought my Yamaha the next day!
It's just crazy... I did my CBT at 16, full test at 17, restricted to 33bhp for 2 years and then good to go. The system was fine IMO. Biking used to be a cost effective alternative to a car, now, given the cost of bikes, all the tests, the safety gear, the insurance... just blows my mind.
@@cw3728 Absolutely, even the used market is a mess right now. I recently bought a '91 Intruder 750 for £1400 and I've spent easily the same again making it roadworthy. Seeing the price of new bikes, especially for learners right now, or even used bikes in good condition, is eye watering
Completely agree, I don't think there was anything wrong with that setup. I did mine at 18, after they brought out the two part practical test but before the shambles it is now. Restricted for 2 years and could then ride anything at 20. Mod one cost a tenner which I passed first time on my DT. Did a days training for the second part, including the test was about £200. The price that people pay now is astronomical! And then people don't want to pay out more money to lose the restriction so they then ride "illegally" because their bike makes too much power for their licence! Definitely think that bit has to change.
I passed my full bike licence on my 17th birthday for £28. Got straight on a BSA 650 A65. The same bike as what Boon had. The days before the nanny state.
Passed mine after 8 months in 1987, on a Suzuki GP100 - been riding almost daily ever since with one off caused by a driver pulling out on me. Not the bikers who need restricting IMO
@@rogerkay8603 almost a beginner to me...i passed mine in 1976...became an Instructor in 1991...have been a courier most of my working life...covered around a Million Kilometres...68 crashes...about 44 bikes mostly Hondas...around 60/70 thousand deliveries...lots of scars...1 small fracture (plated)...one time knocked unconscious...retired...OAP...counting down the last years of my riding career...maybe 5 or 6 or 7 more...we'll see
@@esotericman22 I'm 53, and don't ride like a loon and still got knocked off, hurt and my bike written off because a cager didn't BOTHER to look at a junction - I feel your pain when bikes blow past but it's their life they're risking, not yours is it?
@@retiredbore378 It was a bit of a beast after a Yamaha 125. I was a skinny 17 year old. It was had to kick off let alone ride which was like riding a bull.
£1600 it cost me for a quick pass weeks course. I did the four part test at 63 😁 I could have joined my mates back in the 70s with the simple test,but never seemed to get the time. I am well chuffed.
The main thing that bothers me with the current system as an A2 licence holder, is that in order to upgrade to the A licence in two years time, I will need to back to a training centre, pay a fortune for lessons/to use their bikes, and then do the exact two tests that I have already passed, on the exact same bike (only unrestricted).
@@steve00alt70 I did my A2 on a restricted MT07. 2 years later, I took my full A on a de-restricted MT07. Exactly the same weight and couldn’t even notice a difference in power as I hardly went over 5K rpm. The test was literally identical to my A2 and I didn’t learn a thing. Hundreds of pounds down the train due to stupid licensing rules.
As a previous A2 holder that is a pain. I redone my whole physical test again a few months ago. Being stuck on an A2 when your friends can afford to upgrade and you can’t is sooo frustrating. In the end my dad paid for it out of the goodness of his heart as I couldn’t pay for it. I feel you though I had 9 years of an A2. Younger people have said to me I want to do my test and are about 19-21. I was like such a waste of money and time. Just CBT it, get no claims then do direct access.
That’s not true. You can book your test directly with the DVSA at www.gov.uk/book-driving-test You will need a Cat A motorcycle, of course, but no need for a bike school.
The Government is usually motivated by what extra business activities they can drum up and then tax accordingly. The suggestions and guidance will come from the trade bodies, usually dressed in health and safety garb to disguise the true intention. Call me a cynical old hector but my guess is that if anything actually changes it will just be the tax take. They are bankrupt and utterly desperate. 😂. I have my mod 1 coming up so I had better get a shifty on!
Glad I'm old and did my test in 1979. So complicated (and expensive) now. Back then 16 - 50cc on "L" plates no training, then 17 years old 250cc on "L" plates, one test ( ride round the block one way then the other), - Full licence ride what you like.
Which is why we all knew someone who didn't make it because they went out an bought an H1 / H2 or similar at the age of 17 and with minimal experience. I remember my test - round the block left, round the block right and then an emergency stop at about walking pace plus a few questions - joke really. The key take I get on this is that people can legally start getting training and experience at 14 years of age - which is a much better situation than we have now.
Same here, [1979/1980] aged 17 I bought a little Yamaha 100 on L Plates, AGED 18 I managed to borrow a few quid and got a Honda 250 superdream on L plates. At 19 years old I Took the RAC course then straights afterwards took my full test, [if I had failed the test I would have had to get 125 because the law had changed] [but passed fine so all was OK] At 20 years old I Then swapped the 250 Honda for a susski GT 550. In most cases Your type and size of bike was limited to your budget, We were all pretty poor so everyone rode around small bikes because that was all you could afford and slowly worked your way up. But there was the rich kid up the road who passed his full test on Friday on a Yamaha 250 and on Monday morning went out and bought a Kawasaki Z900’ [envy, envy, envy 😂😂😂]
Like you took my test early 70's. No CBT then, but at 17 when I said "Hey Dad I am going to buy a bike to get to my apprentice school as the bus is expensive" He said "only if you take a course, otherwise you won't get my Moniker as guarantor on the loan" Took and thouroughly enjoyed and passed a locally run RAC/ACU training scheme course, run over several weeks. He was right, you benefit from other riders experience. The current scheme might be a bit overlayered and adds to the cost, but if more young men reach old age with all their limbs it is well worth it. Too many of my peers didn't.
The most important advice I was ever given from my instructor was to imagine that every time you go out onto the road everyone else is trying to kill you; and be sure you know what's going on around you at all times. Most people killed on motor cycles are quite young riding small machines and often it's the lack of road craft that does it, not so much the capacity of the bike. I'm seventy and still here because I took his advice, It's also good to ride out with older riders who will watch your back.
I took and passed my Cycling Proficiency Test aged 11 which was basically today’s CBT on a cycle. At 16 I took and passed my motorcycle (ride around the block) test and at 17 my car test. All the required knowledge, experience and road craft having been gained from that original CPT which, as part of my schooling, cost me nothing but over several weeks of training taught me everything to be safe on the roads.
I have commented similar elsewhere ,we couldn't ride to school until you had a CPT .it was a great foundation that has seen me into my 50's without a ticket or serious accident.
I took the same route except I did not take my car test until 18. Absolutely no motorcycle training. Over 200k on motorcycles later & still have all my bits.
Good point! Since there’s now no CPT people only get taught about being a road user when they want an engine. The CPT introduces road safety and the associated ‘common sense’ at an earlier age. Bring back the CPT!
I’ve just passed my CBT at 52….. I’m itching to get competent and progress. I know very little. What I DO know is you are offering a whole good to me and many younger versions of me, free of charge. No only do you do this, which in itself is pretty god damn awesome, but you do it very well. You’ve got my respect.
@@robmoon6442 I agree, I driving license regardless of category is indeed a privilege and definitely not a good given right. I'm going to be very harsh here and say I've always believed that you should only get say 4 attempts at getting your license and if you can do that then it's public transport or push bike for you, like I said this will probably be unpopular and it's just my opinion
@@LeaBrattle-parker-pp5sf . I rarely offer opinion on things I know an embarrassingly little about but that does seem sensible (he types having passed his car at fourth attempt…gulp)
When i got mine many many years ago it was round the block on a 125, passed got straight onto a GSX 1100. Was bloody terrified of it so the learning curve was fast. However to date have not had an 'off' that 1100 taught respect for the power, and performance. I do believe that everyone should have a year on a bike before getting a car, being on a bike teaches you very quickly to watch what the others are doing.
This will be interesting, for sure. Currently if you have a full car driving licence and you do the CBT it enables full cat AM on your licence. This means you can ride 50cc mopeds without L plates even after the CBT expires. The proposed changed would seem to indicate that full car licence holders who've completed the CBT, and thus get Full AM would then be given 125cc access. I think 125cc bikes on a full car licence is much better than the 50cc at the moment as it wouldn't feel like a downgrade in terms of keeping up with traffic on a 50cc with it's speed restrictions in place.
@@MKBx1 not quite mate! E-bikes and scooters can not LEGALLY go that fast. If you want an e-bike to legally go over 15.5mph it has to be registered as a Moped…as you know with yours. Reconfiguring eapc to full Moped spec needs a lot of work before it can registered. I did have an e-bike that could do 28, but fear of getting a big fine made me sell it, my new eapc is supposedly compliant according to the mfr rating plate…hope so!
I spent 3 years riding a 50cc on my car licence (AM) Yes, it was hell. I'm now riding a 125cc on a CBT. Does this mean that I could just remove my L plates & ride a 125cc on an AM licence when my CBT runs out? I was going to do the A1, but what's the point?
Doing the a1 is just pointless. Say you get ur cbt at 17, why would u spend all that money just to be on the same bike, the cbt is there so u can get a 125 and practise on it before going up in power.
100% agree with most of the changes, especially bringing down the age for Direct Access, been driving since I was 17. Cheaper than doing a CBT and insuring a bike.. In that time I've been waiting to get a motorbike license, I've qualified in a trade, re-trained, suffered through cancer, bought a house yet I am still not trusted to be able to train to ride a motorcycle after a CBT & 2 tests. 24 is just too late, 21 seems a lot more reasonable. I am preparing to just do the Direct Access at the moment, theory is done. All booked in for around March next year. Just a long time coming.
I am just glad I took my bike test back in 1979, took one test and passed and went from a 125 to a GS1000S suzuki in a day. Now those were the focking good days. Still riding now in my 60's with a GSXR750 and GS550E I bought over 20 years ago. Ah I miss the old days when things were not as focked up by our self absorbed politicians and woke brigade as they are today, You called it like it was back then and if you focked about you would take the outcome of it on your own shoulders not cry like a little girl.
I took my test in 1963, very simple. Ride a few weeks on my Triumph Speed Twin 500 , apply for my test . Test was ride in a figure of 8 around the houses. Test passed, L plates over the nearest fence. Been riding big bikes since, never had a real crash, fell off in the ice a couple of times and that’s it. Now aged 77 and have given up riding for health and safety of others. So very complicated now.
@@micheallastname5772 yep. I did a CBT a few weeks ago and asked how was business going. They said it was mostly food delivery guys doing CBT re-do (or first timers).
When I was young, the motorbike gave so many of my peers something to live and work for. True, there were many deaths, however nowadays there are so many kids stuck at home with no ambition, I always felt the motorcycle gave kids ambition and generally led to better mental health and fewer suicides.
Yes thats actually a great point and great comment. I think younger people are so restricted in everything these days that some feel nothing is worth living for.
I’m coming up to 40 and have taken my CBT twice so far and was just planning to repeat this as I only use my motorbike for commuting to work, as it’s a lot quicker than the bus. I haven’t taken a test as I get anxiety, but this might force my hand, so as long as I can get through the anxiety, it might be good as I can then get a bigger bike. However, if I can’t, I guess it’s back to the bus 😢
if your happy to take cbt every 2 years whats the problem ? the i am alright got my full licence pull up the ladder people make them retake their test every 2 years and see what they say to that idea ?
I rode my first bike with L plates fitted with a sidecar at 16 a BSA A10 ,which was a hell of a lump to throw around when in those days I weighed about a third of what I do at the moment ?. The test like others have said a quick wizz around the block and I even took the tester up the road and through the gears ,but as a lad who"s Granddad had a farm and at the back of our house was a massive British Road Services lorry park so I had ridden bikes ,scooters & mopeds around since I was 10 .But then Biking was not just for fun ,it was a way of life and used by most adults for all forms of transport as modern cars are today . Anybody who ever rode a outfit will tell you they need more talent ,especially to ride - fast . It helped me because most members of the family including my late wife"s - rode bikes, well my Father & Mother in law ,did .I still own a collection of big bikes in my 70s and some classic cars . If I had my time over again I would almost certainly not bother getting a bike License ,just one read of the woes and expense on this page would tell you why ?. But I hardly think saying much higher insurance premiums will effect the driving of high powered cars ,that is hardly the point - the harder rules with Big Bikes hardly make it fair . MY local corner shop owning Asian guy has a handful of sons who fly around in every kind of Supercar thanks to their rich Dad being a nice bloke & Dad and paying their enormous insurance fees and of course Clarkson guarantee that only the rich will be able to own a car well into the future and come the laws about E.V. all this will seem to be even more weird ?.
There’s a massive issue here that no one has grasped, by 2030 you won’t be able to buy a petrol 125 it will have to be electric. So to move up to a full A test means you’ll have to learn on a geared ICE bike which get phased out 5 years later. Makes no sense when you combine these new power categories test categories. Currently you can’t take a full A test on an full power electric bike. Big lack of joined up thinking here.
I did pt 1, pt 2, then local motorcycle school (Lansdown , Bath) where there was a basic course and also then Advanced, which was literally based on the Police Riders Handbook and we were examined by Police Riders in pursuit with comms, course was like £60, so happy I did it all back then, but in this old era there were still crazy fast RG125s , TZRs, MBXs, so I can imagine what a de-restricted full on 2 stroker at 22KW for a 17 year, blinking nippy little screamers, wow I would have loved a go on that at 17 instead of my crappy FR80 Suzuki step through...now in my old age(haha) I'd settle for a GS500 or CB500 sized twin, all I see are 20mph zones and very few National limits left, it's all 40's between villages that are 20mph, gone are the days where you could fill up my F reg GPZ500S and howl from Bath to Woolacombe with all your mates GPz550, GSX550 GPX750 old hulks...or Cheddar...oh the memories are coming back now...jeez Rob had an RG500...the smell of 2 Stroke😁
Good God! How confusing! I took my motorcycle test in August 1962. Since then, I've driven just about everything under the sun, from an Ariel Golden Arrow to an 1800cc Honda Gold Wing without incident of any kind. I took my car licence the following year (1963) and I've never had a ticket or claim of any kind. The old ways were the best ways in my opinion, and didn't need a "Job's worth" who doesn't drive at all to mess with it.
We switched to the conveluted Mod1 Mod2 system because it was an EU directive. Interestingly, the vast majority of the rest of the EU said "bollocks to that" and carried on with their current systems.
I passed my Car test in 1971 at the age of 17 but couldn't afford my own car straight away, so I bought a cheap used 250cc Suzuki 'Super Six' and used it as my main transport for the next 3 years, just on 'L' plates. Since then, I have mainly driven cars, ranging from 500cc to 6,000cc, only using motorbikes as and when needed. I did my first CBT in 2008 on 125, and found it hilarious. I felt that it was aimed at people who had never even seen a road before, let alone travelled on one! For the next 18 months, I rode a Honda Varadero, 6 days a week around the City of London covering 12,000 miles without issue, then got a new job that made a car more practical. In 2011, I did my 2nd CBT on a 650cc bike, simply because I found out that you could - even though I could only legally ride a 125 afterwards! A few years later, I found out that my car licence will allow me to ride a 'Trike', so I sold the Varadero and bought a 500cc Gilera Fuoco - which I can ride any time I like. No more silly CBT's, I can take a passenger and even ride on motorways! The whole motorcycle licencing thing is a joke - mainly because you end up with a small group of highly skilled, rigorously trained road users, navigating the roads on power-restricted unsafe vehicles, amongst a sea of bigger, more powerful vehicles, with drivers of vastly differing skills and experience who think they are invincible. I haven't found a significant difference between driving a car and riding a bike - and before you shout 'Observations' - No. The observations you are taught on a motorcycle are exactly the same as the ones you are supposed to be doing in a car!
Why did you do CBT if you passed your car test in 1971.... talk about shooting yourself in the foot.... government loves people like you paying out when you did not have to.
Unless theyre playing chicken with a lorry or similar barriers, they generally are invincible. Their cars might not be but they should survive. Thankfully it only took me about a year on my 125 to get competent, my mod 2 is in a month so hopefully i can start using a bike that isnt crippled in performance
So glad I got my bike licence back when it was simple. A 250cc on L plates, ride around the block test, and then ride whatever you liked. It was a great time to be young, not like today.
Most of these proposals seem sensible enough (which means the government will sit on them them like it did the 2016 proposals) But the CBT>CBT+>A1 progression seems overly complex for new riders, particularly with the CBT and A1 having differing engine power restrictions. I'd change it so the 11kw limitation is removed completely in favour of 22kw, and the CBT cannot be repeated but the CBT+ can. Raising the base level of training while letting newer riders have a bit more power is a fair trade-off, imho. One important thing is the new 22kw A1 *must* be doable on a 125 so as to remove the trap of scooter riders having to learn on a geared bike to get a license for anything beyond 11kw because schools almost never have automatics more powerful than 125. That's why 250/300 scooters are so rare in the UK, current 125 riders who'd like an upgrade are faced with a costly faff to get there.
That is kinda a different situation though isn't it. Sidenote, not as an argument its just really interesting. I think there was only one 18yr old spitfire pilot Geoffrey Wellum, so that was very much the exception rather than the norm. The average age was early 20s so not a huge difference., but that means people of today could be riding any motorcycle at the same age if they passed A2 at 19 and then full A at 21.
I’ve just downtrained as a cbt instructor, after just a few sessions I’m finding that there is a greater need for the 1st time cbt to be a 2 day course as it’s adding extra pressure to try nd complete in 1 day especially if they’ve never ridden before
Initially, I agree, as a retired instructor I experienced a lot of long days trying to instil basic road safety in 16 and 17 year olds. The scope of the current CBT is too wide. Having to do the theory test first should make the CBT about motor bike control and less about basic road safety. On the surface a good move. However, I had several repeat CBT customers who were perfectly safe riders, who needed a motorbike to get to work. I live in a rural area with very poor public transport. I did try and encourage them to take the test as I knew they’d pass the practical parts easily. But, they were not able to pass the theory test as they had severe test nerves or had learning difficulties that meant the theory test was too hard because of the reading required. The proposed changes would exclude them as the couldn’t pass the theory test in order to do the CBT. How will they get to work?
simple make the cbt a 2 day course day one road rules then day 2 on road ? or let people chose a 3 day cbt 1 day rules of road day 2 on road day 3 cbt + but if you go pay for 3 day cbt it lasts all your riding life on l plates as long as you dont get 6 points then if you get pulled points they take it off you and you do it again same as if you pass your car test then get too many points in first 2 years they kick you down to provinsal licence make you resit test.
In whole, these changes are positive. But it is incredibly frustrating for those like me who took my A2 and full A license in the last few years and have to spend a fortune to do so. Didn't help that my examiner got a rear puncture on the test and had to cancel delaying my pass by another month...
In the exact same boat as you now. I’ve had my A2 since 2020 and have put off doing my full A until now. I feel very hard done to that I’ve got to do it all again now! Been riding a Bandit 650 for 4 years, pains me to think I’ll be doing my test on practically the same bike but unrestricted.
I started riding in the 1970's, held various bikes at that time (shown on DVLA records) on a Provisional old style licence upto 225cc. Then along came CBT. Even after owning and riding on U.K roads for a few years of higher cc, All of a sudden, I was alleged to be a death risk, with no experience, although I had never had a bad spill off a bike. I have been driving cars just as long and yet, I have to do a CBT just to get on anything above a moped (for which, I can just get on and ride with a full moped Licence as part of my car lIcence). Has a moped more than 2 wheels I wonder ? (hint of sarcasm) .. I get that faster is more dangerous, but it's ok to drive a car at 70 MPH and have good reaction time and awareness of other road users. Plus I also have ridden bikes at that speed without dying for years. I currently have a 5 year bike no claims bonus as a result of using a 125 on the U.K roads (again without killing myself or others), as a result of a misunderstanding as to whether I was actually licenced to do so. DVLA said I had (I even returned my licence to them for verification) and then I was looking for another insurer who said I wasn't licenced. Again, much arguing and then got that bored with it, I sold the bike to save any possible legal breach. The whole CBT system is a complete waste of time. You can't actually fail a CBT and some of us who like riding bikes, have years of experience on bikes anyway. Common sense should prevail if you have owned and used bikes on U.K roads previously. Surely, if you can stay upright and without killing yourself or others, do you have to prove it again and again every 2 years ? .. What changes even after 2 further years road experience ? .. surely experience should improve, not go backwards ? Rant over :)
I did a part 1 and a part 2. Nice and simple. My son, did a CBT and then the theory and he failed the theory a few times, with the 2-part bit, he passed one part but kept failing the other and this was random, and he failed by 1, 2 or 3 points and thats all. In the end he gave up. He is now no longer riding a bike or driving a car as he is sick of it. My daughter is in a similar situation with her car test, although her instructor was clearly a money grabber and she has now stopped learning to drive completely as she was waiting for a test for almost 3 years now and she has been promised test after test after test and its been postponed many times... We now think that this is all down to her instructor! This is a huge shame, but the thing is, that his mates are in a similar position. In our bike club, there is 4 Chapters and 73 members, and we had brought the issue with the multi-part tests and there re a huge number of people that simply do not want to drive or ride a bike purely because the tests are nothing more than money makers.
I'm all for progressive learning particularly for younger riders who naturally have little or no road experience when they start out . However , no system allows for 'one size fits all' and there should perhaps be some exceptions. I took my CBT and bought my 125 as it was all I wanted in order to get around locally and at low cost. I have no desire to own a larger bike. I renewed my CBT after the first two years and was intending to continue that process under the current rules. I have had no accidents in the past 3 years since I started biking and I'm an IAM advanced car driver. Now I'm potentially being told that I 'have to progess' and take the CBT+ as well. If someone is on the current 2 year CBT renewal system , I believe they should be able to continue as that's basically what they signed up for under rules at the time they purchased a bike.
You can just do the A1 license right now even if your over 19 iirc(on your own bike), If you believe you meet the standard go do the test(s). No need for any riding school or anything, It's honestly probably cheaper and less faff than doing CBTs every 2 years in the long term. The CBT is meant to make you a learner hence why you have to ride around with L plates, If you can ride around on L plates for 10 years* it kinda defeats the point in them. The only extra thing's you'ld get from an A1 are pillions and the motorway, so it's not even really progressing, and anyway, I would do A1 just to be able to ditch the L plates, drivers are so much less aggressive once you do that, it's like some of them see red(litterally) and go "must overtake". *Or even worse, doing commerical work on them, you should not be able to do work for reward on a learners permit.
@@hazelforest1543 Hi Hazel , thanks for your comments , agree with all the points you make particularly riding for commercial purposes on L plates. I was thinking of the A1 route but will now bite the bullet and am going for the full test as have been tempted by a slightly larger bike.
I’m on a A1 license took the test on a 125 to reduce the cost, Been riding bikes for many years so being able to ride upto 22kw means 250cc and some Sluggish 350s like royal Enfield, so not much of a power increase but saves taking more tests, but if it’s made law it will probably take another 10 years, 🙄
Mostly good changes and desperately needed, however I would have liked to see an alternative upgrade path for A1/A2 holders who have completed an advanced riding certificate. I currently have an A2 and will have to wait another 1.5 years to do my full A under the current system, yet I have a ROSPA Silver advanced riding qualification which is way beyond the requriements for the standard test or new "ATB assessment".
I would love to see some attention to new riders that hold an advanced driving qualification. I'm IAM certified with 7 years experience behind the wheel, and I've just started riding. I've got a copy of RoadCraft for both, I find that they're 80% identical, and I use as many transferable skills as possible while out and about. I agree that a mandatory theory test before a CBT is a good idea. The thought of 17 year olds whizzing around at 60mph on the very limited education they get in a CBT is terrifying.
I started teaching just as the Mod1, Mod2 test sequence started. An ATB assessment to progress an individual’s licence was allowed in the E.U. Driving Licence directive that triggered the change to a two part practical test, but the DSA, now the DVSA didn’t want that route available in the UK. I don’t know if it was allowed elsewhere in Europe. These suggested changes are basically, ‘Do what the law has always allowed, plus a bit to sort out electric scooters’.
Did my CBT at 52 last month. Have been driving for over 30years but the bike insurance is stupidly expensive! Got a TC Max after watching your series of reviews! Not interested in getting anything else so may do my A1, would be nice to do it on my bike but charge wouldn't last long enough to do the test on, when are they going to factor that in? Still way too complicated, even now I see bikes that are clearly bigger than 125cc with L plates on, which you shouldn't be riding unless under instruction. People are always going to ride illegally when it's this overly complicated to get a licence.
Does seem even more complicated than ever lol. Got back into bikes after donkeys years. Did my cbt at 48 I think. Thought I don't want to mess about with this lark every 2 years, so did my full test before the next cbt was due. Was a long and expensive progress but worth it in the end. Can ride any size bike now without any worries.
@@gamesessions the mod 1 is about 15 ish minutes, the mod 2 about 45 mins if memory serves. Don't forget you have to get to a test centre too. Not sure what a TC Max is if I'm honest, I did mine on the schools 600cc bike. I noticed your insurance comment, I'm 52 and ride a triumph Street triple and mines a tad over £200 fully comp.
I use the TC Max just to commute to work and back a round trip of 52miles. I think it would do the Mod 1 part of the test no problems but Mod 2 it would probably run out of charge depends on range and speed you go for the 30-40 test duration. I mean it takes me about 40mins to do the 25miles to work and I get there with about 27% charge remaining. My insurance on the TC Max was about £420!!! If I want an bigger electric bike going through the comparison sites don't come back with any quotes 😯 So all of this licence messing about really means nothing as it's the insurance companies that will ultimately police it via not providing insurance or quoting stupidly expensive premiums. Or as is the way people will be riding illegally as they can't afford it and will need to get to work. Where I live there is no public transport for.people who work shifts, so what choice is there?
@@mrwiggy25 if you're going to go through the test you may as well do it on a bigger bike. That's way you're not restricted on what you can ride. Insurance comes down too if you're on a full licence. My 675 is way cheaper to Insure than my 125 was.
Jesus it's complicated today. When I took my test it was on a GT250 Suzuki, and all I did was ride round the block with the examiner walking the the route. I did one ride going left around the block, then one ride going right around the block. Just before I first rode off the examiner said that at some point he'd give me a hand signal from the pavement - he demonstrated the signal - and that then I was to perform an emergency stop, stopping before him. He gave me a ridiculous length of street to stop in, I thought he was taking the piss! I doubt the whole test took more than 15/20 minutes...
LOL, I passed my test on a Yamaha XS850 with a 1950s sidecar grafted on for the learner phase. Riding with a sidecar was extremely tricky, accelerate the thing pulls to the left, brake and it slews to the right, right turns, no real problem, left turns, the sidecar lifts if you push it too hard. The best training ever, fast track to cautious riding.
Excellent video, full of great information as always. I have a full licence sonit doesn't affect me, I do like the ideas proposed,it does seem to make it a bit cheaper, I've personally never understood the mod1, mod2 thing. As for those that will mean that they can't constantly repeat the CBT, just take the A1 and stay on a 125 . I hope some if not all this comes in especially the electric scooter licence, yeah they can be a total menace
100% need to legalise e-scooter's , would rather they just out right unbanned them but a basic liscense and registered plate is still better than them being totally banned. as for the A2 i honestly don't think you should have to retake the test as you have already done a full test, it should automatically be upgraded to a full A1 license after 2 years.
@@axeami1354 I agree with most of what you say but I think the idea of the A2 is just to demonstrate that you haven't picked up bad habits over the years. I've said for years that as you have to renew your license every ten years anyway that you should take a competency test like the CBT done buy an instructor to prove that your riding or driving standards are still good and to keep you abreast of current laws. It's just a thought but it might help drivers and riders alike
@@johncummins3860I'm 68, been riding since I was 16 (a lot easier to get a full licence then), and used to ride with lots of mates of around my generation. Gradually, over the last 10-20 years, almost all the others have either died or given up bikes, for family or health reasons, and very few of their children or grand-children have taken it up, so the biking scene around here seems to be dying out along with us old gits.
I am not sure the new proposed idea is a good idea to be honest? Direct Access at 21? Definetely a no no!! There are already too many numpties riding around, this proposal it will be pure chaos!! If this ahead, god helps all!! 😁
But that doesn't mean all 21's are numpties, does it ? This stuck up perspective, restricts the young people who are really good riders and will be like that forever because they don't want to die and also who want to enjoy a nice pull of a powerful bike. What a stupid idea is that young riders are not capable of controlling a powerful motorbike. I am sure most of them are more capable than 60 years old with 10 different illnesses and who cant even touch the ground on the bike because their belly sits on the tank so high.
Just make it like it used to be. Moped at 16. Restricted access at 17 and unrestricted at 19 with no test needed. Nothing stops you buying a Lamborghini at 17 when you pass your test.
I did a cbt at 17, then stopped riding at 18. I redone the cbt at 23 and stopped riding at 24, then did cbt to full license at 35 so on them new rules I couldn't of redone the cbt for the 3rd time so I'd never of been riding a bike.
Exactly my concern with this proposed change.. life can throw us for a loop at any point and not allowing people to retake a CBT even if they have a valid reason for it would be really silly! that'd be like saying to a learner car driver "oops sorry, you didn't pass you test first time round, you can't get your license at all now.. go back to public transport"
The cbt has been an issue for years now. How many dangerous food delivery riders have people seen? I think you shouldnt be allowed to do deliveries on a cbt because its alot of pressure with time scales that learners cant always manage.
Fortunately I took my test in 1958 on a 200cc Tiger Cub. Something that most of my mates rode. After the test in Harrow on the Hill. I saved up and bought a Tiger 110 in 1960. at 18. Still ride my Moto Guzzi Daytona RS these days. But am wondering what my Grandson of 17 who has just passed his car test, could do if he wanted to get transport and could not afford the running of a car, where he stands with access to driving a motorcycle? Best Dave
I'm just starting my motorcycle lessons but been driving car in the UK for past 20 years and glad i found these videos as our UK motorbike license doesn't half make it complicated. Now I just need to work out CC power to KW power. Looking at a Honda Rebel or similar for first bike. No idea what 470cc equates to which license. I'm probably overcomplicating it
Bl00dy Hell I didn't know it was that complicated - that explains why you only have two type of motorcyclists in the UK, 16 year old on mopeds delivering Pizzas and bl00dy old men who passed the test years ago before if was all fannied about with.
Indeed and many more people died even though there was a lot less traffic. That is why the laws changed over time, weather that is a good reason to change it is another thing.
Why does it need to be so confusing (other than to make money through testing)? Theory > CBT is good 👍 Then CBT > DAS equivalent all the way through (none of this A1, A2 crap). DAS equivalent with staggered power restrictions of the bike at different ages i.e. 17 - max 125cc, 19 -max 250cc, 21 - max 650cc 24+ - unlimited. No retesting to move up in power! The person has already done the course.
Agreed.. they should just have to fill out a form to update their license when they're of the right age, but the way it is now is very much a money making scheme .. you don't see the same restrictions with cars or the likes, can easily go pass your car test and providing you have the cash - buy a stupidly fast car at 17/18+ ..
In my day you could ride anything as long as it had 'L' plates for as long as you liked at age 17 - methinks the government doesn't want motorbikes on the road but how else are we going get take-aways delivered.
I remember being able to ride any bike up to 250cc on a provisional licence in the 70s. As it happened, my first bike was a 98cc Suzuki from 1973 when I was 18, the second was a CZ 175 from 1976 and then I bought new a Honda 250N in 1979, passing my test on it the same year after some voluntary training run by the ACU/RAC. So I guess I did slowly graduate upwards in experience and power, even having some touring holidays on them. I took quite a leap then going up to a Honda 750K in 1980, tho' the 250N was good experience for in many ways it felt like a larger bike. There seemed to be more bikes available then to step up bit by bit in power. My actual bike test in 1979 seems very simple by modern standards, and took about 45 minutes, involving a couple of circuits around round a block of houses off the High Street in Chingford, with the examiner leaping out from behind a postbox to test my emergency braking skills, then some questions about road signs and the Highway Code, followed by the "I'm pleased to tell you..." bit.🙂
i think doing away with the repeat cbt is a good idea, main reason, your insurance goes down by 80% in some instances! insurance before test on a 125 was £1000 and after passing my test same bike £250 for the year a quarter of the price in my case.
🤣 I saw two youths on a full size bikes going through a red light and then the wrong way around a traffic island and pedestrian crossing in front of a police car this week and they did nothing at all. This country and government nanny state are beyond a joke, we need to enjoy riding while we can these psychos are trying to take everything you love unless you are a criminal then you're free to carry on.
The power band changes are interesting. A 300cc Vespa GTS for example only make 23hp. A lot of classic scooters are 150cc and 200cc too but don't develop much HP.
Kin ell! I'm glad I passed my test years ago! I have three bikes, a Speed triple 1050, a KTM 300 EXC Enduro bike, and an old but fully rebuilt and tuned up by me Honda MT5 moped, weirdly I have the most fun on the ped! 🙂
If they make the AM entitlement 125cc will that mean full car licence holders will be able to ride a 125cc without Ls as opposed to the 50cc as is the rule at the moments?
In Australia you have to complete a theory test to allow you to ride a LAMS approved restricted bike on L plates accompanied by a person who has held a full licence for a minimum of two years. You then take a hazard perception test and then a practical test, when you pass, you are then allowed to ride the restricted bike but not on L plates and without being accompanied for two years. Then if you wish you can take an unrestricted test to gain your full licence . age doesn’t matter it’s all about experience and tuition!
This is half the reason why I still haven't got myself a bike yet, I don't know where I stand with what licence I need to get first and then next steps to take.
Passed my mod 1 and 2 on same day...mod 1 in the morning...1 hour break, then straight back out for the mod 2 ....very stressful day but worth it...3 days in total...2 days training 1 day of testing...passed with zero faults....
I think the riding schools will start testing you for mod1 and dvsa will only do mod2, basically what they do for lorry tests now. To many examiner's are leaving and not being replaced so the back log for tests is months. Getting rid of mod1 tests will help a bit
Thanks for the vid, i'm looking to do my CBT again (did it many years ago and passed my bike theory at the time but never bought a bike!). I'm hoping to get my CBT done in early 2024 and theory test done, deffo want to do the DAS and get the full licence. It will be interesting to see what changes will actually be implemented though! we've not had a shake up like this in a long time!
@@spicy110 thank you 👊🏼 I will put an update on my channel on how I get on. Keep up the great work, longtime subscriber (was subbed to you on my old account too)
Passed my test on my GT250 which I used to drive around on L's for a good while. Booked the test, think it was around £9. None of this part 1, part 2 rubbish. Just booked, done a couple of right turn circuits on a few roads just 10 mins from my house. The examiner lived on the actual road, and he was walking his terrier while conducting the test. Told me to keep going around the until I see him raise his hand, at which point I was to come to a complete smooth stop where he was. I turned right onto the main road where he was standing, saw his hand go up... and I reckon I could have rolled a smoke up by the time I reached him. He told me that was it, I passed. He messed around filling his pipe, shook my hand, I ripped off the L plates and rode home like a King. A truly great day. Still riding now. nearly 61 years old, still have a '95 Fj1200, and a '58 plate CB1300. The hoops riders have to jump through now is so expensive.
Mine was similar but I did do a part one off road test first to demonstrate control and I did a voluntary road course too with an advanced police motor cycle instructor who taught me a lot of self preservation safety skills.
This is a needlessly complicated system that punishes everyone for the minority of people that jump straight on super bikes and end up hurting themselves. The old system was a lot more sensible.
I am not liking the idea of no repeat CBT. I want the option of not having to do the A1 and stick to A roads, also what's the point of the A1 if you're not planning a Euro trip?
I feel like to work up the bike categories, after having a full licence for say an A1 bike, you should only have to test up to Mod 1 for the next category to show you have the ability to progress up. Mod 2 shows you are already safe to ride on the roads, for a bigger bike as long as you can prove you can handle it's differing weight fine (mod 1), the mod 2 section should be redundant as you've already proven you can ride on the road.
Sounds more complicated. So get ur cbt and it allows 50 to125 for two hrs. A1 Take the skills test that is 250 to 400. Hold that for two yrs then A2 400cc to 800cc. Then for A3 800 to 1000+ on up full license. You do written test once and skills test ea time to move on.
I am so glad I'm old. My test cost me £4.60 (ish) but that was back in the day when people stayed a learner on 250cc and under until they felt they were competent enough to pass a test. Everyone I knew did that for at least 12 months and learned how to carry a pillion (they had to have a full license) who helped to develop your riding. Bikes were your daily transport, whatever the weather and the miles and experience on the road soon racked up. We couldn't afford cars 😂
Yep, I agree, took my test on a 350cc Jawa with sidecar back in the day, never took a car test until I was 50 years old simply because I could not afford a car.
I passed one motorcycle test when i was just short of 18 years old and I was allowed to ride any motorcycle including a 3 wheeled car under 425kg in weight. In fact, I could ride any motorcycle at all when I was 17 BUT it had to have a sidecar and L plates attached. As mentioned in the article towards the end, the cost of bigger bikes, the cost of insurance, the cost of the riding gear all stopped me zooming around on something disproportionately powerful. Yes... I say riding gear meaning helmet and clothing. If you cant afford decent gear to wear, you just do not feel comfortable riding performance machinery and as a result you dont do it. Riding a "fireblade or GSXR" in shorts, tee shirt hoodie and flipflops is just crap as soon as it rains! And when a bumble bee or piece of gravel hits you at just 60 MPH it smarts! I am now 64 and still ride a motorbike and I've seen lots of politicians who try to make a name for themselves on the cheap by "saving" motorcyclists.Let's be about right.. if it isnt motorcycles, its electric scooters running down people and getting gravel rash, if it isnt that its some other adrenalin trip.
Not so much the test fees , more the training school costs , although I appreciate that is a commercial issue. If I want a day training for Mod 1 and then the test for 20mins the next day , they charge me two full days , not a day and a half . Same for Mod 2 , a days training and then the test the next day for 40mins , again get charged for two full days !
I rode on cbts, daily, all year round on a 125cc, previsional for 17 years 😅 the goal was always to do my tests or move to a car but year after year plans changed. Now in a car for past three years. I always found it mind blowing i was able to just do a very easy day course and ride for another 2 years. i got to a point where it would have been cheaper to get test for next bracket but its kind of mad to allow cbt after cbt with no theory or more lesson time. I like the idea of pushing progression/experience with a new system. I honestly dont think a cbt is enough for some riders. An 18yr (at the time) colleague of mine lost his life riding a 125, drove down the left side of a truck at a junction and it ran him over turning the corner. Luckily i had enough people around me to teach me about fuck around and find out when it comes to riding. In 17 years on a bike commuting and social, no right offs, no crashes with other motorists, came off 4 times, 3 weather related and 1 gravel track that took me by surprise, a sprained wrist(icey road) bruised back(again icey roads). Honestly, while i miss it a little at times, glad to be driving a car now 😅 would love to get bk to it later in life.
Bonus confusion: So…I have AM on my car license (obtained age 18 decades ago)…and in my twenties rode a 50cc moped without L plates. Where does that leave me under the new proposals…could I ride a 125 for example like I did the old moped? Could I ride a Moped sized ebike (30 mph) without breaking the law?
Some good changes, for the earlier skill levels. What is absolutely missing is on going support for full licence holders. Nothing that should be mandated but available over private training. It is somewhat ironic that you can leap from a 30hp bike 100hp bike (my experience many years ago) to today where you can ride a 200hp superbike or a 180 horse power tourer. These are immense machines that benefit from "knowing how to ride" but "what riding is safely" age has nothing to do with teaching people safe fast road riding. Just worried that a lot of younger peeps get on 600+ super sports bikes that need to even be turned differently to the low KW bikes.
OMG how compicated! I did a CBT at 16, 50cc for a year. Restriced 33bhp test at 17 for 2 years (rode a 500cc with carberettor restriction) 600cc unrestricted at 19yo without any extra testing. My only critisism would be the CBT should have allowed a 125 at 16 because 50cc was too slow on British roads
Is anyone finding a lack of motorcycle parking in most car parks...They give electric cars more spaces and if they really want a more environmentally friendly form of transport they should encourage more use
Just my own experience as an example, I'm currently trying to get my full license (24+, living in greater London) and it is crazy how expensive it all is really. I've had a car license for 10 years, so I'm in a better position than most. For the CBT, Theory test, 1 hour manual lesson and a years insurance on a new 125 scooter it's already cost me around 1.5k, and now for the direct access + motorcycle tests I'm looking at another 1k IF I manage to pass first time. Not including the cost of bike + gear and I know it would have been cheaper to get a manual straight away but I wanted some decent experience just learning to ride control a bike through London roads before I added learning a manual to the mix. That's without including that I will likely have to buy a beater 125 manual soon and insure that just so I can get some practice so that the actual driving lessons aren't wasted on me stalling every 2 minutes. It seems like it's set up for people who already know someone who can teach them the basics of bikes before they even start or for people that are happy to stop at getting their CBT and as I basically started with zero knowledge about bikes I feel a bit left out to dry. I'd have loved an easier route to get the license, or better ways to learn manual when my end goal is to get an auto anyway.
A lot of people are calling this "money making" I will leave this here, saves me replying the same thing.
Whenever anyone says "its to make money" I have to point this out. Of the say £700-800 people pay to do a licence, only £100 goes to the gov in test fees. I really do not think it is making anyone enough to make that argument, many pay more than that monthly in tax opposed to once in a lifetime. The people making the most money is the schools and the examiners being paid to do the tests. For this reason I do not buy in to their idea being to "make money" because it isn't making anyone but the schools money and they do not make the rules.
The schools pay tax on the extortion money they charge so its a loop of the schools make money and so do the government on top of the £100 you mentioned the government get.
Last comment deleted 😂 It's a scam, examiners maintain a constant pass rate just below 50%, go check...
I think £100 for doing sod all is a tiny bit extortionate.
and what does the current govt take/collect from the current CBT fee... how many 2year periods would a rider have to retake cbt and ride legally to get to £100level that the govt now gets after 2 years only???? it needed for a true comparision to what you stated... (EDIT) btw the way i passed before any off this stuff came in so i have no vested interest personally
You seem to be a smart guy spicy who's money paid for the (PULIC ROADS) ?
I’m so glad I was born in the 60s, things were so much simpler, when I did my test an examiner told me to go around the block on my Honda superdream and take the next available right turn, I went down the street and he jump out in front of me for an emergency stop. Im in my 60s now and love motorbikes as much as I did as a lad. Big smile on my face when out on my triumph tiger 900.
Haha.....my experience was the same. I got lost at one point one left turn too many. I passed on my RD250 then sold organized bought an RD400. Enjoyed it and riding will never be like it was
I was exactly the same on same model of bike as well! Could see him a mile off before he jumped out 😂 I’m in my late 60s too …
Superdream … nice bike. Remember them well. Tiger’s very nice, too. A couple of mates have one.
Similar experience at 17, in 1981, on Dad’s CG125, I think … went round a few cones in Writtle one day, went round the block in Southend-on-Sea the next. The examiner was so far away when he stepped out for the emergency stop I had to accelerate towards him for about 50yds before braking. Got myself a Yamaha RD 250 shortly thereafter. As a ‘born-again’ biker I’m loving my new Super Meteor 650.
@@markmclaughlin4801 great memories hey, Rds we’re fantastic bikes, the kick in of that power and was amazing.👍
Same for me. I was on a Vespa, it had crap brakes but I Managed to stop because I saw him from a hundred yards away. I’m pretty sure he made sure I saw him and can’t blame him for that. Bought my Yamaha the next day!
It's just crazy... I did my CBT at 16, full test at 17, restricted to 33bhp for 2 years and then good to go. The system was fine IMO. Biking used to be a cost effective alternative to a car, now, given the cost of bikes, all the tests, the safety gear, the insurance... just blows my mind.
same . well the restrictors came out with in hours tho
@@simonrawle7885 If they ever went in at all...
A bike is so much more expensive than say a 10 year old fiesta, just think of the maintenance on a bike compared to a yearly oil change on the fiesta.
@@cw3728 Absolutely, even the used market is a mess right now. I recently bought a '91 Intruder 750 for £1400 and I've spent easily the same again making it roadworthy. Seeing the price of new bikes, especially for learners right now, or even used bikes in good condition, is eye watering
Completely agree, I don't think there was anything wrong with that setup. I did mine at 18, after they brought out the two part practical test but before the shambles it is now. Restricted for 2 years and could then ride anything at 20. Mod one cost a tenner which I passed first time on my DT. Did a days training for the second part, including the test was about £200. The price that people pay now is astronomical! And then people don't want to pay out more money to lose the restriction so they then ride "illegally" because their bike makes too much power for their licence! Definitely think that bit has to change.
I passed my full bike licence on my 17th birthday for £28. Got straight on a BSA 650 A65. The same bike as what Boon had. The days before the nanny state.
Passed mine after 8 months in 1987, on a Suzuki GP100 - been riding almost daily ever since with one off caused by a driver pulling out on me. Not the bikers who need restricting IMO
@@rogerkay8603 almost a beginner to me...i passed mine in 1976...became an Instructor in 1991...have been a courier most of my working life...covered around a Million Kilometres...68 crashes...about 44 bikes mostly Hondas...around 60/70 thousand deliveries...lots of scars...1 small fracture (plated)...one time knocked unconscious...retired...OAP...counting down the last years of my riding career...maybe 5 or 6 or 7 more...we'll see
@@esotericman22 I'm 53, and don't ride like a loon and still got knocked off, hurt and my bike written off because a cager didn't BOTHER to look at a junction - I feel your pain when bikes blow past but it's their life they're risking, not yours is it?
@@markianclark9645 nice one mate, good luck and ride safe
@@retiredbore378 It was a bit of a beast after a Yamaha 125. I was a skinny 17 year old. It was had to kick off let alone ride which was like riding a bull.
If you can understand the motorcycle licencing system you should be the ruler of the universe
I wish i'd got a license when i was young, the current system has put me off for years, it's too complicated and too expensive.
£1600 it cost me for a quick pass weeks course.
I did the four part test at 63 😁
I could have joined my mates back in the 70s with the simple test,but never seemed to get the time.
I am well chuffed.
The main thing that bothers me with the current system as an A2 licence holder, is that in order to upgrade to the A licence in two years time, I will need to back to a training centre, pay a fortune for lessons/to use their bikes, and then do the exact two tests that I have already passed, on the exact same bike (only unrestricted).
No the reason for that is due to the heavy weight of the full A bikes u need to get used to.
@@steve00alt70 I did my A2 on a restricted MT07. 2 years later, I took my full A on a de-restricted MT07. Exactly the same weight and couldn’t even notice a difference in power as I hardly went over 5K rpm. The test was literally identical to my A2 and I didn’t learn a thing. Hundreds of pounds down the train due to stupid licensing rules.
As a previous A2 holder that is a pain. I redone my whole physical test again a few months ago. Being stuck on an A2 when your friends can afford to upgrade and you can’t is sooo frustrating. In the end my dad paid for it out of the goodness of his heart as I couldn’t pay for it. I feel you though I had 9 years of an A2. Younger people have said to me I want to do my test and are about 19-21. I was like such a waste of money and time. Just CBT it, get no claims then do direct access.
That’s not true. You can book your test directly with the DVSA at www.gov.uk/book-driving-test You will need a Cat A motorcycle, of course, but no need for a bike school.
The Government is usually motivated by what extra business activities they can drum up and then tax accordingly. The suggestions and guidance will come from the trade bodies, usually dressed in health and safety garb to disguise the true intention. Call me a cynical old hector but my guess is that if anything actually changes it will just be the tax take. They are bankrupt and utterly desperate. 😂. I have my mod 1 coming up so I had better get a shifty on!
Glad I'm old and did my test in 1979. So complicated (and expensive) now. Back then 16 - 50cc on "L" plates no training, then 17 years old 250cc on "L" plates, one test ( ride round the block one way then the other), - Full licence ride what you like.
......and the theory was just a couple of questions still sat on your bike at the road side after riding around the block. Oh sweet days.
Which is why we all knew someone who didn't make it because they went out an bought an H1 / H2 or similar at the age of 17 and with minimal experience. I remember my test - round the block left, round the block right and then an emergency stop at about walking pace plus a few questions - joke really. The key take I get on this is that people can legally start getting training and experience at 14 years of age - which is a much better situation than we have now.
Same here, [1979/1980] aged 17 I bought a little Yamaha 100 on L Plates, AGED 18 I managed to borrow a few quid and got a Honda 250 superdream on L plates.
At 19 years old I Took the RAC course then straights afterwards took my full test, [if I had failed the test I would have had to get 125 because the law had changed] [but passed fine so all was OK]
At 20 years old I Then swapped the 250 Honda for a susski GT 550.
In most cases Your type and size of bike was limited to your budget,
We were all pretty poor so everyone rode around small bikes because that was all you could afford and slowly worked your way up.
But there was the rich kid up the road who passed his full test on Friday on a Yamaha 250 and on Monday morning went out and bought a Kawasaki Z900’
[envy, envy, envy 😂😂😂]
Like you took my test early 70's. No CBT then, but at 17 when I said "Hey Dad I am going to buy a bike to get to my apprentice school as the bus is expensive" He said "only if you take a course, otherwise you won't get my Moniker as guarantor on the loan" Took and thouroughly enjoyed and passed a locally run RAC/ACU training scheme course, run over several weeks. He was right, you benefit from other riders experience. The current scheme might be a bit overlayered and adds to the cost, but if more young men reach old age with all their limbs it is well worth it. Too many of my peers didn't.
During a driving test, was considered a major mistake the fact I was driving with 30 on a 40 road !
The most important advice I was ever given from my instructor was to imagine that every time you go out onto the road everyone else is trying to kill you; and be sure you know what's going on around you at all times. Most people killed on motor cycles are quite young riding small machines and often it's the lack of road craft that does it, not so much the capacity of the bike. I'm seventy and still here because I took his advice, It's also good to ride out with older riders who will watch your back.
I took and passed my Cycling Proficiency Test aged 11 which was basically today’s CBT on a cycle. At 16 I took and passed my motorcycle (ride around the block) test and at 17 my car test. All the required knowledge, experience and road craft having been gained from that original CPT which, as part of my schooling, cost me nothing but over several weeks of training taught me everything to be safe on the roads.
I have commented similar elsewhere ,we couldn't ride to school until you had a CPT .it was a great foundation that has seen me into my 50's without a ticket or serious accident.
Does CPT even exist any more?
yep, my two grandsons have both done it, think it is called something else now though.
I took the same route except I did not take my car test until 18. Absolutely no motorcycle training. Over 200k on motorcycles later & still have all my bits.
Good point! Since there’s now no CPT people only get taught about being a road user when they want an engine. The CPT introduces road safety and the associated ‘common sense’ at an earlier age. Bring back the CPT!
I’ve just passed my CBT at 52….. I’m itching to get competent and progress. I know very little. What I DO know is you are offering a whole good to me and many younger versions of me, free of charge. No only do you do this, which in itself is pretty god damn awesome, but you do it very well. You’ve got my respect.
So right & Great news Rob! Pleased to hear it and welcome to the club🎉
Just done my MOD1 today, looking to book MOD2 and guess what not a single date available
@@WorksopGimp it’s a privilege not an entitlement :) enjoy it all
@@robmoon6442 I agree, I driving license regardless of category is indeed a privilege and definitely not a good given right. I'm going to be very harsh here and say I've always believed that you should only get say 4 attempts at getting your license and if you can do that then it's public transport or push bike for you, like I said this will probably be unpopular and it's just my opinion
@@LeaBrattle-parker-pp5sf . I rarely offer opinion on things I know an embarrassingly little about but that does seem sensible (he types having passed his car at fourth attempt…gulp)
I think if you passed your driving test before 2000 you should be aloud to ride a 125 without a CBT and not just a moped.
When i got mine many many years ago it was round the block on a 125, passed got straight onto a GSX 1100. Was bloody terrified of it so the learning curve was fast. However to date have not had an 'off' that 1100 taught respect for the power, and performance. I do believe that everyone should have a year on a bike before getting a car, being on a bike teaches you very quickly to watch what the others are doing.
Took the Darwin test like me - if you survived, you were presumed competent
@@bigoldgrizzly
Indeed, and we are still breathing!
This will be interesting, for sure.
Currently if you have a full car driving licence and you do the CBT it enables full cat AM on your licence. This means you can ride 50cc mopeds without L plates even after the CBT expires.
The proposed changed would seem to indicate that full car licence holders who've completed the CBT, and thus get Full AM would then be given 125cc access. I think 125cc bikes on a full car licence is much better than the 50cc at the moment as it wouldn't feel like a downgrade in terms of keeping up with traffic on a 50cc with it's speed restrictions in place.
Totally agree, rather than 50cc limit, after CBT Car Drivers with full Licence should have Category A1 added rather than AM
My exact situation right now.
@@MKBx1 not quite mate! E-bikes and scooters can not LEGALLY go that fast. If you want an e-bike to legally go over 15.5mph it has to be registered as a Moped…as you know with yours. Reconfiguring eapc to full Moped spec needs a lot of work before it can registered. I did have an e-bike that could do 28, but fear of getting a big fine made me sell it, my new eapc is supposedly compliant according to the mfr rating plate…hope so!
I spent 3 years riding a 50cc on my car licence (AM) Yes, it was hell. I'm now riding a 125cc on a CBT. Does this mean that I could just remove my L plates & ride a 125cc on an AM licence when my CBT runs out?
I was going to do the A1, but what's the point?
Doing the a1 is just pointless. Say you get ur cbt at 17, why would u spend all that money just to be on the same bike, the cbt is there so u can get a 125 and practise on it before going up in power.
100% agree with most of the changes, especially bringing down the age for Direct Access, been driving since I was 17. Cheaper than doing a CBT and insuring a bike.. In that time I've been waiting to get a motorbike license, I've qualified in a trade, re-trained, suffered through cancer, bought a house yet I am still not trusted to be able to train to ride a motorcycle after a CBT & 2 tests. 24 is just too late, 21 seems a lot more reasonable.
I am preparing to just do the Direct Access at the moment, theory is done. All booked in for around March next year. Just a long time coming.
Why do I feel the same people who complain now will still complain if they change it!
"Just ride like the Police are behind you" God I loved that line! 😂
I am just glad I took my bike test back in 1979, took one test and passed and went from a 125 to a GS1000S suzuki in a day. Now those were the focking good days. Still riding now in my 60's with a GSXR750 and GS550E I bought over 20 years ago. Ah I miss the old days when things were not as focked up by our self absorbed politicians and woke brigade as they are today, You called it like it was back then and if you focked about you would take the outcome of it on your own shoulders not cry like a little girl.
I took my test in 1963, very simple. Ride a few weeks on my Triumph Speed Twin 500 , apply for my test . Test was ride in a figure of 8 around the houses. Test passed, L plates over the nearest fence. Been riding big bikes since, never had a real crash, fell off in the ice a couple of times and that’s it. Now aged 77 and have given up riding for health and safety of others. So very complicated now.
Absolutely agree with the CBT not retaking it constantly without knowing the highway code. E-scooters I. The road with cars, trucks is crazy thinking.
That will hit the Pizza Muppet Brigade
@@micheallastname5772 yep. I did a CBT a few weeks ago and asked how was business going. They said it was mostly food delivery guys doing CBT re-do (or first timers).
When I was young, the motorbike gave so many of my peers something to live and work for. True, there were many deaths, however nowadays there are so many kids stuck at home with no ambition, I always felt the motorcycle gave kids ambition and generally led to better mental health and fewer suicides.
So true, back in the day getting a moped at 16 were a right of passage and gave us independence.
Yes thats actually a great point and great comment. I think younger people are so restricted in everything these days that some feel nothing is worth living for.
I’m coming up to 40 and have taken my CBT twice so far and was just planning to repeat this as I only use my motorbike for commuting to work, as it’s a lot quicker than the bus. I haven’t taken a test as I get anxiety, but this might force my hand, so as long as I can get through the anxiety, it might be good as I can then get a bigger bike. However, if I can’t, I guess it’s back to the bus 😢
The good thing about taking A1 test, there is no anxiety. If you fail, you rollback to CBT. If you pass, no more CBT.
if your happy to take cbt every 2 years whats the problem ? the i am alright got my full licence pull up the ladder people make them retake their test every 2 years and see what they say to that idea ?
I rode my first bike with L plates fitted with a sidecar at 16 a BSA A10 ,which was a hell of a lump to throw around when in those days I weighed about a third of what I do at the moment ?. The test like others have said a quick wizz around the block and I even took the tester up the road and through the gears ,but as a lad who"s Granddad had a farm and at the back of our house was a massive British Road Services lorry park so I had ridden bikes ,scooters & mopeds around since I was 10 .But then Biking was not just for fun ,it was a way of life and used by most adults for all forms of transport as modern cars are today . Anybody who ever rode a outfit will tell you they need more talent ,especially to ride - fast . It helped me because most members of the family including my late wife"s - rode bikes, well my Father & Mother in law ,did .I still own a collection of big bikes in my 70s and some classic cars . If I had my time over again I would almost certainly not bother getting a bike License ,just one read of the woes and expense on this page would tell you why ?. But I hardly think saying much higher insurance premiums will effect the driving of high powered cars ,that is hardly the point - the harder rules with Big Bikes hardly make it fair . MY local corner shop owning Asian guy has a handful of sons who fly around in every kind of Supercar thanks to their rich Dad being a nice bloke & Dad and paying their enormous insurance fees and of course Clarkson guarantee that only the rich will be able to own a car well into the future and come the laws about E.V. all this will seem to be even more weird ?.
There’s a massive issue here that no one has grasped, by 2030 you won’t be able to buy a petrol 125 it will have to be electric. So to move up to a full A test means you’ll have to learn on a geared ICE bike which get phased out 5 years later. Makes no sense when you combine these new power categories test categories. Currently you can’t take a full A test on an full power electric bike. Big lack of joined up thinking here.
2035
Ooo yhyh take our bikes away w their few emissions compared to companies depleting everything ye
I did pt 1, pt 2, then local motorcycle school (Lansdown , Bath) where there was a basic course and also then Advanced, which was literally based on the Police Riders Handbook and we were examined by Police Riders in pursuit with comms, course was like £60, so happy I did it all back then, but in this old era there were still crazy fast RG125s , TZRs, MBXs, so I can imagine what a de-restricted full on 2 stroker at 22KW for a 17 year, blinking nippy little screamers, wow I would have loved a go on that at 17 instead of my crappy FR80 Suzuki step through...now in my old age(haha) I'd settle for a GS500 or CB500 sized twin, all I see are 20mph zones and very few National limits left, it's all 40's between villages that are 20mph, gone are the days where you could fill up my F reg GPZ500S and howl from Bath to Woolacombe with all your mates GPz550, GSX550 GPX750 old hulks...or Cheddar...oh the memories are coming back now...jeez Rob had an RG500...the smell of 2 Stroke😁
I'll stick with my grandad rights. Where I can ride 50cc with no L plates or the need of a CBT . Obviously it's a 2 stroke 😂😂
Good God! How confusing!
I took my motorcycle test in August 1962. Since then, I've driven just about everything under the sun, from an Ariel Golden Arrow to an 1800cc Honda Gold Wing without incident of any kind. I took my car licence the following year (1963) and I've never had a ticket or claim of any kind.
The old ways were the best ways in my opinion, and didn't need a "Job's worth" who doesn't drive at all to mess with it.
We switched to the conveluted Mod1 Mod2 system because it was an EU directive. Interestingly, the vast majority of the rest of the EU said "bollocks to that" and carried on with their current systems.
I passed my Car test in 1971 at the age of 17 but couldn't afford my own car straight away, so I bought a cheap used 250cc Suzuki 'Super Six' and used it as my main transport for the next 3 years, just on 'L' plates. Since then, I have mainly driven cars, ranging from 500cc to 6,000cc, only using motorbikes as and when needed.
I did my first CBT in 2008 on 125, and found it hilarious. I felt that it was aimed at people who had never even seen a road before, let alone travelled on one!
For the next 18 months, I rode a Honda Varadero, 6 days a week around the City of London covering 12,000 miles without issue, then got a new job that made a car more practical.
In 2011, I did my 2nd CBT on a 650cc bike, simply because I found out that you could - even though I could only legally ride a 125 afterwards!
A few years later, I found out that my car licence will allow me to ride a 'Trike', so I sold the Varadero and bought a 500cc Gilera Fuoco - which I can ride any time I like. No more silly CBT's, I can take a passenger and even ride on motorways!
The whole motorcycle licencing thing is a joke - mainly because you end up with a small group of highly skilled, rigorously trained road users, navigating the roads on power-restricted unsafe vehicles, amongst a sea of bigger, more powerful vehicles, with drivers of vastly differing skills and experience who think they are invincible.
I haven't found a significant difference between driving a car and riding a bike - and before you shout 'Observations' - No. The observations you are taught on a motorcycle are exactly the same as the ones you are supposed to be doing in a car!
Why did you do CBT if you passed your car test in 1971.... talk about shooting yourself in the foot.... government loves people like you paying out when you did not have to.
Unless theyre playing chicken with a lorry or similar barriers, they generally are invincible. Their cars might not be but they should survive. Thankfully it only took me about a year on my 125 to get competent, my mod 2 is in a month so hopefully i can start using a bike that isnt crippled in performance
I passed my A2 recently, it would be great if it gets upgraded to a full A license without the extra costs =)
No, you would have to do an assessment under the proposed changes
@@abdullahX001 oh I see, hopefully it's a little less hassle at least
I have full car licence since 1975 which also covers full moped and have done 1ooos of miles on 250 and 125 why would I need cbt ?
Riding a bike a bit like being a Spitfire pilot, survive first six months then probably be ok.
So glad I got my bike licence back when it was simple. A 250cc on L plates, ride around the block test, and then ride whatever you liked. It was a great time to be young, not like today.
For a long time i have liked the idea of applying the bike power / age restrictions to car driver.
Insurance does that allready
@@wineweaselusually on parents insurance these days tho ☹️
Wish could ride a 125 off car license, as good fun when younger in fields on Honda crunch 90 lol
Most of these proposals seem sensible enough (which means the government will sit on them them like it did the 2016 proposals) But the CBT>CBT+>A1 progression seems overly complex for new riders, particularly with the CBT and A1 having differing engine power restrictions. I'd change it so the 11kw limitation is removed completely in favour of 22kw, and the CBT cannot be repeated but the CBT+ can. Raising the base level of training while letting newer riders have a bit more power is a fair trade-off, imho.
One important thing is the new 22kw A1 *must* be doable on a 125 so as to remove the trap of scooter riders having to learn on a geared bike to get a license for anything beyond 11kw because schools almost never have automatics more powerful than 125. That's why 250/300 scooters are so rare in the UK, current 125 riders who'd like an upgrade are faced with a costly faff to get there.
Makes you think when they used to hand a 1000 hp, 8 machine gun Spitfire to an 18 years old rookie fighter pilot back in 1940!
That is kinda a different situation though isn't it. Sidenote, not as an argument its just really interesting. I think there was only one 18yr old spitfire pilot Geoffrey Wellum, so that was very much the exception rather than the norm. The average age was early 20s so not a huge difference., but that means people of today could be riding any motorcycle at the same age if they passed A2 at 19 and then full A at 21.
I’ve just downtrained as a cbt instructor, after just a few sessions I’m finding that there is a greater need for the 1st time cbt to be a 2 day course as it’s adding extra pressure to try nd complete in 1 day especially if they’ve never ridden before
Initially, I agree, as a retired instructor I experienced a lot of long days trying to instil basic road safety in 16 and 17 year olds. The scope of the current CBT is too wide. Having to do the theory test first should make the CBT about motor bike control and less about basic road safety. On the surface a good move.
However, I had several repeat CBT customers who were perfectly safe riders, who needed a motorbike to get to work. I live in a rural area with very poor public transport. I did try and encourage them to take the test as I knew they’d pass the practical parts easily. But, they were not able to pass the theory test as they had severe test nerves or had learning difficulties that meant the theory test was too hard because of the reading required.
The proposed changes would exclude them as the couldn’t pass the theory test in order to do the CBT. How will they get to work?
simple make the cbt a 2 day course day one road rules then day 2 on road ?
or let people chose a 3 day cbt 1 day rules of road day 2 on road day 3 cbt + but if you go pay for 3 day cbt it lasts all your riding life on l plates as long as you dont get 6 points then if you get pulled points they take it off you and you do it again same as if you pass your car test then get too many points in first 2 years they kick you down to provinsal licence make you resit test.
What a shame they don’t make car drivers do exactly the same staircasing
In whole, these changes are positive.
But it is incredibly frustrating for those like me who took my A2 and full A license in the last few years and have to spend a fortune to do so.
Didn't help that my examiner got a rear puncture on the test and had to cancel delaying my pass by another month...
In the exact same boat as you now. I’ve had my A2 since 2020 and have put off doing my full A until now. I feel very hard done to that I’ve got to do it all again now!
Been riding a Bandit 650 for 4 years, pains me to think I’ll be doing my test on practically the same bike but unrestricted.
Haven’t people worked out by now - the country and its citizens being systematically asset stripped.
You understand these proposed changes are to make it easier and more open to younger people offering more freedom than the current rules?
I started riding in the 1970's, held various bikes at that time (shown on DVLA records) on a Provisional old style licence upto 225cc. Then along came CBT. Even after owning and riding on U.K roads for a few years of higher cc, All of a sudden, I was alleged to be a death risk, with no experience, although I had never had a bad spill off a bike. I have been driving cars just as long and yet, I have to do a CBT just to get on anything above a moped (for which, I can just get on and ride with a full moped Licence as part of my car lIcence). Has a moped more than 2 wheels I wonder ? (hint of sarcasm) .. I get that faster is more dangerous, but it's ok to drive a car at 70 MPH and have good reaction time and awareness of other road users. Plus I also have ridden bikes at that speed without dying for years.
I currently have a 5 year bike no claims bonus as a result of using a 125 on the U.K roads (again without killing myself or others), as a result of a misunderstanding as to whether I was actually licenced to do so. DVLA said I had (I even returned my licence to them for verification) and then I was looking for another insurer who said I wasn't licenced. Again, much arguing and then got that bored with it, I sold the bike to save any possible legal breach.
The whole CBT system is a complete waste of time. You can't actually fail a CBT and some of us who like riding bikes, have years of experience on bikes anyway. Common sense should prevail if you have owned and used bikes on U.K roads previously.
Surely, if you can stay upright and without killing yourself or others, do you have to prove it again and again every 2 years ? .. What changes even after 2 further years road experience ? .. surely experience should improve, not go backwards ?
Rant over :)
I did a part 1 and a part 2. Nice and simple.
My son, did a CBT and then the theory and he failed the theory a few times, with the 2-part bit, he passed one part but kept failing the other and this was random, and he failed by 1, 2 or 3 points and thats all.
In the end he gave up.
He is now no longer riding a bike or driving a car as he is sick of it.
My daughter is in a similar situation with her car test, although her instructor was clearly a money grabber and she has now stopped learning to drive completely as she was waiting for a test for almost 3 years now and she has been promised test after test after test and its been postponed many times... We now think that this is all down to her instructor!
This is a huge shame, but the thing is, that his mates are in a similar position. In our bike club, there is 4 Chapters and 73 members, and we had brought the issue with the multi-part tests and there re a huge number of people that simply do not want to drive or ride a bike purely because the tests are nothing more than money makers.
I'm all for progressive learning particularly for younger riders who naturally have little or no road experience when they start out . However , no system allows for 'one size fits all' and there should perhaps be some exceptions. I took my CBT and bought my 125 as it was all I wanted in order to get around locally and at low cost. I have no desire to own a larger bike. I renewed my CBT after the first two years and was intending to continue that process under the current rules. I have had no accidents in the past 3 years since I started biking and I'm an IAM advanced car driver. Now I'm potentially being told that I 'have to progess' and take the CBT+ as well. If someone is on the current 2 year CBT renewal system , I believe they should be able to continue as that's basically what they signed up for under rules at the time they purchased a bike.
You can just do the A1 license right now even if your over 19 iirc(on your own bike), If you believe you meet the standard go do the test(s).
No need for any riding school or anything, It's honestly probably cheaper and less faff than doing CBTs every 2 years in the long term.
The CBT is meant to make you a learner hence why you have to ride around with L plates, If you can ride around on L plates for 10 years* it kinda defeats the point in them.
The only extra thing's you'ld get from an A1 are pillions and the motorway, so it's not even really progressing, and anyway, I would do A1 just to be able to ditch the L plates, drivers are so much less aggressive once you do that, it's like some of them see red(litterally) and go "must overtake".
*Or even worse, doing commerical work on them, you should not be able to do work for reward on a learners permit.
@@hazelforest1543 Hi Hazel , thanks for your comments , agree with all the points you make particularly riding for commercial purposes on L plates. I was thinking of the A1 route but will now bite the bullet and am going for the full test as have been tempted by a slightly larger bike.
I’m on a A1 license took the test on a 125 to reduce the cost,
Been riding bikes for many years so being able to ride upto 22kw means 250cc and some
Sluggish 350s like royal Enfield, so not much of a power increase but saves taking more tests, but if it’s made law it will probably take another 10 years, 🙄
Mostly good changes and desperately needed, however I would have liked to see an alternative upgrade path for A1/A2 holders who have completed an advanced riding certificate. I currently have an A2 and will have to wait another 1.5 years to do my full A under the current system, yet I have a ROSPA Silver advanced riding qualification which is way beyond the requriements for the standard test or new "ATB assessment".
I would love to see some attention to new riders that hold an advanced driving qualification. I'm IAM certified with 7 years experience behind the wheel, and I've just started riding. I've got a copy of RoadCraft for both, I find that they're 80% identical, and I use as many transferable skills as possible while out and about. I agree that a mandatory theory test before a CBT is a good idea. The thought of 17 year olds whizzing around at 60mph on the very limited education they get in a CBT is terrifying.
I started teaching just as the Mod1, Mod2 test sequence started. An ATB assessment to progress an individual’s licence was allowed in the E.U. Driving Licence directive that triggered the change to a two part practical test, but the DSA, now the DVSA didn’t want that route available in the UK. I don’t know if it was allowed elsewhere in Europe.
These suggested changes are basically, ‘Do what the law has always allowed, plus a bit to sort out electric scooters’.
Did my CBT at 52 last month.
Have been driving for over 30years but the bike insurance is stupidly expensive!
Got a TC Max after watching your series of reviews!
Not interested in getting anything else so may do my A1, would be nice to do it on my bike but charge wouldn't last long enough to do the test on, when are they going to factor that in?
Still way too complicated, even now I see bikes that are clearly bigger than 125cc with L plates on, which you shouldn't be riding unless under instruction.
People are always going to ride illegally when it's this overly complicated to get a licence.
Does seem even more complicated than ever lol.
Got back into bikes after donkeys years. Did my cbt at 48 I think. Thought I don't want to mess about with this lark every 2 years, so did my full test before the next cbt was due.
Was a long and expensive progress but worth it in the end.
Can ride any size bike now without any worries.
I did my CBT on my TC Max and it had plenty of charge left - how much longer is the full test?
@@gamesessions the mod 1 is about 15 ish minutes, the mod 2 about 45 mins if memory serves. Don't forget you have to get to a test centre too.
Not sure what a TC Max is if I'm honest, I did mine on the schools 600cc bike.
I noticed your insurance comment, I'm 52 and ride a triumph Street triple and mines a tad over £200 fully comp.
I use the TC Max just to commute to work and back a round trip of 52miles.
I think it would do the Mod 1 part of the test no problems but Mod 2 it would probably run out of charge depends on range and speed you go for the 30-40 test duration. I mean it takes me about 40mins to do the 25miles to work and I get there with about 27% charge remaining.
My insurance on the TC Max was about £420!!!
If I want an bigger electric bike going through the comparison sites don't come back with any quotes 😯
So all of this licence messing about really means nothing as it's the insurance companies that will ultimately police it via not providing insurance or quoting stupidly expensive premiums. Or as is the way people will be riding illegally as they can't afford it and will need to get to work. Where I live there is no public transport for.people who work shifts, so what choice is there?
@@mrwiggy25 if you're going to go through the test you may as well do it on a bigger bike. That's way you're not restricted on what you can ride.
Insurance comes down too if you're on a full licence. My 675 is way cheaper to Insure than my 125 was.
Jesus it's complicated today. When I took my test it was on a GT250 Suzuki, and all I did was ride round the block with the examiner walking the the route. I did one ride going left around the block, then one ride going right around the block. Just before I first rode off the examiner said that at some point he'd give me a hand signal from the pavement - he demonstrated the signal - and that then I was to perform an emergency stop, stopping before him. He gave me a ridiculous length of street to stop in, I thought he was taking the piss! I doubt the whole test took more than 15/20 minutes...
Net zero bs.. When China are 3000x more pouting than the uk
I think that's being used as a bit if good optics to try and get this though. People will want these changes regardless of any of the net zero stuff.
LOL, I passed my test on a Yamaha XS850 with a 1950s sidecar grafted on for the learner phase. Riding with a sidecar was extremely tricky, accelerate the thing pulls to the left, brake and it slews to the right, right turns, no real problem, left turns, the sidecar lifts if you push it too hard. The best training ever, fast track to cautious riding.
Excellent video, full of great information as always. I have a full licence sonit doesn't affect me, I do like the ideas proposed,it does seem to make it a bit cheaper, I've personally never understood the mod1, mod2 thing. As for those that will mean that they can't constantly repeat the CBT, just take the A1 and stay on a 125 . I hope some if not all this comes in especially the electric scooter licence, yeah they can be a total menace
100% need to legalise e-scooter's , would rather they just out right unbanned them but a basic liscense and registered plate is still better than them being totally banned.
as for the A2 i honestly don't think you should have to retake the test as you have already done a full test, it should automatically be upgraded to a full A1 license after 2 years.
@@axeami1354 I agree with most of what you say but I think the idea of the A2 is just to demonstrate that you haven't picked up bad habits over the years.
I've said for years that as you have to renew your license every ten years anyway that you should take a competency test like the CBT done buy an instructor to prove that your riding or driving standards are still good and to keep you abreast of current laws. It's just a thought but it might help drivers and riders alike
It will effect you if motorcycle shops & meets & events close because of lack of young riders !!
@@johncummins3860I'm 68, been riding since I was 16 (a lot easier to get a full licence then), and used to ride with lots of mates of around my generation. Gradually, over the last 10-20 years, almost all the others have either died or given up bikes, for family or health reasons, and very few of their children or grand-children have taken it up, so the biking scene around here seems to be dying out along with us old gits.
I'm 35 been on a cbt for 5 year now and don't really have a need or want for bigger bike
Do you need to renew the CBT?
@jacko2815 yeah ever 2 years
@@lukealmighty8828 cheers mate
It's all robery
I love a good dressing gown
Not making excuses, but it's no wonder so many kids are saying "screw it" and tear-arse around with their balaclavas on bikes with no reg plates...
I am not sure the new proposed idea is a good idea to be honest? Direct Access at 21? Definetely a no no!! There are already too many numpties riding around, this proposal it will be pure chaos!! If this ahead, god helps all!! 😁
But that doesn't mean all 21's are numpties, does it ? This stuck up perspective, restricts the young people who are really good riders and will be like that forever because they don't want to die and also who want to enjoy a nice pull of a powerful bike. What a stupid idea is that young riders are not capable of controlling a powerful motorbike. I am sure most of them are more capable than 60 years old with 10 different illnesses and who cant even touch the ground on the bike because their belly sits on the tank so high.
Just make it like it used to be. Moped at 16. Restricted access at 17 and unrestricted at 19 with no test needed.
Nothing stops you buying a Lamborghini at 17 when you pass your test.
Yes no more delivery drivers driving stupidly 😂
I did a cbt at 17, then stopped riding at 18. I redone the cbt at 23 and stopped riding at 24, then did cbt to full license at 35 so on them new rules I couldn't of redone the cbt for the 3rd time so I'd never of been riding a bike.
Exactly my concern with this proposed change.. life can throw us for a loop at any point and not allowing people to retake a CBT even if they have a valid reason for it would be really silly! that'd be like saying to a learner car driver "oops sorry, you didn't pass you test first time round, you can't get your license at all now.. go back to public transport"
The cbt has been an issue for years now. How many dangerous food delivery riders have people seen?
I think you shouldnt be allowed to do deliveries on a cbt because its alot of pressure with time scales that learners cant always manage.
Thank god I done my test back in 1993, sounds like a right ball ache these days
Fortunately I took my test in 1958 on a 200cc Tiger Cub. Something that most of my mates rode. After the test in Harrow on the Hill. I saved up and bought a Tiger 110 in 1960. at 18. Still ride my Moto Guzzi Daytona RS these days. But am wondering what my Grandson of 17 who has just passed his car test, could do if he wanted to get transport and could not afford the running of a car, where he stands with access to driving a motorcycle? Best Dave
There is never any positives in any changes in government regulations. It's all about driving people off the roads.
Why has there never been any such similar restrictions on young car drivers?!?
The insurance costs will have that effect.
I'm just starting my motorcycle lessons but been driving car in the UK for past 20 years and glad i found these videos as our UK motorbike license doesn't half make it complicated. Now I just need to work out CC power to KW power. Looking at a Honda Rebel or similar for first bike. No idea what 470cc equates to which license. I'm probably overcomplicating it
470cc likely falls under A2
The CBT plus is just an extension of the CBT, rather than a required prerequisite for the full tests.
Bl00dy Hell I didn't know it was that complicated - that explains why you only have two type of motorcyclists in the UK, 16 year old on mopeds delivering Pizzas and bl00dy old men who passed the test years ago before if was all fannied about with.
Back in the goo old days, I took my test on a Honda CB 200, passed then went out and bought a Kawasaki Z 650!
Things were so much easier then.
Indeed and many more people died even though there was a lot less traffic. That is why the laws changed over time, weather that is a good reason to change it is another thing.
Why does it need to be so confusing (other than to make money through testing)?
Theory > CBT is good 👍
Then CBT > DAS equivalent all the way through (none of this A1, A2 crap).
DAS equivalent with staggered power restrictions of the bike at different ages i.e.
17 - max 125cc,
19 -max 250cc,
21 - max 650cc
24+ - unlimited.
No retesting to move up in power! The person has already done the course.
Agreed.. they should just have to fill out a form to update their license when they're of the right age, but the way it is now is very much a money making scheme .. you don't see the same restrictions with cars or the likes, can easily go pass your car test and providing you have the cash - buy a stupidly fast car at 17/18+ ..
In my day you could ride anything as long as it had 'L' plates for as long as you liked at age 17 - methinks the government doesn't want motorbikes on the road but how else are we going get take-aways delivered.
I remember being able to ride any bike up to 250cc on a provisional licence in the 70s. As it happened, my first bike was a 98cc Suzuki from 1973 when I was 18, the second was a CZ 175 from 1976 and then I bought new a Honda 250N in 1979, passing my test on it the same year after some voluntary training run by the ACU/RAC. So I guess I did slowly graduate upwards in experience and power, even having some touring holidays on them. I took quite a leap then going up to a Honda 750K in 1980, tho' the 250N was good experience for in many ways it felt like a larger bike. There seemed to be more bikes available then to step up bit by bit in power.
My actual bike test in 1979 seems very simple by modern standards, and took about 45 minutes, involving a couple of circuits around round a block of houses off the High Street in Chingford, with the examiner leaping out from behind a postbox to test my emergency braking skills, then some questions about road signs and the Highway Code, followed by the "I'm pleased to tell you..." bit.🙂
i think doing away with the repeat cbt is a good idea, main reason, your insurance goes down by 80% in some instances! insurance before test on a 125 was £1000 and after passing my test same bike £250 for the year a quarter of the price in my case.
Did anything else change like bike or job or location?
🤣 I saw two youths on a full size bikes going through a red light and then the wrong way around a traffic island and pedestrian crossing in front of a police car this week and they did nothing at all. This country and government nanny state are beyond a joke, we need to enjoy riding while we can these psychos are trying to take everything you love unless you are a criminal then you're free to carry on.
The power band changes are interesting. A 300cc Vespa GTS for example only make 23hp. A lot of classic scooters are 150cc and 200cc too but don't develop much HP.
Kin ell! I'm glad I passed my test years ago! I have three bikes, a Speed triple 1050, a KTM 300 EXC Enduro bike, and an old but fully rebuilt and tuned up by me Honda MT5 moped, weirdly I have the most fun on the ped! 🙂
If they make the AM entitlement 125cc will that mean full car licence holders will be able to ride a 125cc without Ls as opposed to the 50cc as is the rule at the moments?
In Australia you have to complete a theory test to allow you to ride a LAMS approved restricted bike on L plates accompanied by a person who has held a full licence for a minimum of two years. You then take a hazard perception test and then a practical test, when you pass, you are then allowed to ride the restricted bike but not on L plates and without being accompanied for two years. Then if you wish you can take an unrestricted test to gain your full licence . age doesn’t matter it’s all about experience and tuition!
This is half the reason why I still haven't got myself a bike yet, I don't know where I stand with what licence I need to get first and then next steps to take.
Passed my mod 1 and 2 on same day...mod 1 in the morning...1 hour break, then straight back out for the mod 2 ....very stressful day but worth it...3 days in total...2 days training 1 day of testing...passed with zero faults....
Some of us spent alot more than £700 on traning, I've hear the upgrade training is not 1 hour, but over 7 hours
I think the riding schools will start testing you for mod1 and dvsa will only do mod2, basically what they do for lorry tests now. To many examiner's are leaving and not being replaced so the back log for tests is months. Getting rid of mod1 tests will help a bit
We should do this with cars ☺️ for safety
Thanks for the vid, i'm looking to do my CBT again (did it many years ago and passed my bike theory at the time but never bought a bike!). I'm hoping to get my CBT done in early 2024 and theory test done, deffo want to do the DAS and get the full licence. It will be interesting to see what changes will actually be implemented though! we've not had a shake up like this in a long time!
For your timeline, I think nothing will change. Best of luck with it all! 😶👍
@@spicy110 thank you 👊🏼 I will put an update on my channel on how I get on. Keep up the great work, longtime subscriber (was subbed to you on my old account too)
Passed my test on my GT250 which I used to drive around on L's for a good while. Booked the test, think it was around £9. None of this part 1, part 2 rubbish. Just booked, done a couple of right turn circuits on a few roads just 10 mins from my house. The examiner lived on the actual road, and he was walking his terrier while conducting the test. Told me to keep going around the until I see him raise his hand, at which point I was to come to a complete smooth stop where he was. I turned right onto the main road where he was standing, saw his hand go up... and I reckon I could have rolled a smoke up by the time I reached him. He told me that was it, I passed. He messed around filling his pipe, shook my hand, I ripped off the L plates and rode home like a King. A truly great day. Still riding now. nearly 61 years old, still have a '95 Fj1200, and a '58 plate CB1300. The hoops riders have to jump through now is so expensive.
Ideed, but is that really going to work now? ruclips.net/video/1Y0mQKWTayE/видео.htmlsi=p393TuhXnLuq6zdD
Mine was similar but I did do a part one off road test first to demonstrate control and I did a voluntary road course too with an advanced police motor cycle instructor who taught me a lot of self preservation safety skills.
This is a needlessly complicated system that punishes everyone for the minority of people that jump straight on super bikes and end up hurting themselves. The old system was a lot more sensible.
I passed my full motorcycle test in 1978 and my first motorcycle was a new blue 1977 Kawasaki KH 250 B2.
When they changed from 250 to 125 I had a Suzuki Gamma 12hp. With a small mod it did 105 mph making a mockery out of motorbike licencing.
I am not liking the idea of no repeat CBT. I want the option of not having to do the A1 and stick to A roads, also what's the point of the A1 if you're not planning a Euro trip?
Why, it costs your more money over time and you only have to prove you can ride safely???
I feel like to work up the bike categories, after having a full licence for say an A1 bike, you should only have to test up to Mod 1 for the next category to show you have the ability to progress up. Mod 2 shows you are already safe to ride on the roads, for a bigger bike as long as you can prove you can handle it's differing weight fine (mod 1), the mod 2 section should be redundant as you've already proven you can ride on the road.
Bro Im so happy I live in the US where I didnt have to go through this trash system.
Sounds more complicated. So get ur cbt and it allows 50 to125 for two hrs. A1 Take the skills test that is 250 to 400. Hold that for two yrs then A2 400cc to 800cc. Then for A3 800 to 1000+ on up full license. You do written test once and skills test ea time to move on.
I am so glad I'm old. My test cost me £4.60 (ish) but that was back in the day when people stayed a learner on 250cc and under until they felt they were competent enough to pass a test. Everyone I knew did that for at least 12 months and learned how to carry a pillion (they had to have a full license) who helped to develop your riding. Bikes were your daily transport, whatever the weather and the miles and experience on the road soon racked up. We couldn't afford cars 😂
Yep, I agree, took my test on a 350cc Jawa with sidecar back in the day, never took a car test until I was 50 years old simply because I could not afford a car.
I passed one motorcycle test when i was just short of 18 years old and I was allowed to ride any motorcycle including a 3 wheeled car under 425kg in weight. In fact, I could ride any motorcycle at all when I was 17 BUT it had to have a sidecar and L plates attached. As mentioned in the article towards the end, the cost of bigger bikes, the cost of insurance, the cost of the riding gear all stopped me zooming around on something disproportionately powerful. Yes... I say riding gear meaning helmet and clothing. If you cant afford decent gear to wear, you just do not feel comfortable riding performance machinery and as a result you dont do it. Riding a "fireblade or GSXR" in shorts, tee shirt hoodie and flipflops is just crap as soon as it rains! And when a bumble bee or piece of gravel hits you at just 60 MPH it smarts! I am now 64 and still ride a motorbike and I've seen lots of politicians who try to make a name for themselves on the cheap by "saving" motorcyclists.Let's be about right.. if it isnt motorcycles, its electric scooters running down people and getting gravel rash, if it isnt that its some other adrenalin trip.
The changes make sense to me, but I think the most important things they need to encourage new riders is to make the goddamn tests more affordable
Not so much the test fees , more the training school costs , although I appreciate that is a commercial issue. If I want a day training for Mod 1 and then the test for 20mins the next day , they charge me two full days , not a day and a half . Same for Mod 2 , a days training and then the test the next day for 40mins , again get charged for two full days !
I rode on cbts, daily, all year round on a 125cc, previsional for 17 years 😅 the goal was always to do my tests or move to a car but year after year plans changed. Now in a car for past three years. I always found it mind blowing i was able to just do a very easy day course and ride for another 2 years. i got to a point where it would have been cheaper to get test for next bracket but its kind of mad to allow cbt after cbt with no theory or more lesson time. I like the idea of pushing progression/experience with a new system. I honestly dont think a cbt is enough for some riders. An 18yr (at the time) colleague of mine lost his life riding a 125, drove down the left side of a truck at a junction and it ran him over turning the corner. Luckily i had enough people around me to teach me about fuck around and find out when it comes to riding. In 17 years on a bike commuting and social, no right offs, no crashes with other motorists, came off 4 times, 3 weather related and 1 gravel track that took me by surprise, a sprained wrist(icey road) bruised back(again icey roads). Honestly, while i miss it a little at times, glad to be driving a car now 😅 would love to get bk to it later in life.
Bonus confusion: So…I have AM on my car license (obtained age 18 decades ago)…and in my twenties rode a 50cc moped without L plates. Where does that leave me under the new proposals…could I ride a 125 for example like I did the old moped? Could I ride a Moped sized ebike (30 mph) without breaking the law?
Some good changes, for the earlier skill levels.
What is absolutely missing is on going support for full licence holders.
Nothing that should be mandated but available over private training.
It is somewhat ironic that you can leap from a 30hp bike 100hp bike (my experience many years ago) to today where you can ride a 200hp superbike or a 180 horse power tourer. These are immense machines that benefit from "knowing how to ride" but "what riding is safely" age has nothing to do with teaching people safe fast road riding.
Just worried that a lot of younger peeps get on 600+ super sports bikes that need to even be turned differently to the low KW bikes.
OMG how compicated! I did a CBT at 16, 50cc for a year. Restriced 33bhp test at 17 for 2 years (rode a 500cc with carberettor restriction) 600cc unrestricted at 19yo without any extra testing. My only critisism would be the CBT should have allowed a 125 at 16 because 50cc was too slow on British roads
Is anyone finding a lack of motorcycle parking in most car parks...They give electric cars more spaces and if they really want a more environmentally friendly form of transport they should encourage more use
Just my own experience as an example, I'm currently trying to get my full license (24+, living in greater London) and it is crazy how expensive it all is really. I've had a car license for 10 years, so I'm in a better position than most.
For the CBT, Theory test, 1 hour manual lesson and a years insurance on a new 125 scooter it's already cost me around 1.5k, and now for the direct access + motorcycle tests I'm looking at another 1k IF I manage to pass first time. Not including the cost of bike + gear and I know it would have been cheaper to get a manual straight away but I wanted some decent experience just learning to ride control a bike through London roads before I added learning a manual to the mix.
That's without including that I will likely have to buy a beater 125 manual soon and insure that just so I can get some practice so that the actual driving lessons aren't wasted on me stalling every 2 minutes.
It seems like it's set up for people who already know someone who can teach them the basics of bikes before they even start or for people that are happy to stop at getting their CBT and as I basically started with zero knowledge about bikes I feel a bit left out to dry.
I'd have loved an easier route to get the license, or better ways to learn manual when my end goal is to get an auto anyway.