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If you look around the campsite and town at any big scooter rally, or around the car park at a ride out you’ll see an abundance of classic and modern scooters. A variety of machines from all marques dating back to the 1950s, sometimes even earlier than that. They’re owned by riders of all ages. Although, sadly it’s the over 50s who are the most prevalent age group.
Join the club
Not that there is anything wrong with being in your 50s (I’ve recently joined that club myself) but it is a shame that many of those riders will still be riding on ‘just’ a CBT. If you’re one of them and you’ve only just got on to two wheels then that’s great, you’re sussing it out and gaining some experience during the first two-year period. But what about those serial CBT offenders? The ones who complain about having to take yet another CBT every two years, whilst at the same time moaning that a full licence is too expensive.
If you’re a serial CBT rider why not make 2021 the year to gain yourself a full motorcycle licence? If you’re serious about scooter riding, a full licence should be at the top of your priority list. Stop the excuses and get it sorted.
“It’s too expensive”
Compulsory Basic Training was introduced in 1990. How many CBT tests have you taken? On average it costs £125 for a one-day CBT. If you’ve done five CBTs then you could have passed your Direct Access for the same (or less) money and never have to waste any more days doing the same boring basic training… ever again.
It’s cheaper than a car licence
Although quality bike training isn’t exactly cheap, riders are still quite lucky. It takes less time and less money to pass your bike test than it does a car test. The DVSA recommends 45-50 hours of paid car tuition plus half again of private practice. The car test is much more difficult than it used to be. You’ll pay around £25-£30 an hour for car lessons, that’s over £1200 for the lessons needed to take you to test.
I bet most CBT riders will already have a full car licence though and the cost didn’t put them off…
Why should I have to pass on a geared bike to ride a scooter?
The current licencing system means that you DO need to take your test on a motorcycle, the capacity will depend on your age and which test you take. It may not seem fair if you ‘only’ want to ride a scooter but that’s the way it is. Perhaps you should have done it years ago when the test was easy and could be done on your classic scooter by riding around the block whilst an instructor walked around with a clipboard. I did.
Don’t be afraid, just book yourself some lessons with your regular CBT instructor, or another local training school. If you’re not used to geared motorcycles the bike may seem powerful and heavy at first but you’ll be fine, take your time and gain some confidence. You might even enjoy the experience. Remember, the end goal is to gain your freedom and remove the shackles of the ‘L’plate.
Pay as you go – it’s cheaper
It costs around £650-£750 to do a DAS – Direct Access course. You don’t have to pay upfront for a full course of training though, you can pay as you go, just like you would with car driving lessons. The price of riding lessons is around £30 per hour including bike hire. If you’re already an experienced rider with good habits you won’t need many lessons so it can often work out cheaper to ‘pay as you go.’
You can help yourself by reading up on the test and practising your theory beforehand. The official DVSA Learning to Ride Guide costs just £8.99.
I don’t want to ride anything bigger than a 125
Although you might be quite happy with your Royal Alloy 125, Vespa PX 125 or Milano 125 wouldn’t it be nice to be able to get rid of those nasty ‘L’plates? There’s nothing spoils the look of a lovely scooter more than stupid big L plates. Wouldn’t it be good if you could get rid of them, take a passenger, ride on the motorway, or have the option to buy a larger capacity scooter (or bike) in the future? One thing is for sure, tests and training don’t get cheaper or easier so do it sooner rather than later.
Illegal riders
As well as serial CBT offenders there are plenty more who ride illegally, either with or without a CBT. Riding tuned scooters on a provisional licence (sometimes with no licence at all) just because you’ve always done it and got away with it doesn’t make it alright. Time is running out for you horrible lot to get yourselves legal. With licences, tax, MOT and insurance all being done online now it’s only a matter of time before you’re refused insurance, or refused an insurance payout due to your fibs. The same goes for accidents, they’re the best way for the law to catch up with you.
Book in now!
We all know that Covid has affected every part of life in the last year, the training and testing process is one of the big casualties. Instructors and examiners were unable to work for 19 weeks last year and have so far been unable to work in 2021. It’s going to take time to catch up on the sheer number of test cancellations and the backlog it has caused for instructors. We suggest booking lessons sooner rather than later.
It’s likely training and testing will be allowed to resume in March, get yourself booked in now, especially if your current CBT is coming to the end!
Words and photos: Iggy
SLUK guide to Direct Access
You can read all about Direct Access training and the test itself in the comprehensive three-part feature we published a while back. It’s a warts ‘n all look at the test from a female perspective. Believe me, there is nobody who was more afraid of that training than Linsey was (I live with her).
Good article Iggy – but be prepared for the back-lash. A similar post on FB a month or so ago turned into comedy (mod) gold…. One chap, who had taken his CBT countless (10+ times) – even claimed he was a better rider BECAUSE of his repeated CBT test passes…. Priceless…
Like you, I took my test late 80s – was the first year they followed you around on a bike and gave you instructions via an intercom ( I seem to recall)?
Total cost – was an afternoon of an hour riding around a tennis court to prove I could ride and then a few hours on the road mimicking what would happen in the test – probably cost under £50 plus the test. And yep I passed 1st time.
My test was in Barnsley for some reason at 10am and I had just come straight off a night-shift. The hardest bit was stopping to ask for directions to the Test Centre……. couldn’t understand a bloody word…. lol.
My test was in early 1988 and before all that modern intercom gadgetry, simply ride around and do what you want when the examiner was out of sight! I’d turned 17 in December 1987, taken my part one later that month then had my part 2 soon after. I wasn’t bothered about a car licence but took that as well the same year to pacify parents. Glad I did both when I did though.
Getting my full bike license was more cause for celebration than my wedding day was! Glad I did it when I did…the bike license that is.
Still, I think it makes sense to have proper training nowadays as the traffic is faster and the roads more traffic dense (as are many other road users too unfortunately). The roads are far less forgiving. The days of overtaking Vauxhall Vivas and DAF coal lorries rattling along at 60 mph on an a relatively empty motorway are long gone.
I have noticed a proliferation of Vespa smallframes registered as 50s on rallies but they have had the old 110 conversion or PK/Primmy 125/135 inside so guys can “legally” ride them on their car ticket. Ahem.
When we all go over to leccy it will be even harder to police this as many bikes will be electronically governed. In a flick of a switch or Smartphone app. you could go from learner legal to full power.
In the not so distant future I predict the Police will be able to track your vehicle’s telemetry on power and speed remotely and they could activate a TASER like device in the seat to give your nads a zap to reign you in. That and a remote “E-lock” to stop your vehicle in its tracks.The world of Judge Dredd is coming, mark my words.
So better get your test in now you Comedy Mods innit! 😉
Good article, it isn’t getting any easier. I took mine as you did scooter then the car, back-to-back. No intercom in 1986, but I did choose a hilly place (Malvern) for the test. Examiner stood there – yes – with the clipboard – at the top of a T-junction which had a left turn to take, but on an incline. The T5 was a bit prone to lifting the front in such circumstances, but I was prepared – a bag of sand in the toolbox 😉
I still found the bike test “harder” than the car test, so I am sure if it not a piece of piss now. If you want a piece of piss test, come and take the Georgia test – it only involved me riding a 955 around a car park :-). That said, two Hardly-abl-etoo riders failed in front of me, they couldn’t “lean” between the curved painted lines 😀
They are currently not doing car tests with people getting differed three or four times, does anyone know if it is the same situation for doing you bike test?
Yes it’s the same Dave. I’m pretty sure training and tests will resume in March though.
Great article Iggy. I missed the opportunity to take my test back in the day and regretted it later like a lot of people did. The humiliation of having to repeat doing my CBT every 2 years and riding on L plates as a 40 year old not to mention my 12 year old daughter taking the p*ss out of me when I hid the L’s in the glovebox was too much to bear !!!
With the rules about to change i was one of the last ones to get a full bike licence on my T5. Bite the bullet and get it done, it may have been acceptable riding on L’s as a teenager in the 80’s but it’s not a good look when your in your 50’s !
I took my bike test ‘a long time ago’ but still in the age of a day doing CBT then training on a geared bike and a test with examiner following and issuing instructions via intercomm. Also, yep passed with zero faults (girly swot just like Linsey!) I actually enjoyed my 4 1/2 days learning on a bike and having the crack. Enjoyed not putting poxy L plates on my brand new racing green PX200 as well