A Four Stage Guide to Gaining a Full Motorcycle Licence

  1. All novice riders must undertake and complete a CBT course before riding on the road, at the age of 16 it can only be on a 50cc scooter or motorbike, once they reach 17 it can be done on anything up to 125cc, the CBT certificate is only valid for 2 years, if in that time they have not completed the full bike test, then the CBT course must be re-done to cover you for a further 2 years, this can be repeated as many times as you wish.
  2. The motorcycle theory test must then be completed, even if a car theory test has been completed, this does not count for a motorbike.
  3. The practical side of the motorcycle test is made up of 2 parts, part 1 (mod.1) is done at a DSA off-road test site (Cambridge, Cardington and Silverstone) and is made up of a series of off road elements including a u-turn, figure of “8”, slow riding, and swerve/controlled stop, this is the element with the bad press, but given pre-test practice, is very straight forward.
  4. The second part (mod.2) of the practical test is made up of the road ride, this no longer includes any of the u-turns, emergency stops etc. If the person taking the bike test is over 21 years of age, they may take the mod.1 & mod.2 on a motorcycle of up to 600cc, accompanied at all times by a qualified instructor, this will give them a full motorcycle licence with unlimited access to any size bike. For riders under 21 or those who are not happy with riding such a large bike, they can take the mod.1 & mod.2 tests on a 125cc motorcycle, this will give them a restricted licence, which allows them to ride any size of bike, fitted with a certificated 33hp restrictor kit, this can only be fitted by a registered fitter and must remain on the bike for 2 years from the test date, also anyone under 21 years taking there bike test, have no option but to go for the restricted licence. The motorcycle testing procedure has now become very complex, time consuming and expensive (£500-600) compared to the days when we passed, but the standard is also much higher.

Information kindly supplied by Andrew Olney from 1 to 1 Motorcycle Training Ltd (01525 631006)