Post by simon0867 on Aug 12, 2015 12:37:13 GMT
Hi all,
I recently wrote to the government minister responsible for transport to ask why I still had to do a CBT every two years despite the fact I was 47 years old, had held a full car license for 25 years, completed 3 previous CBT's and been riding scooters for several years.
The response is below:
Thank you for your email of 19 July to Patrick McLoughlin about motorcycle CBT. I’ve been asked to reply as we are the agency responsible for rider training.
The Road Traffic Act does not authorise the holder of a provisional license to ride a motorcycle or moped, before he has passed a test, unless he has successfully completed an approved training course (known as CBT). The certificate issued on completion of CBT is valid for two years. CBT was introduced to ensure that motorcyclists, as some of the most vulnerable road users, are equipped with at the basic skills before they are allowed to ride unaccompanied. The two year validity period is to allow riders to gain valuable on road experience while preparing for a test – we encourage riders to obtain their full license entitlement rather than continue as perpetual learners.
The law exists to protect and promote road safety for all road users. The government is committed to ensuring that drivers and riders in Great Britain have the necessary skills to use our roads safely. We work with colleagues in the European Union to establish suitable testing and training arrangements across the continent.
The current minimum requirements for riding a motorcycle are established by the Third Directive on Driver Licensing.
The government believes the current qualifying arrangements are appropriate for new riders. They are intended to ensure that all riders are properly trained and are equipped with the necessary skills to ride safely on our roads. Whilst driving a car can provide experience of traffic situations and equip the individual with road awareness, it does not cover the unique elements which apply to riding a motorcycle. The two activities are essentially different.
In 1994, DVLA conducted a consultation on the provisions of the 2nd Driving Licence Directive 91/439/EEC, which introduced the A1 category. Article 5 para 3 made provision for the equivalence for cat B (car) licence holders if Member States wished to grant it. The Department for Transport carefully considered whether to introduce this equivalence at the time. However, it was decided not to give automatic entitlement to this category to car drivers. Some motorcycles in this category are capable of both high speed and rapid acceleration and to allow automatic entitlement to car drivers without appropriate training and test would have adverse road safety implications.
In March this year, the Government published a consultation paper ‘Modernising Compulsory Basic Training for motorcyclists’, which can be seen here. Included in the longer term proposals, which would require amendments to regulations, we invited comments about the validity period of the CBT certificate. Over 200 comments were received. 82 respondents thought the 2 year validity period should not be changed and a further 24 commented: Industry is opposed to any change to the CBT validity period….
There was limited support for extending the validity period beyond 2 years, with some respondents expressing concerns that by not limiting the validity period or restricting the number of times a CBT could be taken a ‘permanent learner’ culture would be encouraged, and that more should be done to encourage riders to take a test.
Yours sincerely
I'm not sure any of the above answers my question. I appreciate riding a bike is different to driving a car which is why I have no objection to completing one CBT or even undergoing a probationary period during which I would still have to use L-Plates etc. I'm also interested to hear there was a consultation exercise. I don't remember hearing anything about this, and as they only got 200 responses I can't imagine many other people did either. Looks a bit like nanny state UK government again.
I recently wrote to the government minister responsible for transport to ask why I still had to do a CBT every two years despite the fact I was 47 years old, had held a full car license for 25 years, completed 3 previous CBT's and been riding scooters for several years.
The response is below:
Thank you for your email of 19 July to Patrick McLoughlin about motorcycle CBT. I’ve been asked to reply as we are the agency responsible for rider training.
The Road Traffic Act does not authorise the holder of a provisional license to ride a motorcycle or moped, before he has passed a test, unless he has successfully completed an approved training course (known as CBT). The certificate issued on completion of CBT is valid for two years. CBT was introduced to ensure that motorcyclists, as some of the most vulnerable road users, are equipped with at the basic skills before they are allowed to ride unaccompanied. The two year validity period is to allow riders to gain valuable on road experience while preparing for a test – we encourage riders to obtain their full license entitlement rather than continue as perpetual learners.
The law exists to protect and promote road safety for all road users. The government is committed to ensuring that drivers and riders in Great Britain have the necessary skills to use our roads safely. We work with colleagues in the European Union to establish suitable testing and training arrangements across the continent.
The current minimum requirements for riding a motorcycle are established by the Third Directive on Driver Licensing.
The government believes the current qualifying arrangements are appropriate for new riders. They are intended to ensure that all riders are properly trained and are equipped with the necessary skills to ride safely on our roads. Whilst driving a car can provide experience of traffic situations and equip the individual with road awareness, it does not cover the unique elements which apply to riding a motorcycle. The two activities are essentially different.
In 1994, DVLA conducted a consultation on the provisions of the 2nd Driving Licence Directive 91/439/EEC, which introduced the A1 category. Article 5 para 3 made provision for the equivalence for cat B (car) licence holders if Member States wished to grant it. The Department for Transport carefully considered whether to introduce this equivalence at the time. However, it was decided not to give automatic entitlement to this category to car drivers. Some motorcycles in this category are capable of both high speed and rapid acceleration and to allow automatic entitlement to car drivers without appropriate training and test would have adverse road safety implications.
In March this year, the Government published a consultation paper ‘Modernising Compulsory Basic Training for motorcyclists’, which can be seen here. Included in the longer term proposals, which would require amendments to regulations, we invited comments about the validity period of the CBT certificate. Over 200 comments were received. 82 respondents thought the 2 year validity period should not be changed and a further 24 commented: Industry is opposed to any change to the CBT validity period….
There was limited support for extending the validity period beyond 2 years, with some respondents expressing concerns that by not limiting the validity period or restricting the number of times a CBT could be taken a ‘permanent learner’ culture would be encouraged, and that more should be done to encourage riders to take a test.
Yours sincerely
I'm not sure any of the above answers my question. I appreciate riding a bike is different to driving a car which is why I have no objection to completing one CBT or even undergoing a probationary period during which I would still have to use L-Plates etc. I'm also interested to hear there was a consultation exercise. I don't remember hearing anything about this, and as they only got 200 responses I can't imagine many other people did either. Looks a bit like nanny state UK government again.
