Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency
Printable version E-mail this to a friend

Extra time granted for new motorcycle test

Extra time granted for new motorcycle test

DRIVING STANDARDS AGENCY News Release (42/08) issued by COI News Distribution Service. 11 September 2008

The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) has announced a delay of six months to the introduction of the new practical motorcycle test, originally scheduled for September 29, 2008.

The move comes after the Agency considered representations from the Motorcycle Industry Association (MCIA), the Motorcycle Rider Training Association (MRTA) and other motorcycle interests.

The new implementation date will now be Monday, March 30, 2009.

The decision to defer implementation will allow the DSA to carry on delivering motorcycle tests from a wider range of centres whilst working with motorcycle groups and to find a suitable solution for providing the new test service in problem locations.

Driving Standards Agency chief executive Rosemary Thew said: "Increasing road safety for motorcyclists has always been a top priority and it remains so. We listened carefully to the concerns put to us and this deferment acknowledges those concerns.

"None of us has lost sight of the fact that the aim of the new motorcycle test is to improve road safety for this important group of road users. This extra six months will give additional opportunity to find extra locations that we need to deliver the new test and potentially address gaps in service provision which have been highlighted to us."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

1. The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) is an executive agency of the Department for Transport.

2. Information on road casualties is available on the Department for Transport website http://www.dft.gov.uk

3. The Agency's aim is to promote road safety through improving driving standards, testing drivers and riders fairly and efficiently, maintaining the registers of Approved Driving Instructors and Large Goods Vehicle Instructors and Post Test Motorcycle Trainers as well as supervising basic training for learner motorcyclists.

4. DSA is a trading fund with an expected turnover of around £164 million for the year 2007/8, fully funded by fee income and revenue from its activities.

5. DSA employs 2657 (2,585 full time equivalent), of which some 2,020 are driving examiners (1945 full time equivalent) based at over 432 test centres across mainland Great Britain. In 2006/2007 the Agency conducted 1.8 million practical tests for car drivers, 89,000 vocational tests and 78,000 motorcycle rider tests. A total of 1.5 million theory tests were carried out at 158 centres. At the end of the year there were 39,001 people on the Register of Approved Driving Instructors.

6. DSA is one of the first Government Agencies to introduce an 'online' booking service. Candidates can book and manage their theory and practical test appointments on line at http://www.direct.gov.uk/drivingtest

Facing the Future...find out more