Drivers licence restrictions help new motorcycle riders get up to speed

Times-Colonist: /Darren Stone,

Instructor Ron Cronk runs through drills with Advanced riders at Western Speedway in Victoria, B.C. May 25, 2019.

Driver's licence restrictions are used to restrict the operation of motor vehicles until the driver gains sufficient experience in their operation to have them removed.

They are also used in the case of a medical condition or functional deficit. Restrictions may be imposed by either RoadSafetyBC or ICBC depending on the situation.

One incident I investigated is a common example of ignoring restrictions. It was an off-road left collision involving a learner driver on a motorcycle. He was restricted to having an instructor aged 25+ and operating at a speed of no more than 60 km/h. The instructor was 21 and explained they couldn't have been doing more than 70 km/h in the 60 km/h zone before the crash.

Learning to ride a motorcycle properly may be more dangerous than learning to drive a car. The rider is not as well protected as a driver and there are challenges learning to steer and in maintaining stability. Initial passenger and speed limitations are designed to introduce these challenges to the rider to reduce the danger involved in learning.

Here is a table of restrictions specifically for motorcycle riders holding British Columbia driver's licences:

Photo: Contributed

Restrictions on Class 7 and 8 licences are typically removed by ICBC as the GLP driver successfully completes testing to move toward holding a Class 6 full privilege licence.

Restrictions for medical or functional deficits are removed by RoadSafetyBC.

In all cases, unless the driver can comply with the restrictions, police action may include a violation ticket for the offence under section 25(15) MVA or 30.10(4) MVAR. The penalty is $109 and may also include three penalty points.

The rider will also be prevented from continuing until the restrictions are complied with or a qualified driver can take over.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.