JohnMcL7

No, an A-level is an on paper theory exam to test very specific knowledge whereas a riding test is a practical examination to assess the general ability to ride a motorbike. Applying the rules of differential calculus is exactly the same now as it was when I say my highers however the conditions I have ridden my motorbike on have varied significantly from the small amount of riding I had to do for my test.

As I said, the examiner should be someone capable of assessing riding capability and they always have been - portions of the old test didn't need hard numbers nor does this one, if the MPTC centres were all under cover and therefore the same every time then it's more reasonable to apply a specific speed limit. However one of the skills anyone sitting the test has to be able to demonstrate is to assess the road conditions and adjust their speed accordingly, if you plough on sitting just at the speed limit when the examiner thought should have been going slower due to certain conditions being present then you can fail the test.

If examiners are unable to assess a rider's abilities and need a fixed number to help them then that suggests to me there's something wrong with the training and ability of the examiners. In reality I don't think it's the case as both the instructors and examiners I've seen seem to be extremely good in their field, therefore I'd leave it to them to judge whether the speed was sufficient or not given the conditions at the time.

I agree with some of the comments posted earlier about intensive courses and direct access which to me seem to be more of a concern in terms of rider safety, I think it's absurd that you can sit an intensive course, pass your test on a low powered bike then go out and then ride a high powered sports bike which is easily affordable.

John