Anger over motorbike 'swerve test'

[SoulKiss]

Originally Posted by sinbad

It's 50kph.

You knew what I meant

[Spiderman]

Originally Posted by SoulKiss

All the examples above of real-life examples are totally invalid - how often do you have to take a 180degree bend at a fixed speed, then swerve and stop around an object you can see?

On almost every roundabout on the way home tbh SK. I have to travel round the 3 or 4 roundabout and i can see traffic thats supposed to wait till i'm past them before entering the roundabout continue to creep forward onto the roundabout itself. And then i have to swerve to avoid the one in my lane but also ensure i'm still within my own lane as i do it. Sometime it may not be a full 180 that i go round the roundabout other times its nearly 270 that i go round, point is that is does happen in real life riding and this is just one expamle. Many other who live out of towns will encounter this type of thing more often on their roads. And i dont think swerve test is any part of the previous 180 turn procedure, they just happen to follow each other in the test but are 2 seperate skills being tested.

I still see peeps on bikes on my commute who have very little road sense on their bikes, its as if they got out their car one day and decided to ride their bike instead...but in the same way they drive their cars. Riding slap bang in the middle of the mane they are in, no thought to other bikes behind them, making no attempt to filter thru a gap i could get 2 bikes thru but they also sit in the way of everyone else and stop them filtering thru. IMHO anything that makes a new biker more aware of the reality of riding a bike (and especially if they have spent years in car - the differences in road behaviour) can only be a good thing....so long as it doesnt become too costly and put people off enjoying bikes cos they cant afford the training.

I'm not really clear why we expect people to swerve. Shouldn't we be teaching people how not to get into these sort of situations in the first place - anticipation, anticipation, anticipation...

[SoulKiss]

Originally Posted by Spiderman

On almost every roundabout on the way home tbh SK. I have to travel round the 3 or 4 roundabout and i can see traffic thats supposed to wait till i'm past them before entering the roundabout continue to creep forward onto the roundabout itself. And then i have to swerve to avoid the one in my lane but also ensure i'm still within my own lane as i do it. Sometime it may not be a full 180 that i go round the roundabout other times its nearly 270 that i go round.

The point being that you are not being measured as having to do 30mph.....

You get to contol how fast or slow you get according to your feel for the road and situation, unlike this test.

Originally Posted by Ed

Shouldn't we be teaching people how not to get into these sort of situations in the first place - anticipation, anticipation, anticipation...

Agreed, but isnt the 'swerve test' more a demonstration of being able to handle/manouvre a bike? No matter how good someone is at anticipating & avoiding hazards, there is always going to be a risk that they will encounter a situation where avoiding action is required.

[Stu]

I reckon if they want to define the speed, then they should define the conditions and hose it down if it's dry

Interesting interview on my local BBC radio channel today here at around 1 hour 8 minutes.

Originally Posted by Ed

I'm not really clear why we expect people to swerve. Shouldn't we be teaching people how not to get into these sort of situations in the first place - anticipation, anticipation, anticipation...

Absolutely agree Ed - I think its a total waste of time.

IMO if they want to make the roads safer they should -

• Improve the apalling standard of most car drivers
• Introduce a more extensive CBT (these are the most vunerable riders after all)
• Once test passed nothing bigger than a 500 bike
• Compulsory advanced training and assessment before being allowed a licence for any size bike.

A restricted 33bhp license for all wouldn't go down badly.
2 years experience before jumping on a faster bike.

Would have alot more experienced riders on the road.

[yorkie_chris]

Originally Posted by ArtyLady

• Introduce a more extensive CBT (these are the most vunerable riders after all)

Statistically, no they aren't. And it would just take away the only accessible transport for young people.

As for being on a 500 after test, what a PITA and a liability on a motorway. What 500? ER5, GS500? RD500LC, RM500 motard?

Looking for solutions to a problem that doesn't exist. Leave test how it was and save everyone a fortune.