‘Is better training the reason we’re crashing less?’
I’ve just been looking through the latest edition of my favourite magazine and read the article exploring reasons why, as motorcyclists, we seem to be crashing less (RIDE, March 2021).
Enhancements like the introduction of hazard perception element of tests in 2002 and the new twopart modular test introduced in April 2009, which further developed the original two-part test, must have had an impact on rider safety.
Prior to 1989, test candidates were not actually followed by the examiner but assessed from the side of the road! Coupled with various changes to licence categories and tests like the Direct Access Scheme in 1997, these enhancements must have made a difference to prevent younger riders getting on more powerful machines prematurely.
Opportunities like the DVSA Enhanced Rider Scheme (introduced in 2006) and the development of other similar training schemes across the country must surely have contributed to a reduction in crashes too.
Glenn Stanley