Enforcement on Learners???

[Stevo]

I am (hopefully) only on my learners for another three weeks. Wondering how hard police try to catch learners etc????? No one displays L-Plates cos if they do they are a give away for being hit up on the ridiculous 70kph restriction. Ok so I am 28 and ridden since I was ten or so on farms without helmets exceeding 70kph etc etc but new to the road. 70 seems dangerous and quite (very) slow!

Wondering if some of you active police officers could offer us an explanation of the "Police" attitudes toward learner bike riders??

Should we as bikers push more toward trying to rid of or raise this speed restriction????????? For our fellow learner riders? :spudwhat:

[Mongoose]

I have heard tell of one HP fella that will radar a M/bike, run a check on the owner and there by get his license details. If they bike is doing above 70k he pulls it to check to see what license the rider has

[Velox]

I have heard tell of one HP fella that will radar a M/bike, run a check on the owner and there by get his license details. If they bike is doing above 70k he pulls it to check to see what license the rider has

I had a cop do that. I'd just been going for a hoon over in the Wairarapa and was coming back into Wgtn and started getting suspicious of the car behind me and so I kept at an ok pace, when sure enough the lights went on and I had to pull over. The cop said to me "So, have you got your licence back then?", and I tried to work out what on earth he was on about. Turns out he'd put my rego (must've typed it in wrong) into the system and decided that the owner of the bike had lost their licence! So I put him right and tried to ask him if there was some prob with the system but he wouldn't divulge much more info. Then he said to me in an incriminating tone, "I couldn't help notice that you were riding with one of Hell's Angels", which I found highly amusing, seeing as the guy who I had pulled up behind at the lights had actually been wearing a patch that said "God Squad". I told the cop that, and said that it was a Christian group which was a bit different. So the poor guy went away with his tail between his legs!
So yep - they can check you out! Don't know how often though.

[Mr Skid]

General concensus I've come across is that unless you're doing something else dubious, such as speeding or lane splitting, they aren't going to worry, though your milage way vary.

I've only once had my licence checked in the couple of years I drove around on my restricted car licence- and that was 11pm on a Saturday night on Queen St. Was looking reasonably respectable and driving a sedate car sedately, and stalled while getting my licence long enough to strike up a conversation with the officer who decided that "I'll let you go this time!"

There are various tricks surrounding L plates, such tearing off a small bit, placing it under a screw, and claiming that it was torn off, or carrying it with you and saying that you take it off when parked so that it won't get nicked and that you forgot to put it back on.

These don't really get around the 70 km/h limit, as you'd be 40km/h over the learner speed limit if doing 110km/h on the open road..

..Which makes me wonder does that then mean 28 days loss of licence etc? and if so is it worth doing a runner? :spudwhat:

[FzerozeroT]

i got snapped doing 124 from taupo to rotorua, 54km over if he had hit me up for the learner limit, no L plate, as well as the missing left indicator (bin 3 days before) and a tucked away rego sticker that he said "better put that in a more visible place, you wouldn't want to get a $200 fine from a different officer". I got away with 24km over. so it was damn for the ticket, but at least i still have a licence

[scumdog]

Just underwent two WWF type rounds with a drunk driver who only had his learners tonight, he lost both rounds and is getting a ticket because of lack of respect of his elders -and for his lack "L" plate, (amongst his other charges)

AND 'cos he made me miss my tea!!!

Some days I think 50+ is too old for this kind of shit but hey, it goes with the territory

[Mr Skid]

Just underwent two WWF type rounds with a drunk driver who only had his learners tonight, he lost both rounds and is getting a ticket because of lack of respect of his elders -and for his lack "L" plate, (amongst his other charges)

AND 'cos he made me miss my tea!!!

Some days I think 50+ is too old for this kind of shit but hey, it goes with the territory

Haha I love the people who think arguing with an officer will some how see them back down. Creative excuses and greasing are all good though!

If he was sober, driving a warranted + licenced car, and polite to you do ya reckon you might have applied your discressionary powers about the L plate?

[Ms Piggy]

No one displays L-Plates cos if they do they are a give away for being hit up on the ridiculous 70kph restriction. Ok so I am 28 and ridden since I was ten or so on farms without helmets exceeding 70kph etc etc but new to the road. 70 seems dangerous and quite (very) slow!

Ummmmm..., I'd have to disagree with you on that mate. I actually ride with my L-plate, I've only been riding since January but also rode from Wgtn to Hamilton and back with my L-plate on. But I've never followed the 70 km/hr speed restriction b/c I think it is far more dangerous and I haven't been pulled over yet. I'd also rather get a speeding ticket than a $500- fine for no L-plate. I've said this before but on my ride back from Hamilton I was riding at 100 km/hr and passed a truck with a cop behind me and he didn't pull me over.

Should we as bikers push more toward trying to rid of or raise this speed restriction????????? For our fellow learner riders?

Yeah go for it mate! I'd back you up. Although I guess the logic is that to get your learners car license you need to have a practical test (is that right??) but to get your bike learners license you just have to sit the scratchie test.

[Devil]

I ride with my L plate on (restricted test in two weeks ) basically because im not interested in any kind of ticket, especially speeding, when it can affect the insurance (of my car! Godamn it sucks being under 25 with a turbo!).

The area im in I can have plenty of fun without going on the open road, even then, the roads I do go on are pretty light with traffic.

[Devil]

Yeah go for it mate! I'd back you up. Although I guess the logic is that to get your learners car license you need to have a practical test (is that right??) but to get your bike learners license you just have to sit the scratchie test.

For your car learners you can just go get it, even easier than bike learners, theres no handling certificate or anything like that.

I can see why the speed limit is there, stopping in-experienced riders from botching at high speed.

[MOTOXXX]

I am (hopefully) only on my learners for another three weeks. Wondering how hard police try to catch learners etc????? :

personaly i would just behave for another 3 weeks. Its not that long to wait.
I rode on my learners for around a year without a looser plate. I never got pinged. But its all a gamble i guess. (mind u, that was when cops were somewhat nice)

i got my first speeding ticket on my old fzr250 on the way to school when i was 15. Had no l plate and got pinged at 125km.
speeding ticket - $170
Breaching learners licence conditions (going over 70km) $400
total of $570. a hard lesson lernt but he did let me off the no l plate and
didnt send me to court for doing over 50km over the learners limit.

[Dodgyiti]

I was pulled up recently in Huntly on my restricted, got a ticket for failing to produce my licence $55, the cheapest option the HP could give me. I was nice and very gratefull, not to mention polite.
The weird thing is... the HP had the same problem I had.
He also got his mtb licence knocked off the books when appliying for a lifetime ripoff plastic card, and even though he was HP, he still had to start from scratch like I am.
The system sucks like that, they take your old one away, so you have no proof, then knock you back to zero.
Anyone else had that happen when going over to the lifetime [ 10 years really] licence?
I have done all the ranting and letter writing to the powers that be, to no avail.
Ah well , I get my full licence at christmas time, unless I fork out more money and do the defensive driving course...
The whole ordeal including 250cc rental will end up costing me a grand !!

[Blakamin]

I had a full australian bike licence that had expired when i came back here so i had to start again!

[spudchucka]

I am (hopefully) only on my learners for another three weeks. Wondering how hard police try to catch learners etc?????

For learner motorcycle riders - not that hard. If one is pulled up for some other infringement and the rider is found to be breaching learners conditions then a ticket for the breach might be likely. Learner and restricted car drivers however are a different story because they are so obvious. A car load of 16 year olds stands out like dogs bollocks.

One interesting point is that heaps of gang members either don't hold a M/C licence at all or are still on the graduated system. Its priceless giving a big smelly gang member a ticket for not displaying L plates!

No one displays L-Plates cos if they do they are a give away for being hit up on the ridiculous 70kph restriction. Ok so I am 28 and ridden since I was ten or so on farms without helmets exceeding 70kph etc etc but new to the road. 70 seems dangerous and quite (very) slow!

70 kph is pretty dumb in my opinion because it puts the rider in a vulnerable position, (being passed by trucks etc). I don't think this would be policed too hard by most cops, particularly if you don't give the cop any reason to ticket you, (smart attitude etc).

Wondering if some of you active police officers could offer us an explanation of the "Police" attitudes toward learner bike riders??

As per above. If you get pulled for speeding or anything else relating to driver behaviour and you are found to be breaching licence conditions then expect a $400 ticket. Cops do check regos and the owners licence details and if they suspect an offence they will probably pull you over, however this is more true of cars than for bikes.

Should we as bikers push more toward trying to rid of or raise this speed restriction????????? For our fellow learner riders? :spudwhat:

Go for it, you never know your luck.................Don't hold your breath though!

[Slim]

70 kph is pretty dumb in my opinion because it puts the rider in a vulnerable position, (being passed by trucks etc). I don't think this would be policed too hard by most cops, particularly if you don't give the cop any reason to ticket you, (smart attitude etc).

I talked with an HP guy (who's never ridden a motorbike & doesn't want to in the future) about this last year and he honestly couldn't understand why I thought it was more dangerous for a learner to be doing 70kph on the open road.