With motorcyclists generally getting older, how have we got into this state – and what can be done?
INVESTIGATES
WHETHER IT’S GOVERNMENTS imposing draconian licence laws or the challenge of shifting to net zero, there’s always a scare story to tell us that motorcycling’s days as a pastime are numbered. But a bigger problem for motorcycling is it’s our days that are numbered, and that for years the average age of riders has crept upwards.
Statistics are often misleading, but the National Travel Survey hints at some worrying trends. For example, in 2002, people aged 17-20 covered an average of 66 miles per year on two wheels. A decade later it was 48 miles and by 2022 it had dropped to 28 miles. In comparison, the mileage covered by riders aged 50-59 was the same in 2022 as it was in 2002.
Moped sales accounted for more than 25% of all new bikes in 2001, with over 45,000 new registrations, but this dropped to 4.1% and 5,147 new sales by 2021.
The drop comes despite initiatives like the motorcycle industry’s ‘Get On’ campaign, which has cost – largely manufacturers – about £6 million to get people to try motorcycling but resulted in only an estimated 5000 new motorcyclists.
So, what can be done to solve the problem and ensure motorcycling remains strong in the future?
Innovation and appeal
Tony Campbell, Motorcycle Industry Association (MCIA) chief executive, said: “First we need to understand the complexity of the problem, and the sector has to start innovating and introducing products to appeal to today’s young customer.”
For manufacturers, the attraction of older riders is undeniable. Small-capacity bikes have smaller profit margins than larger ones, and older riders with plenty of disposable income are always going to be in a stronger position than those in their teens or 20s to splash out on them, particularly amid a cost-of-living crisis.
“Manufacturers have to look at themselves and invest in the future,” Mr Campbell said. “This is their challenge.”
The licence problem
The Third Driving Licence Directive (3DLD), adopted in 2013, increased the minimum age of a full licence via direct access to 24 and introduced the intermediate 47bhp A2 category, has made it slow, complicated and expensive to get a bike licence.
But Craig Carey-Clinch, executive director of the National Motorcyclists Council (NMC), said: “Since 2013, deaths have gone up.
That suggests the whole thing isn’t fit for purpose.”
Discussions on a new licence regime are under way, with the MCIA and NMC both proposing a
