Motorcycle licence test NSW: how the MOST riding test works

Which motorcycle licence test do you need in NSW?

It depends on which licence you’re going for. To get your Ls, you sit the Rider Knowledge Test. Our guide to the NSW rider knowledge test covers that one. To move from your Ls to your P1 licence, you need to pass a riding test on a bike.

The riding test you do depends on where you live. In a serviced area, which means rider training is available near you, the test is the MOST. It’s part of the pre-provisional course run by a rider training provider, and you don’t book anything with a service centre. In an unserviced area, with no training providers near you, you book a kerbside riding test with Service NSW and don’t need to do the course first.

Not sure which applies to you? Check the list of rider training providers on the NSW Government website, or call Transport for NSW on 13 22 13.

When can you sit the motorbike riding test?

You need to be at least 17 and have held your learner rider licence for at least 3 months. NSW also says to book your pre-provisional course at least 6 weeks before your learner licence expires.

Leave yourself that room, because there are no extensions on learner rider licences. If your Ls expire before you pass the course, you have to do the pre-learner program again and pay all the fees again.

To book the course, you need either a NSW driver licence or a Transport Customer Number as proof of identity. The course runs for 7 hours over one day. You can bring your own bike if it’s approved for learner riders, or you may be able to hire one from the provider. Ask them well before the day if you need one. To finish the course, you have to pass every skill the course assesses, and that includes a ride on the road.

How the MOST is scored

The MOST has 8 segments, and you collect points for mistakes. You pass if you finish all 8 segments with 8 points or less. Nine points or more is a fail.

NSW lists the kinds of errors that cost you points:

• touching painted lines
• putting your foot down on the ground
• hitting cones
• stalling the engine
• not doing a head check before moving away.

The instructor explains each segment before you start it. If you don’t understand what they want, ask them to explain it again, and only start once you’re sure. A misunderstood instruction is one of the reasons a test can be stopped.

The instructor can also stop the test early. They may do this if you reach 9 points, ignore instructions, do something unsafe or take too long. Dropping the bike, falling off it or leaving the test area can end it too. If they suspect you’ve recently had alcohol or another drug, the test is cancelled and you don’t get the test fee back.

MOST test manoeuvres you can practise

NSW publishes four of the manoeuvres so you can practise them. It says the list doesn’t cover everything you’ll be assessed on, so treat these as a starting point.

Left turn and stop in the box

You turn left through a lane marked with yellow lines, then stop with the front tyre inside a white painted box. Speed and gear are up to you. The part of the tyre touching the ground has to be completely inside the box, and on the line counts as outside. You lose points for touching the yellow lines, putting a foot down, skidding or stopping outside the box.

Cone weave and U-turn

You weave past 5 cones, going left of the first, right of the second and so on. Then you do a right (clockwise) U-turn inside a box of yellow lines. Hitting or skipping a cone, touching a line or putting a foot down all cost points.

Braking

You ride between two sets of cones at 20–25 km/h and start braking once your front tyre passes the yellow cones. The aim is to stop as quickly and safely as you can. If you’re under 20 km/h or brake early, you get a second go. Doing either again on that second go is a fail. Skidding and a stopping distance that’s off both cost points.

Obstacle turn

At the same 20–25 km/h, you swerve at the yellow cones to miss a half tennis ball, then turn back before the blue side lines and ride out through the exit. You must swerve to the side the instructor is standing on. Hitting the ball or a blue line, missing the exit or swerving the wrong way is an automatic fail. The same second-go rule applies if you’re too slow or turn early.

The braking and obstacle turn can both end in a fail, so on your Ls, practise holding 20–25 km/h and waiting until you reach the cones before you brake or swerve.

If you fail, or sit the kerbside riding test instead

If you finish the course but fail the MOST, you re-take the test and pay the test fee again. You don’t pay for the course again, as long as you pass within 3 months of finishing it. After 3 months, you have to book and pay for the whole course again.

In an unserviced area, the kerbside riding test works differently. You book it by phone on 13 22 13 or in person at a service centre. It can’t be booked online. The testing officer checks most things at set locations, and checks most of them more than once. They also watch your use of the controls the whole way and check that you don’t hold up other traffic. Dangerous riding can be an instant fail.

On the day, bring proof of identity, a completed Licence Application form and the licence fee. You also need a motorcycle or scooter that’s approved for novice riders and safe to ride, plus an approved helmet and the protective gear learner riders must wear. The officer checks your bike first and can cancel the test if it’s not suitable. If you fail, you need to book another test for the following day or the next available day, and pay the test fee again.

After you pass: getting your red Ps

Passing the MOST gets you a certificate of competence. It’s valid for 3 months, and if you don’t apply for your P1 licence in that time, you have to do the course and the test again.

To apply, take a completed Licence Application form to a service centre with your learner rider licence, your certificate (if you’re in a serviced area) and the licence fee. You might also need an eyesight test, so bring your glasses or contacts if you wear them to ride. You get a temporary paper licence on the spot, and the card usually arrives in the post within 10 working days.

Your P1 rider licence is valid for 18 months, and you can move up to your P2 after holding it for at least 12 months. The P1 rules are strict. You can ride at no more than 90 km/h, even where the limit is higher, and you can’t drink any alcohol before riding. You can’t carry a pillion passenger (someone on the back) or lane filter (ride between lanes of slow or stopped traffic). You also have only 4 demerit points, and reaching 4 means you lose your licence.

Where DrivePrep NSW fits in

An app can’t teach you to weave a bike through cones. That comes from riding time on your Ls. Where DrivePrep NSW helps is the test before this one. If you’re not on your Ls yet, our Rider practice guide explains that test. The app’s Rider pathway has category practice for each topic, 45-question mock tests and a readiness score that shows when you’re ready to book the Rider Knowledge Test. Missed-question review lets you go back over the questions you got wrong.

You can get DrivePrep NSW on the App Store for iPhone and iPad and start with the Rider pathway.

Common questions