A1 licence: ride a 125cc motorcycle from 17

What A1 lets you ride

The A1 definition is a ceiling of 125cc and 11kW with a power-to-weight ratio of no more than 0.1kW/kg. In practice manufacturers build right up to that ceiling, so a current 125 four-stroke makes about 15bhp and a two-stroke of the same capacity, where you can still find one, makes similar power with a very different delivery.

The category also covers light motor tricycles. What it does not cover is anything larger with the power turned down: a restricted 300 is not an A1 machine, because the capacity limit is absolute.

Browse what is on the market: 125cc motorbikes for sale, from commuter singles to sports-styled machines and adventure-styled 125s.

The route at 17, step by step

1. Provisional licence. Apply online for £34. You can do this from 15 years and 9 months.
2. CBT. One day of training. The certificate lasts two years and lets you ride a 125 on L plates immediately.
3. Theory test. £23. Fifty multiple-choice questions in 57 minutes, pass mark 43, plus a hazard perception section of 14 clips scored out of 75 with a pass mark of 44. The certificate is valid for two years.
4. Module 1. £15.50. About 20 minutes off road on a manoeuvring area.
5. Module 2. £75 on a weekday, £88.50 evenings, weekends and bank holidays. About 40 minutes on the road.

Both practical modules must be passed within the two years your theory certificate is valid, otherwise you sit the theory again. Add training time on top of the test fees: most candidates take a day or two with a school, partly because the school supplies a test-legal machine.

Module 1: what the examiner is looking for

Module 1 takes place on an off-road manoeuvring area and runs to about 20 minutes. You will be asked to wheel the machine and put it on its stand, then ride a slalom and figure of eight, a slow ride, a U-turn, cornering with a controlled stop, cornering with an emergency stop, and cornering with hazard avoidance.

The speed-dependent exercises are where candidates come unstuck. On a motorcycle, the emergency stop and the swerve must be approached at a minimum of 31mph; on a moped the figure is 19mph. Riders fail far more often for arriving too slowly than for stopping badly, because a nervous approach at 28mph means the exercise is not valid and must be repeated.

The rest of it rewards slow-speed control: clutch, rear brake and a raised head. Practise the U-turn and the figure of eight in a car park until you are not thinking about them.

Module 2: the road test

Module 2 lasts about 40 minutes and starts with an eyesight check, reading a number plate from 20 metres for the current style. Fail that and the test ends there. You then answer safety questions about the machine, ride a route covering a mix of roads, and complete roughly ten minutes of independent riding by following signs or a series of directions.

To pass you must avoid any serious or dangerous fault and keep rider faults, the ones commonly called minors, to no more than ten. The faults that appear most often are observation before moving off, road positioning at junctions and the lifesaver check before changing direction. Examiners are looking for a rider who is being seen as much as one who is seeing.

Which bike can you take the test on

For A1 the test machine must be between 120cc and 125cc and produce no more than 11kW. Almost everybody uses a school bike because it is set up for the exercises, it is insured for the test and it will not let you down on the day. If you use your own, check the power figure carefully: a machine that has been remapped or fitted with an aftermarket exhaust may no longer conform.

If you take the test on a fully automatic machine, your licence is restricted to automatics in that category, so if there is any chance you will want a geared bike, do the test on one.

Life with a full A1

Passing A1 removes the L plates, allows a pillion passenger and permits motorway use. The entitlement does not expire, so there are no more two-yearly CBT fees. Insurance usually falls too, sometimes noticeably, because a full licence holder is a lower risk than a learner on the same machine.

The trade-off is that you are still limited to 125cc, so if your plan is a bigger bike within a year, some riders skip A1 and wait until 19 to take the A2 test directly, riding on repeated CBT in the meantime. The maths depends on how many CBT courses you would need in the gap.

Moving up: A1 to A2 to A

Two years after passing A1 you can take the progressive route to A2: a practical test only, with no further theory test. Two years after that, at 21 or later, the same progressive route takes you from A2 to the unrestricted category A, again by practical test alone.

Compare that with the direct route, which requires a theory test and a practical on a large machine at 24. If you pass A1 at 17, you can hold a full unrestricted licence at 21 having never sat a second theory test. For a rider who starts young, progressive access is both cheaper and faster.

Read next: the A2 licence and the full A licence and Direct Access.

Choosing a 125 that holds its value

The 125 market is unusual: demand is constant because a new group of 17-year-olds arrives every year, so well-kept examples of the popular commuter models depreciate very slowly. Buy sensibly and a year of riding can cost you a few hundred pounds.

Look for a full service history, an unmarked frame, chain and sprockets with life left, and tyres with a date code from this decade. Insurance groups vary sharply within the class, so get a quote before you commit: two 125s with identical performance can differ by hundreds of pounds a year purely on styling.

Start with 125cc bikes for sale, or narrow it down by brand or location.