Australian Legislation For Motorised Bikes

[ENO]

Thought I would start this thread for the Aussies as I did not see any that covered our Laws in Oz. I have copied and pasted the basics that OZBIKES have put out as they are informative and dont have any legal jargon and Mumbo Jumbo. I particularly used New South Wales legislature but other members can access their state from the same site and elaborate from there.

NEW SOUTH WALES www.zbox.com.au/legal.htm - 28k

*Motorised scooters and mini-bikes

In NSW any device with a motor must be registered for use on a road or road related area unless it is specifically exempt.

Motorised foot scooters, miniature motorbikes (mini-bikes) and other motorised recreational devices do not meet minimum Australian design standards for safety and so cannot be registered. This means they must not be used on roads or in any public areas such as footpaths, car parks and parks.

There are heavy penalties for using unregistered and uninsured vehicles. Police can also seize and take possession of unregistered vehicles.

There are some retailers who sell these vehicles and fail to warn customers that they cannot be used on roads or in public areas.

* Prohibited vehicles

The following vehicles (irrespective of the power output of the motor) are banned from use on roads or in public areas.
# Motorised foot scooters (with or without a seat) – electric/petrol engine
# Mini-bikes
# Motorised human transporters such as the WheelMan, or SEGWAY
# Motorised skateboards – electric/petrol engine

***EXEMPTIONS....THIS IS US

Motor assisted pedal cycles with electric or petrol engines are exempt from registration, provided the maximum engine output power does not exceed 200 watts. Riders must follow the same road rules as for pedal cycles without motors, including wearing a helmet.

Source: http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/usingroads/bicycle/index.html


Please start generating some questions and points that we can elaborate on so we can all be aware of the legislature and restrictions we have under the Law. Maybe we might know more about the legislature than the police who pull us up as I am sure most of those boys in blue focus on CRIME. We should all have a laminated (card) copy in our back pockets so we can quote after they fumble around with their own interpretations.

My questions would be:
(1) DO WE NEED TO HAVE COMPLIANCE PLATES TO PROVE OUR RIDE IS LEGAL UNDER THE ACT

(2) CAN THEY CONFISCATE IF THEY THINK IT IS (OR LOOKS) ILLEGAL.

(3) HOW WILL THEY ASSESS THE "WATTAGE" IF IT IS NOT INSCRIBED ON THE MOTOR ITSELF..THEY DONT CARRY "WATTAGE METERS" ON THEIR HIP DO THEY.

(4) DONT 48cc MOTORS HAVE THE SAME EXTERIOR DIMENSIONS AS THE 80cc MOTORS AND BASICALLY LOOK THE SAME.

(5) IS THERE A LIMITED SPEED THAT THE BIKE CAN DO, IT DOES NOT SPECIFY ANY MAXIMUM SPEED FOR THE "EXEMPTED" BIKE.

(6) CAN YOU HAVE YOUR BIKE TAGGED AS 48cc WITHOUT BREAKING ANY LAWS

(7) IF YOU ARE UNDER THE DESIGNATED SPEED LIMIT ON THE PUBLIC ROAD THEN THEY COULDNT REALLY BOOK YOU FOR SPEEDING COULD
THEY..YOU SHOULDNT BE DOING OVER 35-40KPH ANYWAY TO BE SAFE

(8) DO YOU NEED TO HAVE LIGHTS AND INDICATORS ON DAY RIDES

(9) DO YOU HAVE THE SAME RIGHTS AS OTHER VEHICLES ON PUBLIC THOROUGHFARES, EVEN THOUGH THERE IS A LAW TO SAY YOU DONT NEED TO BE REGISTERED.

(10) IS THERE OTHER DOCUMENTATION REGARDING THE ACT THAT IS MORE SPECIFIC IN REGARD TO YOUR RIGHTS AND LEGAL RESPONSIBILITY

Lets get very familiar with this Legislation and be able to quote it to police if need be. If there are any MBc members who are in the legal fraternity then we could do with some input and advice from them.
Like I have already said other members in other states should add to this thread as NSW laws do vary slightly from other state laws.

THANKS FOR THE TIME YOU SPENT READING THE INFO..LETS USE IT TO OUR ADVANTAGE IN THE FUTURE..........ENO (Down Under)

 

[heathyoung]

Another fellow novocastrian here...

(1) DO WE NEED TO HAVE COMPLIANCE PLATES TO PROVE OUR RIDE IS LEGAL UNDER THE ACT

This is a sticky one - there are a few manufacturers who are now putting stamped metal plates to indicate compliance - but there is no legal need (probably just makes life easier).

(2) CAN THEY CONFISCATE IF THEY THINK IT IS (OR LOOKS) ILLEGAL.

YES - Read the RTA guidelines - they have the power of seizure for a non-compliant vehicle.

(3) HOW WILL THEY ASSESS THE "WATTAGE" IF IT IS NOT INSCRIBED ON THE MOTOR ITSELF..THEY DONT CARRY "WATTAGE METERS" ON THEIR HIP DO THEY.

No, but with the bad press lately associated with these, its a pretty safe bet that you will be scruitinised. If you find a cop who has had a particularly bad day you may find it confiscated or in court.

(4) DONT 48cc MOTORS HAVE THE SAME EXTERIOR DIMENSIONS AS THE 80cc MOTORS AND BASICALLY LOOK THE SAME.

The bottom end is the same between the two, but the jug and head are different. Capacity is not marked though. If you got pulled over and the bike was seized, its a simple matter of removing the head and measuring bore and stroke.

(5) IS THERE A LIMITED SPEED THAT THE BIKE CAN DO, IT DOES NOT SPECIFY ANY MAXIMUM SPEED FOR THE "EXEMPTED" BIKE.

Yes - In SA - 25kph, but not in NSW.

(6) CAN YOU HAVE YOUR BIKE TAGGED AS 48cc WITHOUT BREAKING ANY LAWS

66cc is flat out illegal for starters just based on capacity - and 48cc will only save you from trouble if you can prove (as it states in the regulations) that the engine is limited to under 200W.

(7) IF YOU ARE UNDER THE DESIGNATED SPEED LIMIT ON THE PUBLIC ROAD THEN THEY COULDNT REALLY BOOK YOU FOR SPEEDING COULD
THEY..YOU SHOULDNT BE DOING OVER 35-40KPH ANYWAY TO BE SAFE

Not for speeding.... Its very easy to do 50kph+ on these without realising it.

(8) DO YOU NEED TO HAVE LIGHTS AND INDICATORS ON DAY RIDES

No - it is not a motorbike. Read the regs for a bicycle - the only things you must have to meet regs is one working brake and a bell (or horn etc).

(9) DO YOU HAVE THE SAME RIGHTS AS OTHER VEHICLES ON PUBLIC THOROUGHFARES, EVEN THOUGH THERE IS A LAW TO SAY YOU DONT NEED TO BE REGISTERED.

Yes - same as a bike, but cagers don't know the road rules do they?

(10) IS THERE OTHER DOCUMENTATION REGARDING THE ACT THAT IS MORE SPECIFIC IN REGARD TO YOUR RIGHTS AND LEGAL RESPONSIBILITY

Yes - the updated version on the RTA website - it is very specific about power outputs/capacity.

I've been looking into this heavily, and the main problem is that it is VERY difficult to limit one of these motors to 200W. Simple reason for that is they produce a lot of power down low - have a look at the power outputs on the .txt document - have a look at how low an rpm you have to limit the motor to get 200W.

Now consider the capacity of all of the '200W' motor kits - and think about the rpms they have - doesn't seem possible now does it :/

The only way you can get a HT to 200W is to get the 48cc and put a rev limiter of about 1800 rpm on it. Its possible to do this with a highpass filter (like an audio crossover) of a 1200uf cap in series with a 4 ohm 5W wirewound resistor across the killswitch wires - BUT the gearing would limit your top speed somewhat You would need a shift kit for the bike to be any use at all.

 

[heathyoung]

UGH - forgot to post the dyno results. This is for a 66cc and 48cc HT in standard configuration, and a 33cc whippersnipper engine.

These are projected results, the engines curves are calculated by a cubic equation: HP= c+ax+bx2+cx3 where x is the RPM. The reality is pretty similar on a dyno. Output is at crankshaft.