Police have warned that they will prosecute anyone found riding untaxed, uninsured and otherwise not road-legal motorbikes on the island’s public roads and green lanes.

The warning came after comments were posted on an online motocross forum – apparently by a 14-year-old island resident – claiming that it was not necessary to have a road-legal bike to use the upland tracks.

He suggested that to access the trails he regularly rides on the public roads on his machine – which may not be road-legal and in any event seemingly could not have the proper insurance because of their age.

Replying to a request for advice on where to ride from someone planning to visit the island, the teenager posted: ‘Ideally you could do with a road bike for linking up trails, however my bike isn’t a road bike as I’m only 14 and no one had any problems, walkers just smile and wave.’

Inspector Terry Stephen, of the roads policing unit, said police routinely stopped and checked vehicles if there was a suspicion that they were non-registered, unlicensed, uninsured or unroadworthy.

He said: ‘In order to clear up any ambiguity, all motor vehicles being used on a road or public place must be registered and licensed, insured and be road legal.

‘There are rare occasions when this doesn’t apply, for example the TT Races, where competitors are allowed to move race machines on a road in order to get to and from the start/finish, but in these cases there is a road traffic order authorising this and the ACU has insurance covering the competitors.

‘Enthusiasts who use the island’s green lanes and public rights of way, which are mostly unclassified roads, are not exempted from the law requiring motor vehicles to be fully road-legal, and anyone who uses a vehicle that is not road-legal does risk prosecution.’

Inspector Stephen pointed out that it may not always be possible at first glance to tell whether or not a motorbike, often caked in mud from riding the green lanes, was road legal.

He said: ‘Some people see an off-road motorcycle or a non-standard 4x4 vehicle and perhaps don’t see a number plate (usually because the vehicle is covered in mud) and they assume they are not road-legal, etc.

‘The Vehicle Test Centre examines many vehicles that are regularly used off road and they have to pass really stringent tests before they can be registered and used on a road.

‘Some of these vehicles have the appearance of a competition motorcycle, but they do comply with the law. It’s therefore really difficult to positively say whether a vehicle is totally fit for the road or not without testing it.’




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