Motorcycle Licenses Were More Difficult Than the Bar Exam: The 1975 Restriction Removal Bound Riders for 21 Years

Yes, today I'll be talking about the motorcycle licensing system.

There have been two major revisions to motorcycle licenses. The first was in 1975, and the second in 1996. Today, I'd like to focus on the 1975 revision.

What happened with this 1975 revision? Simply put, the maximum motorcycle size an ordinary person could ride was capped at 400cc.

If you wanted to ride a larger motorcycle, for example, a 750cc, you had to take a test to remove the restriction. Furthermore, this wasn't a test you could take after attending a driving school course. You had to go to a testing center and take it in one go, and the pass rate was said to be only 1 percent.

And surprisingly, this situation continued for nearly 21 years, until 1996.

In this video, I'll start by explaining why such a system was created. Next, we'll discuss what that system did to Japanese motorcycles, and finally, who ended it. We'll cover these topics in this order.

So, let's begin.

Chapter 1: The Era Called the Traffic War

First, let's look at what the era before 1975 was like.

In Japan, from the 1950s (Showa 30s), the number of deaths from traffic accidents increased dramatically. The number of Japanese soldiers killed in the First Sino-Japanese War was 17,282 in two years. The number of deaths was increasing at a rate that threatened to surpass that. That's why it came to be called the "traffic war." It wasn't just a metaphor; it was literally compared to the number of war casualties.

The number of deaths peaked in 1970 (Showa 45). In that year, 16,765 people died in traffic accidents in Japan. This figure is from the National Police Agency's Traffic White Paper.

And, it was precisely during that era that Japanese motorcycles suddenly became powerful.

In 1969, Honda released the CB750FOUR. It was an air-cooled, four-stroke, inline four-cylinder motorcycle with a displacement of 736cc and a maximum output of 67 horsepower. It was the world's first mass-produced four-stroke, four-cylinder motorcycle.

Then, in 1973, Kawasaki released the 750RS, the so-called Z2. It had a 746cc engine and 69 horsepower. It was originally a 900cc Z1 sold in America, but scaled down to 750cc for the Japanese market.

As you can see, incredible motorcycles kept coming out one after another.

There's one important point to keep in mind here. At the time, 750cc was the upper limit for motorcycles sold in Japan. This wasn't a law, but a self-imposed restriction by manufacturers. Around 1969, when the CB750FOUR was released, an agreement was made that motorcycles exceeding 750cc would not be sold domestically.

So, for Japanese motorcyclists, a 750cc bike wasn't just a big bike; it was the highest-end bike available domestically.

And, this top-of-the-line bike was incredibly popular with biker gangs.

The models they favored are quite specifically documented. In the 1970s, popular models included the Honda CB750FOUR, Kawasaki 750RS, 750SS MACH, Suzuki GT750, and Yamaha TX750.

As you may have noticed, they're all 750cc bikes.

Of course, not everyone who rode these bikes was a biker gang member. However, their large groups, roaring around and making a lot of noise, were very conspicuous, and accidents occurred. It became a major social problem. That's when the government finally took action.

Chapter 2: What Changed on October 1, 1975

The license reform took place on October 1, 1975, Showa 50.

At that time, part of the Road Traffic Act Enforcement Regulations was amended, and the motorcycle license, which had previously been divided into only one category, was split into three.

These were: a small-sized license (up to 125cc), a medium-sized license (up to 400cc), and an unrestricted license.

The crucial point here is that while the small and medium-sized licenses could be obtained at a driving school, the unrestricted license could not. You had to go to a driver's license examination center and take a one-shot test.

This is what is known as the famous, infamous, "restriction removal" test.

Incidentally, what happened to people who had obtained a motorcycle license before this amendment? They were able to continue holding their unrestricted license. Therefore, there was a lucky generation that could ride 750cc motorcycles without ever having taken a test for larger bikes. Some of you might have had fathers like that.

Now, how difficult was the restriction removal test?

There are several distinctive tasks in the motorcycle skills test. Even today's large motorcycle license test includes a straight, narrow course where you maintain balance at low speed—the so-called "single-plank bridge" course. Then there's a course with continuous lane changes, navigating between cones—a slalom course. There's also a course on a wavy surface, and finally, a sudden stop from a specified speed.

Back then, you were suddenly given these tasks at the test c...