Road Traffic (Drivers' Ages and Hours of Work) Act 1976

1 Amendment of Road Traffic Act 1972 as to drivers' licences and the minimum age of drivers.

(1) Section 4 of the [1972 c. 20.] Road Traffic Act 1972 (offence of driving under age) is hereby repealed and Part III of that Act (ordinary driving licences) shall, subject to Schedule 2 to this Act, have effect with the substitution for section 96 (disqualification of persons under age) of the following—

“96 Disqualification of persons under age.

(1) A person is disqualified for holding or obtaining a licence to drive a motor vehicle of a class specified in the following Table if he is under the age specified in relation thereto in the second column of that Table.

TABLE

Class of motor vehicle	Age (in years)
1. Invalid carriage	16
2. Motor cycle	16
3. Small passenger vehicle or small goods vehicle	17
4. Agricultural tractor	17
5. Medium-sized goods vehicle	18
6. Other motor vehicles	21

(2) The Secretary of State may by regulations provide that subsection (1) above shall have effect as if for the classes of vehicles and the ages specified in the Table thereto there were substituted different classes of vehicles and ages or different classes of vehicles or different ages.

(3) Subject to sub-paragraph (4) below, regulations under subsection (2) above may—

(a) apply to persons of a class specified in or under the regulations;

(b) apply in circumstances so specified;

(c) impose conditions or create exemptions or provide for the imposition of conditions or the creations of exemptions;

(d) contain such transitional and supplemental provisions (including provisions amending section 110, 124 or 188(3) of this Act as the Secretary of State considers necessary or expedient.

(4) For the purpose of defining the class of persons to whom, the class of vehicles to which, the circumstances in which or the conditions subject to which regulations under subsection (2) above are to apply where an approved training scheme for drivers is in force, it shall be sufficient for the regulations to refer to a document which embodies the terms (or any of the terms) of the scheme or to a document which is in force in pursuance of the scheme.

(5) In subsection (4) above—

• " approved " means approved for the time being by the Secretary of State for the purpose of regulations under subsection (2) above;

• " training scheme for drivers " means a scheme for training persons to drive vehicles of a class in relation to which the age which is in force under this section but apart from any such scheme is 21 years;

but no approved training scheme for drivers shall be amended without the approval of the Secretary of State.”

(2) Schedule 1 to this Act (which contains consequential and other amendments including amendments about heavy goods vehicle drivers' licences) shall have effect.

(3) Schedule 1 to this Act shall be treated, in so far as it amends sections 85, 107 and 110 of the [1972 c. 20.] Road Traffic Act 1972, as having had effect since the beginning of 1976—

(a) for authorising the grant of driving licences authorising the driving of motor vehicles of any class since that time by reference to the classes of vehicles and the ages specified in section 96 of that Act as substituted by subsection (1) above; and

(b) for the interpretation of such licences;

and any regulations made by virtue of those amendments may have effect accordingly.

(4) Schedule 2 to this Act (which contains saving provisions) shall also have effect.

(5) The enactments specified in Part I of Schedule 3 to this Act (which includes some which are spent) are hereby repealed to the extent specified in the third column of that Schedule.